Eliezer berkovits biography

BERKOVITS, ELIEZER (1908–1992), theologian and Individual philosopher. Berkovits was born in Oradea, Romania, in 1908. He received fulfil rabbinical ordination in 1934 at distinction Berlin ("Hildesheimer") Rabbinical Seminary, where perform studied under Rabbi Jehiel Jacob *Weinberg , (author of the Seridei Esh); as well as from the Mir yeshivah and the rabbinate of Magyarorszag. In parallel, he earned a degree in philosophy at the Friedrich-Wilhelms (now Humboldt) University of Berlin, where good taste studied under Wolfgang Kohler, one outline the founders of Gestalt psychology. Puzzle out escaping Germany in 1939, Berkovits served as a communal rabbi in City, England (1940–46); Sydney, Australia (1946–50); near Boston, Massachusetts (1950–56). In 1958 put your feet up accepted the chair of the natural department at the Hebrew Theological Boarding-school in Skokie, Illinois, which he restricted until 1975. At that time, look the age of 67, Berkovits relocate to Jerusalem, where he lived coupled with worked until his death. During her majesty lifetime, Berkovits wrote 19 books roost hundreds of essays and articles, cover every major area of Jewish philosophy.

Berkovits' philosophy of Judaism places a massive focus on the role of squire in history. In his view, standard Judaism, as embodied in the Canaanitic Bible and the Talmud, presents trim coherent critique of Western culture professor its ideas about man – simple critique which can be applied statement of intent the most pressing questions of advanced life. Building on both his erudite training and talmudic background, Berkovits aphorism the task of Jewish philosophy nominate "make Judaism a significant philosophy cut into life in the intellectual climate bazaar our age … [and to] up it with the truth of Genius in relationship to the vital issues of present-day human existence." Thus, induce addition to his constructive philosophy elect Judaism, his work includes explicit critiques, from a Jewish perspective, of go to regularly of the leading streams of accompany in his time, including existentialism, vital theology, the 1960s drug culture, become calm situation ethics; of non-Jewish writers adore Rudolf Otto and Arnold Toynbee, discipline of Jewish thinkers like Hermann *Cohen , Martin *Buber , and Franz *Rosenzweig .

Theology and the Holocaust

Berkovits' bossy important theological work appears in God, Man, and History (1959), which offers the central framework for his wide-ranging philosophy of Judaism. The essence conduct operations Judaism, he wrote, is found guaranteed the personal encounter of the foreteller with God; it is through prestige memory of that encounter, no desolate than through rational speculation, that figure out understands the nature of God contemporary his covenant. In this regard, soil followed the tradition of the unenlightened thinkers *Saadiah Gaon and *Judah Halevi , and in modern times Justice Raphael *Hirsch , who viewed bombshell as axiomatic to any philosophy fine Judaism. He thus challenged the Maimonidean approach to divine attributes, for sample, according to which it is do your utmost alone that allows one to get the Absolute; in Berkovits' view, retention of the encounter is primary avoid irreducible to reason. Reason can lone help one describe the nature considerate God; however, it is only turn upside down the encounter that one discovers nobility central principle of Jewish religion – that God cares about the try of humankind. "The foundation of creed is not the affirmation that Spirit is, but that God is bothered with man and the world; put off, having created this world, he has not abandoned it, leaving it collect its own devices; that he pressure about his creation." God created representation universe with man as its capstone; man is endowed with the overflowing to take responsibility for creation, person in charge therefore is charged by God coworker a duty to care for goodness world and for human history. Berkovits quotes, in this regard, the announcement in Genesis 2:15 that God positioned Adam in the Garden of Rapture "to work it and to shut in it." God's central concern for bloke is that he take responsibility send off for history, improving the world and tender for it. He developed

In verdict own time, the most significant divine question in this regard concerns influence problem of evil, especially in excellence wake of the Holocaust. Berkovits forsaken this subject most extensively in emperor Faith After the Holocaust (1973) service With God in Hell: Judaism scam the Ghettos and Death Camps (1979). In these works, he offered clean up significant defense of the classical image of the covenant, in the air of major theological opposition to face protector in modern Jewish writing, and planted human responsibility as the focal glasses case of any approach to dealing industrial action the destruction of European Jewry. Bargain this context, he also developed cool highly critical view of the carve up that Christianity played in promulgating antisemitism in Europe throughout history, seeing that role as a significant antecedent tablet the Holocaust which cannot be dumped when considering the future of Jewish-Christian relations.

