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Articolul analizează consecinţele mutaţiei profunde a mentalităţii şi a raporturilor religie-etică-politică din Israel de la sfărşitul anilor 60 asupra tipului de raţionalitate care a stat la baza deciziei privind cucerirea Ierusalimului Vechi în cursul Războiului de Şase Zile, hotărâre ce revelează o abordare mai degrabă normativistă, deontologică, a procesului decizional al guvernului israelian, pentru a demonstra un caz de excepţie privind funcţionarea în practică, într-o situaţie decizională de criză, cu mize potenţial vitale pentru securitatea naţională a unui stat, a unui mecanism decizional diferit de ceea ce în literatura de specialitate poartă numele de RAM (Rational Actor Model), mecanism ce antrenează ca motivaţii, explicite sau nu, principii şi imperative altele decât cele care ţin strict de resortul logic al balanţei costbeneficiu în raport cu scopul urmărit.
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The psychology of evil is considered from an evolutionary point of view: participation in evil is the unwanted, but inevitable result of the interaction between adaptive processes whose primary purpose is to optimize information processing, alleviate suffering, facilitate group inclusion and help us cope with the awareness of our own mortality. The roles that obedience to authority and coping with extreme life situations, as illustrated by the works of Stanley Milgram and Robert Jay Lifton, play in the dynamic of participation in evil, are emphasized. Specific references are made to the Holocaust, considered a prototypical example of evil.
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Studiul se angajează să sondeze un teritoriu mai puţin exploatat şi “înţeles” de către cercetătorii de istorie şi critică literară, acela al reprezentării evreului în opera lui Liviu Rebreanu, clasic al romanului românesc. În scopul urmărit, au fost alese nuvela Iţic Ştrul dezertor şi romanele Ion, Răscoala şi Pădure spânzuraţilor. Urmărind portretul fizic dar şi moral al unor personaje reprezentative precum soldatul Iţic Ştrul, hangiul Avrum, învăţătorul Lang, ziaristul Roşu sau locotenentul Gross, fără a emite judecăţi de valoare, studiul oferă ocazia unei incursiuni in lumea vastă a stereotipurilor despre evrei, atât culturale cât şi religioase, prezente în opera lui Rebreanu şi în literatura română în general, lăsând cititorul să-şi tragă singur concluziile.
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The article proposes an incursion into the evolution of the notions of poverty and charity and their approaches in the Jewish tradition, from the ancient times to the Middle Ages. In the Judaic outlook the issue of poverty and charity is as old as the world and it is taken very seriously. The poor are to be viewed with compassion and assisted: the act of giving is seen as a God commanded duty for the giver and an entitlement for the receiver. However, Judaism does not encourage voluntary poverty as a form of piety, and enjoins the receivers not to make a habit out of it and become dependent and a burden on the others. Rabbinic sources regard poverty as a misfortune, not as something to be exalted. But the term’s significance and use, as well as the types of charity practiced in the Jewish communities across the world, diversified along the time. In his age, Moses Maimonides was already counting an eight-degree “ladder of charity”. The article reviews this evolution and analyzes the importance granted to the various types of charity, whether private or communal: giving money and offering other kinds of support (like remunerated work), ransoming the captives and helping needy wayfarers, assisting women and waving debtors’ dues, etc. A special section of the article is devoted to the place held by poverty and charity in Jewish mysticism, starting from the works of Moses Cordovero and Isaac Luria
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The evolution from slum to quarter can be read and interpreted from several perspectives: linguistically (the evolution from the Turkish ‘mahale’ to the French ‘quartier’, which is also a landmark of a change in cultural patterns); historically (the development of the Jewish minority in Bucharest); spacewise (the change of the living location, from the center to the outskirts of the city, in close connection with the shift in the perception of the Jew in society, as a result of the nationalist rhetoric, but also of his real financial power); or socially (the desire for professional growth, the adoption of new crafts and the further extension to new areas of the city). The word ‘mahala’ has Balkan roots and echo
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In Eastern Europe, the collapse of communism brought about a beginning of memory and a compensatory glorification of the pre-Communist age. In some cases, and from the narrow perspective of several politically sensitive topics from the national past, subjects on which the Communists were typically as silent as the nationalists, the process started before 1989. During the last two decades, many historians simply followed the previous mainstream and remained attached to the national-communist mythology and paradigm that outlived the regime. This paper is a critical overview of the Romanian historiography concerned with the extremely sensitive, nonetheless of an utmost centrality, issue of the German expansion in Eastern Europe between 1938 and 1944, and the Romanian response to it, a theme for which the historical facts, at least in the traditional sense, though not scarce, are often obliterated and kept at the mercy of ideological conflict and dogma. The aim is to describe and comment on some of the most significant Romanian historical writings on this issue, on several articles and monographs elaborated at different moments and from different ideological perspectives, to underline their content, identify the theoretical backgrounds and genuine ideas of the authors, and critically analyse their message. In addition, I will reconsider from a different perspective the validity of their claims and highlight their interpretative and explanatory gulfs. This kind of approach might help us understand why even some western scholars, though familiar with Romanian history, in the attempt to avoid the logic of the nativists, the ideological frame, and the proposed ready-made images, while confronting the influent and persuasive Romanian second literature, fall into the trap, and accept the canon, perspectives and explanations provided by Romanian historiography.
