As a child, Ra'anan Boustan was fascinated by ancient Greek culture and literature. Then, as a young scholar, he was excited to see how those stories intersected with the history of his Jewish background. He began studying the Greek-speaking Jewish diaspora in the ancient Mediterranean world, focusing on how Jews navigated political empires and engaged with their non-Jewish neighbors. That has led him to a wide variety of research topics.
Boustan is also site historian for the Huqoq Excavation Project in Israel's Lower Galilee region. Nearly every archeological season for the last several years, he has joined the excavation team at the ruins of a large synagogue built in the late fourth century CE. The team has uncovered extraordinary floor mosaics that feature biblical and historical stories. The discoveries include the earliest known depictions of the Prophet Deborah and Jael, the woman who killed a Canaanite general with a tent peg.
We caught up with Boustan for the latest edition of Office Hours, a Q&A series that introduces new Yale faculty members to the broader community.
| Title | Associate Professor of Jewish Studies at Yale Divinity School |
|---|---|
| Research interest | Ancient Jewish religion and culture in the Mediterranean context |
| Prior institution | Princeton University |
| Started at Yale | July 2025 |
Why is the study of ancient Judaism important for a predominantly Christian institution like YDS?
Ra'anan Boustan: YDS is a wonderful combination of being intellectually serious and socially engaged. People take very seriously the value of understanding the historical experience that is foundational for later religious traditions and for textured engagement with biblical texts and authoritative traditions. But they are also always thinking about how that knowledge can inform religious life and the ethical obligations of people in contemporary religious communities. That's an ideal place for someone like me.
Given the religious and political tensions of the current moment, what opportunities do you see here?
Boustan: I want to engage in the work of educating and being a dialogue partner, but also addressing potential fractures among different groups, including Jewish students who may feel that their voices are not heard or respected. There are so many fractures between communities and within communities. That struggle is not something that has to be suppressed but is an opportunity for mutual understanding, engagement, and conversation. I'm hopeful that, as I settle in here, I can find collaborations to address what I know is under the hood for a lot of people. People should be able to express themselves, albeit with respect and care. So, I'm hoping that we can come back into those conversations in a more productive way.
Tell us about your work at the Huqoq Excavation site.
Boustan: It's been an incredible privilege to bring my expertise as a historian of Judaism to material and visual evidence that is fresh from the ground. When the floor mosaics were discovered, it was mind-blowing because the floor was incredibly well preserved and quite different from what we though we knew about ancient synagogue art. What emerged at Huqoq was a kind of heroic mode of biblical storytelling that encompassed not just men, but women as well. It was unprecedented.
I've been able to participate in the archeological process, to inspect the visual material up close, help clean items, and do some of the technical measurements. Being in that space and being able to imagine yourself in the ancient landscape is really important for asking questions, not just about the iconography but also about what it might have meant within the liturgy or for the lived experience of Jewish communities in late Roman Galilee.
What are you enjoying most about New Haven?
Boustan: I grew up in the Boston area, and New Haven feels surprisingly familiar, but the scale is much smaller. You can be in the woods almost instantly from downtown. Biking in New Haven, while sometimes frightening, allows me to explore from one side of the city to the other. I can get around inside a whole urban space that's manageable but has everything contained in it.