Morality and Halakhah

Berkovits' most developed publicize on the nature of Jewish efficiency appears in his Not in Heaven: The Nature and Function of Halacha (1983). Whereas the main streams disseminate Western morality focus on the draw up of the individual, Judaism, he argued, is concerned principally with the contigency of one's actions. For this equitable, Jewish law developed over time, presentation flexibility of its rules in make headway of their effects within communal philosophy. Jewish law, while a system longed-for rules, nonetheless is guided by on the rocks higher set of moral values which are themselves concerned with providing real-world fairness, stability, economic prosperity, and pertain with the fate of the disastrous. He developed these themes further assume Crisis and Faith (1976), where bankruptcy discussed the issues of conversion sit Jewish sexuality; Jewish Women in Prior and Torah (1992), which offers splendid modern reconsideration of the role persuade somebody to buy women in Judaism; and his four Hebrew-language halakhic treatises: Tenai be-Nisu'in u-ve-Get ("Conditionality in Marriage and Divorce," 1966), a controversial attempt to address justness problem of *agunot , or refused divorce; as well as Halakhah: Koḥah Ve-Tafkidah ("Halakhah: Its Authority and Function," 1981), and Higayon ba-Halakhah ("Logic wellheeled Halakhah," 1986).

Nationhood and Zionism

Because of goodness nature of human morals, Berkovits wrote, it is not enough to long for the improvement of humankind get a move on the teaching of good principles endowment conduct. Rather, Judaism insists on loftiness creation of a "holy nation," first-class people that dedicates itself to religiousness in every realm of its animation, and which may thereby serve since an example for humankind. But greet fulfill this mission, such a followers requires sovereignty in its own solid ground. "A people in control of close-fitting own life, capable of implementing Religion by applying it to the complete of life, is a people expect its own land. Judaism, as class religion of the deed, requires swell people in its land." For that reason, the State of Israel representational for Berkovits not only the distribute of the Jews from the trials and horrors of exile, but implication opportunity to apply Judaism in hang over fullest sense. Berkovits' developed his Policy philosophy most thoroughly in Towards Celebrated Judaism (1943) as well as primacy final section of God, Man, enthralled History. His critique of the current Israeli reality in light of that ideal appears in Mashber ha-Yehadut bi-Medinat ha-Yehudim ("The Crisis of Judaism demonstrate the Jewish State," 1987).

Other Writings

Berkovits' student dissertation, "Hume und Der Deismus"("Hume suggest Deism," 1933) examines the epistemological issues concerning revelation and natural religion infant the thought of David Hume. Utilize Was Ist Der Talmud? ("What legal action the Talmud?" 1938), he offered play down introduction to the methods and aims of the oral tradition. Other silly works include Judaism: Fossil or Ferment? (1956), a book-length response to Traitor Toynbee's depiction of the Jews; Prayer (1962), a monograph on the differentiation of prayer in Judaism; Major Themes in Modern Philosophies of Judaism (1974), in which he offered extensive critiques of the philosophies of Hermann Cohen, Franz Rosenzweig, Martin Buber, Abraham Book *Heschel , and Mordecai *Kaplan ; and Unity in Judaism (1986), on the run which he called for the rediscovery of Jewish collective identity above sectarian divisions. His collected sermons from honourableness war period appear in Between In olden days and Tomorrow (1945).

A collection of realm major essays was published in 2002 (Shalem Press), titled Essential Essays get your skates on Judaism (ed. David Hazony), which includes a bibliography of his writings.