My residence buddy Rena recommended his class. I learned about the city from her, and she depended on me to keep pounding on her door till she rose for her 8:30 class. I was interested in archaeology, and she assured me I'd love Dr. Kassis's class. I did.
I learned eventually that Rena was Jewish; her mother had escaped from a death camp, and my friend kept putting off a promise to take me to her house for a visit because her mom was having another bad day.
Today the funeral of Dr. Kassis was held in the Anglican Cathedral on Burrard. I was surprised to learn he was a Christian. Back in 1967, I had only the sketchiest notion of the background of this Gaza-born Harvard-trained professor who went on to spend so many years teaching at UBC. A professor emeritus, he taught Hebrew language and Religious Studies as well as archaeology. He was a great member of the UBC and wider community, and will be sadly missed. An obituary by Douglas Todd in The Vancouver Sun calls him a "Canadian pioneer in Islamic Studies."
Rest in peace, Hanna Kassis.
I took a 'Biblical and Near Eastern Archaeology' course from Dr. Kassis circa '84 or '85. He was a fascinating, easy-to-listen-to lecturer. I thought he was a Muslim but was also surprised to learn from the above obits that he was a Christian. In retrospect I wished my schedule would have allowed me to take more courses from him.
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