Bronfman Chair at Brandeis- Breaking News
JTA (and inside sources) report that Brandeis has selected a winner in their competition for Bronfman Visiting Chair in Jewish Communal Innovation (i.e., “the next big idea in Jewish life”). According to this article “the idea is based on the contest held by Sears Roebuck and Co. chairman Julius Rosenwald in 1929, in which Rosenwald offered $10,000 to the person who could answer the question: ‘How can Judaism best adjust itself to and influence modern life?’ Sixty-two contestants answered the question over two years, until Rabbi Mordechai Kaplan, the founder of Reconstructionist Judaism, submitted his work ‘Judaism as a Civilization’ and won.”
Mazal tov, Yehuda!
Brandeis names competion winner
Brandeis University selected a Harvard graduate student as the winner in its competition for a visiting professorship and book deal, JTA has learned.
Yehuda Kurtzer, who is finishing his doctorate in Jewish history at Harvard University, won for his proposal, “Shuva: the Sacred Task of Rebuilding Jewish Memory.”
Brandeis and the Andrea and Charles Bronfman Philanthropies offered a two-year visiting professorship and a book deal to the person who could come up with the best proposal for a book that would transform the way Jews think about themselves and Judaism.
Kurtzer’s book would be a combined history, theological statement and prescription for programming that can help Jews access their history through text study to create meaningful Jewish experiences, Kurtzer said Sunday at a Brandeis symposium for the five finalists in the competition. The open competition garnered 231 applicants.
The school would not comment on the selection until after the official announcement.
Here’s the winning proposal. But can someone explain (in practical terms) what it’s about?
—BZ · February 27th, 2008 at 4:48 pm
Kurtzer’s book would be a combined history, theological statement and prescription for programming that can help Jews access their history through text study to create meaningful Jewish experiences, Kurtzer said Sunday at a Brandeis symposium for the five finalists in the competition. The open competition garnered 231 applicants.
Wow! How incredibly novel! history through text study (with no doubt a focus on all those people who tried to kill us!) The Jewish institutional forces of business as usual strikes again!
—Kol Ra'ash Gadol · February 27th, 2008 at 5:06 pm
I’m just pissed we’ll never get to learn what’s *really* on Shmuely Boteach’s mind.
Dang.
—rokhl · February 27th, 2008 at 6:21 pm
I’d be fascinated to know, like BZ, what he’s actually talking about doing . . . other than write a book about how what Jews remember about the past is different than the actual past and thats ok. Anyone have any insight?
—Sarah · February 28th, 2008 at 1:47 pm
That was horribly masturbatory and painful to read. I pity whoever winds up taking his class or reading his book. And I’m annoyed that the actually interesting proposals by Beery and Singer got pushed aside so that Brandeis could hand a 2-year professorship to someone that otherwise clearly never would have wound up in academia- a freaking grad student.
—Friar Yid · February 29th, 2008 at 1:06 am
Gotta agree that this sounds uninspired.
We’ve only been concerned with making Jewish history and tradition accessible for like, what? 3000 YEARS?
Still, I’ll reserve a real judgment till I see the fruits of said labors. Of course, my knee-jerk reaction says a Harvard grad student’s brain ain’t the best place to find revolutionary ideas that will liberate young Jewish minds from the confines of overinstitutionalized thinking.
—Goyisher Yid · February 29th, 2008 at 4:25 pm
Probably worth pointing out that he is part of the Boston-based Jewish academic community that chose the prize-winner — a doctoral candidate in Jewish Studies at Harvard, teacher at Hebrew College Rabbinical School, davens at Washington Square Minyan in Brookline, member of the Pluralism Advisory Board for the Jewish Community Day School of Greater Boston.
I’m just saying…
—llc · March 3rd, 2008 at 12:47 pm
llc- Actually that just makes the whole farce of Brandeis actually pretending they’re trying to “think outside the box” all the more infuriating.
—Friar Yid · March 6th, 2008 at 3:35 am
Just a note to all of you who are out to see the worst in this decision: I have known Yehuda for some time, and he is one of the most brilliant, out-of-the-box thinkers I have ever met. He will go far with or without this chair, but the fact that his proposal was chosen over those of several other well-known finalists (not to mention the other 200+ submissions) should be an indication that his thoughts are worth hearing. Give him a chance rather than prejudging him based on your own biases.
—cem · March 23rd, 2008 at 10:43 am