The Modern Jewish Peace Tradition: From Prophecy to Politics

Catalog description

This course explores the evolving meanings of shalom—peace—in modern Jewish thought and political life. Beginning with a brief overview of classical and rabbinic formulations of peace as divine harmony and moral obligation, we trace how contemporary Jewish thinkers, theologians, and activists have reinterpreted peace across contexts of modernity, nationalism, and conflict. From prophetic ethics and utopian socialism to the paradoxes of Zionism and the Israeli peace camp, students engage with theological, anthropological, and political debates that reveal peace as a deeply contested but enduring ideal. Readings combine theology, political theory, ethnography, and peace studies to illuminate how Jewish traditions of dialogue, justice, and moral restraint continue to shape the pursuit of coexistence in Israel/Palestine and beyond.