LITERATURE + LECTURES

The Jewish Community Center of Houston presents The Center for Jewish Living and Learning 2010 Inaugural Summer Scholar Series:   A Jewish Take on World Issues.  Scholar: Dr. Alick Isaacs.

Dr. Alick Isaacs (pictured) is a research fellow at the Hartman Institute's Kogod Centre for Contemporary Jewish Thought, teaches at the Melton Centre for Jewish Education at the Hebrew University and serves as the editor of religious affairs at the interdisciplinary journal Common Knowledge. He is also director of the Talking Peace project, which works to expand the circles of people talking about Middle East peace in Israeli society. 

Schedule of Lectures:

Opening Lecture: A Jewish Take on Universal Humanity
Monday, June 14 · 8:00 PM
What is universal about Western culture and does the Jewish tradition have its own unique articulations of universalism?

Mid Residency Lecture: A Jewish Take on Feminism
Sunday, June 20 · 7:30 PM
What issues must the feminist movement address in the Jewish tradition? Is there a place of authenticity for feminist thought in classical Jewish literature?

Closing Lecture: Israel and the Modern World
Wednesday, June 23 · 8:00 PM
Why has self-preservation dominated the Jewish agenda in modernity? How have Jewish thinkers defined their purpose in the past and to what extent is it self-serving?

In addition to his public lectures, Dr. Isaacs will be offering a series of salon-style lectures in private homes. If you are interested in attending any of these lectures please contact Jonathan Fass at 713-729-3200 ext. 3257.

Tuesday Evening, June 15 : A Jewish Take on Aristotle
Medieval Jewish philosophers, such as Maimonides, sought to fit Judaism within the dictates of Aristotelian philosophy. How does Maimonides’ work harmonize and diverge from this philosophical tradition? Does Maimonides have something uniquely and authentically Jewish to say about Rationalism?

Wednesday Evening, June 16: A Jewish Take on Peace
The notion of political peace was defined in modern society by Immanuel Kant in his classic treatise Perpetual Peace. In it Kant is very critical of the Jewish tradition and its vengeful God. Was Kant's reading of Jewish thought justified? Does the Jewish Tradition have a special contribution to make to the world in its efforts to establish a political condition of “perpetual peace?"

Thursday Evening, June 17: A Jewish Take on Community
Does community have a special meaning in the Jewish tradition or is it only a community that happens to be made up for Jews?

Monday Evening, June 21: A Jewish Take on Progress
How does Judaism innovate? Is Judaism’s process of innovation unique?

Tuesday Evening, June 22: A Jewish Take on the Philosophy of Ludwig Wittgenstein
Raised as a Catholic but with Jewish ancestry, Ludwig Wittgenstein is considered one of the most important philosophers of the twentieth century. Was Wittgenstein's great secret in life his private relationship with the Jewish tradition?

National Endowment for the HumanitiesThis program is made possible in part by a grant from Humanities Texas, a state partner of the National Endowment for the Humanities.