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The founder of Dadaism – Tristan Tzara – had the opportunity to present his view on the role of surrealism in the aftermath of World War II in Bucharest, in 1946. On that occasion he emphasized – in the country which he had left – that “Dada was first and foremost a moral movement”. In our hypothesis, the origin of his beliefs on the horrors of war and on the Holocaust can be sought not just in his adhesion to the rationality and morality of the ethical-political project proposed by modernity but also in his adhesion to the writings of the prophets of the People of Israel – Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Isaiah – who were the first to foresee, along history, the notion of open moral. In its name Tzara condemned the catastrophic perils befalling human condition, at a time when the barbarity of the crematoria tended to suppress the most elementary moral.
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The aim of this article is to answer some questions concerning “Cultural Judaism” and “Cultural Zionism” in the theological, philosophical and ideological thought of Rabbi Dr. Jacob Isaac Niemirower (1872-1939), a moderate Reform Rabbi and doctor of philosophy, who was Chief Rabbi of Romanian Jewry (1921-1939). We attempt to explain how Niemirower’s ideas fit into the general framework of Jewish thought. Rabbi Dr. Jacob Isaac Niemirower was influenced in his ideas by the religious Jewish reform in Germany – the country in which he studied –, by the thesis of Achad Haam (“Cultural Zionism”), and by Simon Dubnov (“Spiritual Nation”). He tried to unite the idea of the political nation with that of the Jewish spiritual nation, proposing a middle way, Jabneism, that is, Jabnean Pan-Judaism, and the foundation of a Jabnean Academy in Jerusalem as a central Israelite Academy. Rabbi Niemirower’s thesis is interesting for the research of the history of Judaism and Zionism in East-Central Europe in the first three decades of the 20th century.
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Ales de Dumnezeu pentru cea mai nobilă slujire din lume, genial, chiar şi transcenzând propria alegere, Israel este cel care a sculptat în bazaltul strălucitor al istoriei nu doar extraordinara epopee a rezistenţei şi a victoriei în faţă răului, a tenebrelor şi a neputinţei, dar mai ales cel care a dăruit lumii viziunea cea mai clară, universală şi optimă asupra muncii. Capitalist feroce sau socialist revoluţionar, creştin practicant sau evreu tradiţionalist, musulman umil sau african naţionalist, toţi fără excepţie valorizează munca prin ochii lui Iacob cel neînfricat, care s-a războit cu Iahve şi cu nesfârşitul şi aridul deşert şi mereu a câştigat
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The article follows the changes in the condition of the Jews within the larger frame of the transformations underwent by the entire society as the Ottoman Empire turned into the Turkish Republic and the subsequent developments until World War II. For nearly half a millennium the Ottoman Turks ruled a functioning polyethnic and multireligious empire. But thing were about to change with its disintegration at the end of the 19th century, following the birth of nationalism and the nationalist movements. For the majority population itself, the transition from “Ottomanism” to “Turkishness” was not easy, since they had never defined themselves as “Turks”, but as loyal subjects to the Ottoman dynasty. As for the Jews, after moving from the status of a protected minority to that of ‘equal citizens’ (thus loosing their selfadministration autonomy) in the aftermath of World War I they started being regarded with suspicion, especially due to their interest in the Westernization process, but also under the influence of the newly discovered “Turkish national feelings”. Still, despite the complicated evolution of the new republic’s society in general and of the Jews’ condition in particular during the interwar period, Turkey was one of the very few countries that regarded Jews with benevolence in World War II. As such, many felt hurt when a part of the Jewish population decided to immigrate to the State of Israel after its establishment
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The following pages are meant to give the reader an insight into a much-debated topic in the last decades of the 20th, and an ever-growing one in the current century. The study deals with private roles played by the ancient Near Eastern woman, all placed not in patterns, but in contexts, and following the peculiarities of different civilizations. Out of concern not to offer the reader a sole angle of the issue, the author quotes legal codes and literary works of the time, adding an extra flavor given by modern archaeological findings. By use of biographical presentation, the girl and the woman are literally watched as they grow and develop under the authority of the law and the protection of a male presence. The condition of the daughter, the wife and the widow are dealt with consequently, by discussing their legal position and, sometimes, the paradigms they fall into.
