On Being Chosen

(5784) (Monday) A philosophical journey articulating what it means for the Jewish people to be a chosen nation. The course explores data from Tanakh, Talmud, Midrash, medieval and modern thinkers, and culminates in the author’s attempt to formulate an account of election informed by the weight of the Jewish tradition that can stand up in the face of philosophical and ethical scrutiny. We will then examine the ramifications of this theory for Halakha, for Zionism, for our conception of the Messiah and the eschaton, and for the relationship between Judaism and other religions.