Institute for Jewish Thought

The Tikvah Institute for Jewish Thought at The Jewish Theological Seminary is an academic program devoted to a searching intellectual encounter between the best sources of Jewish thought and broader Western reflection on the deepest problems of human life. The Institute organizes seminars devoted to Jewish thought.

The Tikvah Institute of JTS is supported by the Tikvah Fund. The Tikvah Institute will cooperate with existing Tikvah projects at Princeton University, NYU Law School, and the University of Toronto.

Further information about the Tikvah Institute is available by contacting Dr. Alan Mittleman, director of the Tikvah Institute, at (212) 678-8054.

2010–2011 Programs

Rabbinic Seminars (2010–2011 Academic Year)

The Tikvah Institute for Jewish Thought launched a series of four seminars for selected congregational rabbis. They focused on broad moral themes that have both contemporary urgency and Jewish dimensions.

The seminars took place at Glen Cove Mansion Hotel and Conference Center, in Glen Cove, Long Island.

The general goal of the seminars was to enrich the capacity of a group of intellectually talented rabbis to think about the great cultural issues of our time in sophisticated ways, to bring Jewish thought to bear on the issues, to educate their congregants more effectively about these matters, and to build a network of persons who will continue to strengthen one another's rabbinates. The program helped to realize the vision of The Jewish Theological Seminary to wed scholarship to leadership and social engagement, as well as to stimulate Jewish thinking about matters of contemporary moral urgency.

The program was in accord with the vision of the Rabbinical Assembly (RA), the association of more than 1,600 Conservative rabbis to which the participants belong, to build and strengthen the totality of Jewish life. Rabbinical Assembly members serve Jewish communities throughout the world from an outlook that brings religious and scholarly study to bear on an evolving contemporary practice of Judaism. RA members, in addition to serving congregations' educational and communal institutions, lead organizations that link Jewish community and values to the larger society.

For more information about the program, please contact Bobbi Raphael (boraphael@jtsa.edu) and check back here for updates about future rabbinic seminars.

Past Public Lectures

Enjoy a list of podcasted, past Tikvah Institute events.

Tikvah Institute Course on Contemporary Jewish Philosophy and Theology

In fall 2011, the Tikvah Institute continue to offer its signature course on "Contemporary Jewish Philosophy and Theology in America." The course will run for one semester. Admission to the course is by permission of the instructor, Dr. Alan Mittleman.

Ten students were selected as "Tikvah Fellows" This year's Tikvah Fellows are:

• Aaron Lucas
• Ariel Greenberg
• Ariela Wenger
• Benjamin Resnick
• David Friedland
• Jonathan Huberman
• Linda Levi
• Maria Junttila Carson
• Noah Leavitt
• Zachary Silver

The course will focus on the work of living Jewish philosophers and theologians. The novelty of the course is that several of the authors whom students will read will visit JTS to hold a special seminar with the students on their work. Students will get the chance to study and converse with today's leading Jewish thinkers.

This year's visiting teachers include:

• Professor Leora Batnitzky
• Professor Michael Morgan
• Rabbi Shai Held
• Rabbi Elliot Cosgrove
• Rabbi William Plevan

Leadership

Dr. Alan Mittleman is director of the Tikvah Institute for Jewish Thought and a professor of Jewish Philosophy at The Jewish Theological Seminary. Dr. Mittleman is the author of Hope in a Democratic Age and other works.

Contact Us

For questions about the Tikvah Institute, please email Dr. Alan Mittleman or Bobbi Raphael, or call (212) 280-6124.