Many thinkers have argued that western culture is based on two great ancient civilizations: Greece and Israel. The Greeks established the foundations of western philosophy, politics and science. Judaism introduced monotheism and a commitment to the value of the human being created in the divine image. At times the Greek and Hebrew aspects of western culture appear to co-exist happily; at other times, there is a disturbing tension between them.

This course gives you the chance to explore the theme of ‘Athens and Jerusalem’ by looking in depth at the works of some of the greatest Jewish philosophers: Maimonides (Rambam), Mendelssohn, Heschel, Levinas and Soloveitchik. Some of the issues we will consider include:

·          Was Aristotle a stronger influence than rabbinic tradition on Maimonides? How does Heschel’s God differ from that of the Greek philosophers?

·          What is radical about Levinas’s translations of talmudic texts into ‘Greek’, the language of western philosophy?

·          Are Soloveitchik’s classic texts Halachic Man and Lonely Man of Faith more Greek than Jewish?

Get credit for this course - if you write three essays for this course, you can qualify for an LSJS certificate or diploma.

Teaching faculty

Dr Simon Cooper

R. Dr Michael Harris

Michael Pollak

Dr Tamra Wright

visiting guest lecturers

Study times & term dates

Tues 8:00pm – 9:30pm

1st term: 26 Oct – 14 Dec 2010

2nd term: 18 Jan – 15 Mar 2011

3rd term: 17 May – 12 Jul 2011

Course Fee £250

Book by Wednesday 15 September 2010 and get £25 off any year-long course

Book online anytime and save £5 www.lsjs.ac.uk