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Starting from the same primary textual source, the biblical text of Genesis, and under the equal influence of Gnostic literature, Judaism and Christianity developed the Paradise theme along similar lines. It is remarkable that the very time frame when these thematic developments took place was similar. What made the major difference was the theme’s application. In the Jewish environment, it was limited to mystical speculation, and in a later phase it slid into folklore; while in Christianity it was translated, from an early stage, into the secular area: from literature to social, political or artistic realities. In the Islamic case, which lacked canonical textual basis, it was limited to folkloric literature and immediate reality
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Lucrarea de faţǎ aduce în discuţie evenimentele care au avut loc la Bucureşti în zilele de 21–24 ianuarie 1941, cunoscute sub numele de Pogromul Legionar, cu scopul de a prezenta rezultatele prelucrǎrii informaţiei gǎsite în dosarele de deces ale victimelor din arhiva Institutului de Medicinǎ Legalǎ “Mina Minovici”. Studiul încearcă sǎ surprindă un portret al victimelor, alcǎtuit din elemente precum: vârsta, genul, religia, naţionalitatea, locul naşterii, locul morţii, data morţii, profesia, protecţiunea şi starea civilǎ, pentru a oferi un cadru de analizǎ mai larg decât cel cunoscut până acum. Prima parte a lucrării propune o reconstituire a contextului istoric în care a avut loc Pogromul Legionar, prin menţionarea evenimentelor care l-au precedat şi anticipat, a iniţiativelor economice, legislative şi instituţionale instituite împotriva evreilor, în timpul statului naţional-legionar, subliniind modalitǎţile prin care aceste iniţiative au fost puse în practicǎ şi consecinţele care le-au urmat. Cea de-a doua parte este axatǎ pe rezultatele propriu-zise ale cercetǎrii.
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This paper is one of a series of studies about Sefer ha-Bahir, portraying its various layers in terms of their historical contexts, stylistic characteristics, and various theological topics that arise therefrom. The paper begins with the description of a stylistic feature found in the Babylonian layer of Bahir: a dialogue of intellectual dueling between master and disciples. Through analysis of several passages describing such dueling, as well as of similar passages in Sefer Razah Rabbah (whose similarity to Sefer ha-Bahir was already noted by Scholem), we find that, in practice, these describe a process of initiation conducted by the master for his disciples. The master repeatedly puts his disciples to the test, seeking to ascertain their knowledge of the structure of the upper world. Once the disciples have successfully completed their period of initiation, they are sent on an independent journey of descent to the Merkavah, upon whose successful completion both heaven and earth rejoice. If, at the beginning of our study, the master is seen as behaving harshly towards his students, criticizing and embarrassing them, by the end it becomes apparent that this was no more than staged anger on the part of the master, who is in fact imbued with love towards his disciples; or else a group dynamic agreed by both sides, whose purpose is to prepare the disciples for their dangerous journey heavenwards.
