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Papers by Yehezkel Landau

SUNY Press eBooks, Jul 24, 2008

Liverpool University Press eBooks, Oct 7, 2009

Routledge Handbook on the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, 2012

Shofar, 2007

Israel: An Echo of Eternity, by Abraham Joshua Heschel. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1967. Abraham ... more Israel: An Echo of Eternity, by Abraham Joshua Heschel. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1967. Abraham Joshua Heschel's The Sabbath is a classic in religious literature, weaving together theology, philosophy, biblical commentary, rabbinic storytelling, and practical spirituality, all in luminous prose. It is a book about holiness in time that is itself timeless. Readers a hundred or five hundred years from now will be savoring Heschel's ideas and the elegance with which they are conveyed. Can the same be said of Heschel's lengthy meditation on sacred geography, Israel: An Echo of Eternity? With deep sadness I would say, unfortunately not. My lament is prompted partly by my profound admiration for Heschel, whom I consider one of my most influential teachers and role-models. For me, as for so many others, he was a modern prophet-not only in his writings, which echoed the biblical prophets so powerfully, but also in the way he engaged the social issues of his time. In general I f...

... Informal discussions can supplement official negotiations ... proclaimed, for over ten years,... more ... Informal discussions can supplement official negotiations ... proclaimed, for over ten years, that the Qur'an forbids the killing of innocent men, women, and children ... A peaceful settlement between Israel and Palestine will spread peace and blessing to the whole world, especially the ...

Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Jewish Studies, 2009

Vol. 26, No. 1 ♦ 2007 information. We must strive to awaken appreciation as well” (p. 236). There... more Vol. 26, No. 1 ♦ 2007 information. We must strive to awaken appreciation as well” (p. 236). Therefore, Heschel seeks to capture the essence of education, in the broadest sense, and specifically to articulate the features of an active and effectual religious education. The basic function of religious education is to “dedicate, to consecrate . . . the ability to experience the suffering of others, compassion and acts of kindness; sanctification of time, not the mere observance of customs and ceremonies; the joy of discipline, not the pleasures of conceit; sacrifice not casual celebrations; contrition rather than national price” (pp. 236–37). Religious education, which must emerge from dynamic religious thinking and pedagogy, must not function as a mere supplement to secular education; any form of religious education that looks to secular or scientific reasoning for directives or approval is fundamentally lost. “In the face of fabulous progress made in secular civilization, the religious man became obsessed with an excessive inferiority complex” (p. 230). Religious education must not allow itself to be marginalized as a relic of antique reasoning. The vitality of religious education is to be found in the fact that its message is not old, but eternal. Therefore, if religious education finds itself peripheral to the changing fashions of secular reason, it has failed to articulate that its message is always relevant, engaged in a process of renewal at all times. Religious education awakens man to the ultimate source, possibility, and responsibility of freedom. To read Heschel’s The Insecurity of Freedom is to be reminded that freedom is not a concept which is easily understood or a simple reality which is easily granted. Nor is it a tool or ideological device meant to divide humanity. Freedom comes from choices and struggles of men and women engaged in everyday life who reveal in their actions that humanity can be more than it is in the eyes of other men, but can in fact be a humanity in the eyes of God. Heschel’s point is that each human life is not a trivial point of fleeting interest, but instead that each human life offers the possibility for realizing the “uniqueness and sacred preciousness of man” (p. 16), a uniqueness that comes to life in the work of freedom. Monika Elliott Warsaw University

Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Jewish Studies, 2010

Abraham's Journey: Reflections on the Life of the Founding Patriarch, by Joseph B. Soloveitch... more Abraham's Journey: Reflections on the Life of the Founding Patriarch, by Joseph B. Soloveitchik, edited by David Shatz, Joel B. Wolowelsky, and Reuven Ziegler. Jersey City: KTAV Publishing House, 2008. 224 pp. $25.00. This volume on the biblical patriarch Abraham is the ninth in the MeOtzar HoRav series, faithfully edited by students of Rabbi Soloveitchik (1903-1993), the revered leader of modern Orthodox Jewry in America. "The Rav," as he is commonly called, was a masterful Talmudist, a brilliant philosopher, and a legendary teacher. A group of Soloveitchik's students worked diligendy to produce this series from handwritten manuscripts and audiotapes of his lectures. The volume is superbly edited, allowing a giant in modern Jewish thought to posthumously "speak" to a wider audience on fundamental issues of Jewish identity, history, and destiny. Rabbi Soloveitchik's perspective reflects the traditional view of Abraham as a paradigmatic role model for Jews everywhere and at any time. Jewish tradition sees the Genesis narratives about the patriarchs and matriarchs as prototypical lessons for their descendants. The classic expression of this hermeneutical principle is that of Nachmanides, paraphrased as "ma'aseh avot siman la-banim" - the life events of our Biblical ancestors are "signs" or instructive precedents for later generations of Jews. Rabbi Soloveitchik, as an ardent teacher and defender of hakkhah, does on occasion link a virtuous practice exemplified by Abraham to the normative system of mitzvot developed over centuries by Rabbinic sages. But the book is not a treatise on Jewish law; it is, instead, an extensive philosophical meditation on what it means to be Jewish, throughout history and in our time, in light of the Genesis stories and later commentaries. Some of Soloveitchik's philosophical and psychological categories are applicable to anyone, Jewish or non-Jewish. For example, Soloveitchik makes a vital distinction between goral (fate), what circumstances dictate, and yi'ud (destiny), a faith journey pursued through deliberate choice, often in opposition to societal norms and at great sacrifice. Abraham demonstrates heroic fidelity to his evolving destiny, serving as an iconoclastic pioneer who sets a spiritual and ethical example for his descendants. Lovingkindness (chesed) and hospitality (hakhnasat orchim) are character traits traditionally associated with Abraham, and Soloveitchik examines how they are exemplified in specific actions. This kind of ethical wisdom, contextualized for our time, is a practical resource for anyone seeking to live a faithful Jewish life. What is more problematic, at least for this reviewer, is Soloveitchik's isolationist understanding of Jewish identity and his negative attitude toward the cultures and values of non-Jews. His spiritually segregationist stance, idealizing loneliness as a tragic Abrahamic virtue to be embraced by Jews, is evident in Soloveitchik's other writings, most famously Tfoe Lonely Man of Faith. His article "Confrontation," advocating humanitarian cooperation with non-Jews but opposing dialogue on spiritual or theological concerns, was written for the journal Tradition in the mid-1960s in response to Vatican II and the Catholic Church's radically new understanding of Judaism. For Rabbi Soloveitchik, or for any Jew of his generation who witnessed the horrors of the Shoah, such a tragic worldview is understandable. But it is also lamentable and should be challenged in our own time by a more pluralistic and less defensive stance toward non-Jews. For it is one thing - harsh fate/goral - when others force Jews into physical ghettos; but it is another - self-limiting destiny /yi'ud - when Jews create their own spiritual ghettos and deem them normative habitats in which to live, raise their children, and engage the rest of the world. For Soloveitchik (p. 181),"[t]he destiny of Avraham ha-Ivri, the lonely Abraham, has always accompanied the Jews. …

Studies in Christian-Jewish Relations, 2011

Even though the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is primarily a political dispute between two nations... more Even though the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is primarily a political dispute between two nations over a common homeland, it has religious aspects that need to be addressed in any effective peacemaking strategy. The peace agenda cannot be the monopoly of secular nationalist leaders, for such an approach guarantees that fervent religious believers on all

SUNY Press eBooks, Jul 24, 2008

Liverpool University Press eBooks, Oct 7, 2009

Routledge Handbook on the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, 2012

Shofar, 2007

Israel: An Echo of Eternity, by Abraham Joshua Heschel. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1967. Abraham ... more Israel: An Echo of Eternity, by Abraham Joshua Heschel. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1967. Abraham Joshua Heschel's The Sabbath is a classic in religious literature, weaving together theology, philosophy, biblical commentary, rabbinic storytelling, and practical spirituality, all in luminous prose. It is a book about holiness in time that is itself timeless. Readers a hundred or five hundred years from now will be savoring Heschel's ideas and the elegance with which they are conveyed. Can the same be said of Heschel's lengthy meditation on sacred geography, Israel: An Echo of Eternity? With deep sadness I would say, unfortunately not. My lament is prompted partly by my profound admiration for Heschel, whom I consider one of my most influential teachers and role-models. For me, as for so many others, he was a modern prophet-not only in his writings, which echoed the biblical prophets so powerfully, but also in the way he engaged the social issues of his time. In general I f...

... Informal discussions can supplement official negotiations ... proclaimed, for over ten years,... more ... Informal discussions can supplement official negotiations ... proclaimed, for over ten years, that the Qur'an forbids the killing of innocent men, women, and children ... A peaceful settlement between Israel and Palestine will spread peace and blessing to the whole world, especially the ...

Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Jewish Studies, 2009

Vol. 26, No. 1 ♦ 2007 information. We must strive to awaken appreciation as well” (p. 236). There... more Vol. 26, No. 1 ♦ 2007 information. We must strive to awaken appreciation as well” (p. 236). Therefore, Heschel seeks to capture the essence of education, in the broadest sense, and specifically to articulate the features of an active and effectual religious education. The basic function of religious education is to “dedicate, to consecrate . . . the ability to experience the suffering of others, compassion and acts of kindness; sanctification of time, not the mere observance of customs and ceremonies; the joy of discipline, not the pleasures of conceit; sacrifice not casual celebrations; contrition rather than national price” (pp. 236–37). Religious education, which must emerge from dynamic religious thinking and pedagogy, must not function as a mere supplement to secular education; any form of religious education that looks to secular or scientific reasoning for directives or approval is fundamentally lost. “In the face of fabulous progress made in secular civilization, the religious man became obsessed with an excessive inferiority complex” (p. 230). Religious education must not allow itself to be marginalized as a relic of antique reasoning. The vitality of religious education is to be found in the fact that its message is not old, but eternal. Therefore, if religious education finds itself peripheral to the changing fashions of secular reason, it has failed to articulate that its message is always relevant, engaged in a process of renewal at all times. Religious education awakens man to the ultimate source, possibility, and responsibility of freedom. To read Heschel’s The Insecurity of Freedom is to be reminded that freedom is not a concept which is easily understood or a simple reality which is easily granted. Nor is it a tool or ideological device meant to divide humanity. Freedom comes from choices and struggles of men and women engaged in everyday life who reveal in their actions that humanity can be more than it is in the eyes of other men, but can in fact be a humanity in the eyes of God. Heschel’s point is that each human life is not a trivial point of fleeting interest, but instead that each human life offers the possibility for realizing the “uniqueness and sacred preciousness of man” (p. 16), a uniqueness that comes to life in the work of freedom. Monika Elliott Warsaw University

Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Jewish Studies, 2010

Abraham's Journey: Reflections on the Life of the Founding Patriarch, by Joseph B. Soloveitch... more Abraham's Journey: Reflections on the Life of the Founding Patriarch, by Joseph B. Soloveitchik, edited by David Shatz, Joel B. Wolowelsky, and Reuven Ziegler. Jersey City: KTAV Publishing House, 2008. 224 pp. $25.00. This volume on the biblical patriarch Abraham is the ninth in the MeOtzar HoRav series, faithfully edited by students of Rabbi Soloveitchik (1903-1993), the revered leader of modern Orthodox Jewry in America. "The Rav," as he is commonly called, was a masterful Talmudist, a brilliant philosopher, and a legendary teacher. A group of Soloveitchik's students worked diligendy to produce this series from handwritten manuscripts and audiotapes of his lectures. The volume is superbly edited, allowing a giant in modern Jewish thought to posthumously "speak" to a wider audience on fundamental issues of Jewish identity, history, and destiny. Rabbi Soloveitchik's perspective reflects the traditional view of Abraham as a paradigmatic role model for Jews everywhere and at any time. Jewish tradition sees the Genesis narratives about the patriarchs and matriarchs as prototypical lessons for their descendants. The classic expression of this hermeneutical principle is that of Nachmanides, paraphrased as "ma'aseh avot siman la-banim" - the life events of our Biblical ancestors are "signs" or instructive precedents for later generations of Jews. Rabbi Soloveitchik, as an ardent teacher and defender of hakkhah, does on occasion link a virtuous practice exemplified by Abraham to the normative system of mitzvot developed over centuries by Rabbinic sages. But the book is not a treatise on Jewish law; it is, instead, an extensive philosophical meditation on what it means to be Jewish, throughout history and in our time, in light of the Genesis stories and later commentaries. Some of Soloveitchik's philosophical and psychological categories are applicable to anyone, Jewish or non-Jewish. For example, Soloveitchik makes a vital distinction between goral (fate), what circumstances dictate, and yi'ud (destiny), a faith journey pursued through deliberate choice, often in opposition to societal norms and at great sacrifice. Abraham demonstrates heroic fidelity to his evolving destiny, serving as an iconoclastic pioneer who sets a spiritual and ethical example for his descendants. Lovingkindness (chesed) and hospitality (hakhnasat orchim) are character traits traditionally associated with Abraham, and Soloveitchik examines how they are exemplified in specific actions. This kind of ethical wisdom, contextualized for our time, is a practical resource for anyone seeking to live a faithful Jewish life. What is more problematic, at least for this reviewer, is Soloveitchik's isolationist understanding of Jewish identity and his negative attitude toward the cultures and values of non-Jews. His spiritually segregationist stance, idealizing loneliness as a tragic Abrahamic virtue to be embraced by Jews, is evident in Soloveitchik's other writings, most famously Tfoe Lonely Man of Faith. His article "Confrontation," advocating humanitarian cooperation with non-Jews but opposing dialogue on spiritual or theological concerns, was written for the journal Tradition in the mid-1960s in response to Vatican II and the Catholic Church's radically new understanding of Judaism. For Rabbi Soloveitchik, or for any Jew of his generation who witnessed the horrors of the Shoah, such a tragic worldview is understandable. But it is also lamentable and should be challenged in our own time by a more pluralistic and less defensive stance toward non-Jews. For it is one thing - harsh fate/goral - when others force Jews into physical ghettos; but it is another - self-limiting destiny /yi'ud - when Jews create their own spiritual ghettos and deem them normative habitats in which to live, raise their children, and engage the rest of the world. For Soloveitchik (p. 181),"[t]he destiny of Avraham ha-Ivri, the lonely Abraham, has always accompanied the Jews. …

Studies in Christian-Jewish Relations, 2011

Even though the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is primarily a political dispute between two nations... more Even though the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is primarily a political dispute between two nations over a common homeland, it has religious aspects that need to be addressed in any effective peacemaking strategy. The peace agenda cannot be the monopoly of secular nationalist leaders, for such an approach guarantees that fervent religious believers on all