Shaul Magid | |
---|---|
Born | June 16, 1958 |
Academic background | |
Alma mater | Goddard College, Hebrew University, Brandeis University |
Academic work | |
Sub-discipline | Jewish Studies |
Institutions | Rice University,Jewish Theological Seminary,Indiana University,Dartmouth College |
Website | https://faculty-directory.dartmouth.edu/shaul-magid |
Shaul Magid (born June 16,1958 [1] ) is the Distinguished Fellow in Jewish Studies at Dartmouth College. From 2004-2018,he was a professor of religious studies and the Jay and Jeannie Schottenstein Chair of Jewish Studies in Modern Judaism at Indiana University as well as a senior research fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute. [2] From 1996-2004,he was a professor of Jewish philosophy at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America;he was chair of the Department of Jewish Philosophy from 2000-2004.
Magid received his B.A. from Goddard College. He received his semicha (rabbinical ordination) in Jerusalem in 1984 from Rabbis Chaim Brovender,Yaacov Warhaftig,and Zalman Nechemia Goldberg. He became a candidate Fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute and a graduate student in Medieval and Modern Jewish Thought at Hebrew University,where he completed his MA in 1989. He obtained his Ph.D. in Jewish thought from Brandeis University in 1994. [3] [4]
Magid served as a visiting professor at University of Massachusetts Amherst,Clark University and Boston University. He was the Anna Smith Fine Chair in Jewish Thought at Rice University from 1994–1996 and then joined the faculty of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America before leaving for Indiana University. [5] In 2023-2024,Magid was a Visiting Professor of Modern Jewish Studies at the Harvard Divinity School. [6]
Major research grants include a 2015-2106 research fellowship at the Katz Center for Advanced Judaic Studies at The University of Pennsylvania and 2017-2018 National Endowment for the Humanities,Senior Fellowship at the Center for Jewish History for a book project on "American Jewish Survivalism:Meir Kahane and the Politics of Pride." [7] He is an elected member of the American Academy of Jewish Research.
He has served as the rabbi of the Fire Island Synagogue since 1997. [8] He is a former contributing editor at Tablet Magazine and is the editor of Jewish Thought and Culture for Tikkun Magazine .
Magid's books include:
His book From Metaphysics to Midrash was awarded the 2008 American Academy of Religion Award for best book in religion in the textual studies category. [9] He is the editor of God's Voice from the Void:Old and New Essays on Rabbi Nahman of Bratslav (SUNY Press,2001) and co-editor of Beginning Again:Toward a Hermeneutic of Jewish Texts (Seven Bridges Press,2002). [10] His essays have been published in Moment Magazine ,Open Zion, Religion Dispatches , Tablet Magazine ,Tikkun Magazine,and Zeek Magazine.
Following the publication of The Necessity of Exile,Magid became a prominent voice for American Jews who wish to rethink the place of Zionism in their Jewish identities,recentering Judaism over nationalism and calling for "a return to religion as 'always the thing that's going to keep us together.'" [11] In his review of The Necessity of Exile published in TheIsrael Journal of Foreign Affairs, [12] Michael Wegier,Chief Executive of the Board of Deputies of British Jews,wrote:"The author’s central argument revolves around the idea that for the State of Israel and the Palestinians to achieve any kind of ethically justifiable,long-term future,traditional notions of exile need to be deeply integrated into Israeli thought and practice. Whereas classical Zionism prioritized the negation of the Diaspora and sought to downplay or even neutralize the legitimacy of exilic existence,the realities of Israel,especially after 1967,have demonstrated this to be morally wrong,practically unsustainable,and theologically flawed. Magid posits that an alternative ideological force—“counter-Zionism”—needs to be adopted to help bring about a new model of Israel that embraces narratives other than those of classic liberal Zionism."
In May 2024,Magid co-convened (with Terrence L. Johnson) an academic conference:"Jews and Black Theory:Conceptualizing Otherness in the Twenty-First Century." He gave opening remarks and chaired a session entitled,"Blackness,Whiteness,and Double Consciousness." [13]
Magid grew up as a non-observant Jew in New York when,at the age of 20,he became interested in learning more about Judaism. He became involved with the Haredi movement and studied Modern Orthodoxy,but after several years he "...abandoned Orthodoxy more generally yet remained fascinated by,and deeply invested in,the complex nexus of Judaism and the American counter-culture". [14] He is often quoted on such issues in the popular press;for instance,he recently discussed Jerry Garcia and the Grateful Dead in relation to Judaism,speaking from the perspective of "an ordained rabbi and a professor of Jewish and religious studies at Indiana University who was also present for the Dead’s legendary performance on the grounds of Raceway Park in Englishtown,New Jersey on Sept. 3,1977." [15]
Abraham Joshua Heschel was a Polish-American rabbi and one of the leading Jewish theologians and Jewish philosophers of the 20th century. Heschel,a professor of Jewish mysticism at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America,authored a number of widely read books on Jewish philosophy and was a leader in the civil rights movement.
Meir David HaKohen Kahane was an American-born Israeli ordained Orthodox rabbi,writer,and ultra-nationalist politician who served one term in Israel's Knesset before being convicted of acts of terrorism. He founded the Israeli political party Kach. A cofounder of the Jewish Defense League (JDL),he espoused strong views against antisemitism.
Meshullam Zalman Schachter-Shalomi,commonly called "Reb Zalman",was one of the founders of the Jewish Renewal movement and an innovator in ecumenical dialogue.
Modern Orthodox Judaism is a movement within Orthodox Judaism that attempts to synthesize Jewish values and the observance of Jewish law with the modern world.
Joseph Ber Soloveitchik was a major American Orthodox rabbi,Talmudist,and modern Jewish philosopher. He was a scion of the Lithuanian Jewish Soloveitchik rabbinic dynasty.
Martin Buber was an Austrian-Jewish and Israeli philosopher best known for his philosophy of dialogue,a form of existentialism centered on the distinction between the I–Thou relationship and the I–It relationship. Born in Vienna,Buber came from a family of observant Jews,but broke with Jewish custom to pursue secular studies in philosophy. He produced writings about Zionism and worked with various bodies within the Zionist movement extensively over a nearly 50-year period spanning his time in Europe and the Near East. In 1923,Buber wrote his famous essay on existence,Ich und Du,and in 1925 he began translating the Hebrew Bible into the German language reflecting the patterns of the Hebrew language.
Asher Zvi Hirsch Ginsberg,primarily known by his Hebrew name and pen name Ahad Ha'am,was a Hebrew journalist and essayist,and one of the foremost pre-state Zionist thinkers. He is known as the founder of cultural Zionism. With his vision of a Jewish "spiritual center" in Eretz Israel,his views regarding the purpose of a Jewish state contrasted with those of prominent figures within the Zionist movement such as Theodor Herzl,the founder of political Zionism. Unlike Herzl,Ahad Ha'am strived for "a Jewish state and not merely a state of Jews".
Jewish religious movements,sometimes called "denominations",include diverse groups within Judaism which have developed among Jews from ancient times. Today in the west,the most prominent divisions are between traditionalist Orthodox movements and modernist movements such as Reform Judaism originating in late 18th century Europe,Conservative originating in 19th century Europe,and other smaller ones,including the Reconstructionst and Renewal movements which emerged later in the 20th century in the United States.
Neo-Hasidism,Neochassidut,or Neo-Chassidus,is an approach to Judaism in which people learn beliefs and practices of Hasidic Judaism,and incorporate it into their own lives or prayer communities,yet without formally joining a Hasidic group. Over the 20th century neo-Hasidism was popularized by the works of writers such as Hillel Zeitlin,Martin Buber,Abraham Joshua Heschel,Lawrence Kushner,Zalman Schachter-Shalomi,and Arthur Green.
Religious Zionism is an ideology that views Zionism as a fundamental component of Orthodox Judaism. Its adherents are also referred to as Dati Leumi,and in Israel,they are most commonly known by the plural form of the first part of that term:Datiim. The community is sometimes called 'Knitted kippah',the typical head covering worn by male adherents to Religious Zionism.
Zvi Yehuda Kook was an ultranationalist Orthodox rabbi. He was the son of Abraham Isaac Kook,the first Ashkenazi chief rabbi of British Mandatory Palestine. Both father and son are credited with developing Kookian Zionism,which became the dominant form of Religious Zionism. He was Rosh Yeshiva (dean) of the Mercaz HaRav yeshiva.
Yonassan Gershom is a Rabbi and writer who was ordained in the Jewish Renewal movement during the 1980s,and is now a follower of Breslov Hasidism. He was associated with the early days of the B'nai Or movement,a forerunner of Jewish Renewal,in which he was ordained by Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi in 1986,although he is not in agreement with the direction that the movement has taken in more recent years.
David Hartman was an American-Israeli leader and philosopher of contemporary Judaism,founder of the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem,Israel,and a Jewish author.
From the founding of political Zionism in the 1890s,Haredi Jewish leaders voiced objections to its secular orientation,and before the establishment of the State of Israel,the vast majority of Haredi Jews were opposed to Zionism,like early Reform Judaism,but with distinct reasoning. This was chiefly due to the concern that secular nationalism would redefine the Jewish nation from a religious community based in their alliance to God for whom adherence to religious laws were "the essence of the nation's task,purpose,and right to exists," to an ethnic group like any other as well as the view that it was forbidden for the Jews to re-constitute Jewish rule in the Land of Israel before the arrival of the Messiah. Those rabbis who did support Jewish resettlement in Palestine in the late 19th century had no intention to conquer Palestine and declare its independence from the rule of the Ottoman Turks,and some preferred that only observant Jews be allowed to settle there.
Vayoel Moshe is a Hebrew book written in 1961 by Rabbi Joel Teitelbaum,founder of the Satmar Hasidic movement. In it,Teitelbaum argues that Zionism is incompatible with Judaism.
Shalom Hartman Institute is a Jewish research and education institute based in Jerusalem,that offers pluralistic Jewish thought and education to scholars,rabbis,educators,and Jewish community leaders in Israel and North America. The institute aims to promote pluralism and liberal values in Israel and the Jewish diaspora and to preserve the democratic character of Israel. Hundreds of rabbis and Jewish lay leaders from North America attend the institute's programs each year.
Orthodox Jewish philosophy comprises the philosophical and theological teachings of Orthodox Judaism. Though Orthodox Judaism sees itself as the heir of traditional rabbinic Judaism,the present-day movement is thought to have first formed in the late 18th century,mainly in reaction to the Jewish emancipation and the growth of the Haskalah and Reform movements. Orthodox Jewish philosophy concerns itself with interpreting traditional Jewish sources,reconciling the Jewish faith with the changes in the modern world and the movement's relationships with the State of Israel and other Jewish denominations.
Moshe Idel is a Romanian-born Israeli historian and philosopher of Jewish mysticism. He is Emeritus Max Cooper Professor in Jewish Thought at the Hebrew University,Jerusalem,and a Senior Researcher at the Shalom Hartman Institute.
Yehuda Kurtzer is President of the Shalom Hartman Institute. He has written and lectured widely on Jewish history,Jewish memory,leadership in American Jewish life,and the relationship between American Jews,Israel and Zionism. In 2012,he was named one of the "36 under 36 young educators,thinkers,social justice activists,philanthropists and artists reinventing Jewish life" by The Jewish Week.