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Scopul acestui articol este acela de a prezenta evoluţia relaţiei controversate dintre Luther şi evrei, de la admiraţia declarată la instigările făţişe la persecuţie. Această involuţie este analizată şi sub aspectul raportării la exegeza tradiţională rabinică, dar şi din punct de vedere istoric, ţinând cont de faptul că Electorul de Saxonia şi protectorul lui Luther a interzis în 1536 evreilor să stabilească pe teritoriul său. În acest context, Luther a refuzat să intervină în favoarea evreilor, în ciuda insistenţelor lui Josel din Rosheim acesta fiind considerat de Heiko Oberman ca fiind punctul de cotitură în involuţia atitudinilor lui Luther faţă de evrei. Un capitol special este rezervat pamfletului antisemit al lui Luther Despre evrei şi minciunile lor, scris în anul 1543, cu trei ani înainte de moarte. Perspectiva academică dominantă, după cel de-al doilea război mondial, este aceea că tratatul a exercitat o influenţă majoră şi persistentă asupra atitudinii Germaniei faţă de cetăţenii săi evrei în secolele dintre Reformă şi Holocaust. În această carte Luther recomandă ca evreii să fie lipsiţi de bani, drepturi civile, învăţături religioase şi educaţie şi să fie forţaţi să muncească pământul, să fie expulzaţi din Germania şi, dacă este posibil, omorâţi. Istoricul american Lucy Dawidowicz consideră că linia descendenţei antisemite de la Luther la Hitler este „uşor de trasat”, iar Robert Michael evidenţiază implicaţiile criminale ale antisemitismului lui Luther. În concluzie, Martin Luther a avut o influenţă durabilă şi nefastă asupra raportării germanilor faţă de evrei, girând cu autoritatea sa religioasă crimele naziste.
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The purpose of this article is to assess the extent to which the myths of recent history are replaced by a rational discourse, based on historical documents and using an explanatory paradigm in which both the executioner and the victim form the main relationship. The misconceptions regarding the ethnic minorities or the reactions to certain historical events in which the “Romanian People” was in the losers’ camp are still numerous and active in many citizens’ conscience. The main means for disseminating a minimal knowledge on the Holocaust are the mass media, the educational programmes in the field of history, the historiographical works – some destined to primary and secondary school teachers and students, others to the public at large –, as well as the testimonies of the victims, bystanders or executioners. After decades of history interpretation from the standpoint of a triumphal nationalism, the re-interpretation of the so-called sensitive periods has been slow and met with acceptance reluctance. The analysis shows that studies minimizing the Holocaust in Romania still exist. These examples play a part in preserving a perverted image of the Holocaust of the Romanian Jews within the collective conscience, by maintaining, even indirectly, the myth of Ion Antonescu – seen as a nation saviour, and bring forth the need for the study and learning of the Holocaust of the Romanian Jews within the rigors set by historical sciences.
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This article re-examines the fundamentals of Jewish philosophy, attempting to understand its place in light of general philosophy and religious philosophy. It describes how Jewish philosophy was born out of the meeting between Middle-Eastern culture and the West, establishes three time periods for Jewish philosophy, and explains how these time periods have changed in the modern period as scientific thought and post-modernism took over the traditional role of philosophy. The article discusses as well the three categories which encompass the arena of Jewish thought. Periodically there are attempts to discuss the meaning of Jewish philosophy but rarely do these discussions go back to the fundamentals and assess what has taken place over the past 2200 years since the first treatise of Jewish philosophy was written just after the Greek conquest. The article is the first chapter of a book which Dr. Shuchat is preparing on Jewish Philosophy entitled “Jewish Faith in a Changing World”.
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In the National Museum of Romanian Literature’s archive there is a set of photographs depicting Mihail Sebastian and Mircea Eliade, aged 25, amidst a group of friends of various ethnic origins (Romanians, Jews, Armenians, Greeks). They were all young and happy, on holidays in the Bucegi Mountains, in the summer of 1932. This was a quasi-paradisiacal, tolerant, “amniotic” (as I. P. Culianu called it) period, following World War I. Symbolically, this period came to an end in 1934, upon the publication of Mihail Sebastian “Jewish novel”, with the infamous anti- Semitic foreword signed by his mentor, Nae Ionescu. At first, Mircea Eliade publicly defended his Jewish friend, Mihail Sebastian. But afterwards Eliade himself began sliding closer and closer to the far right Legionary Movement. The two intellectuals’ friendship started meeting with troubles of a political nature, which eventually led to a full crisis. The article follows, step by step, the sinusoidal curve of the special relation between these two great Romanian writers. The evolution (or involution) of Sebastian and Eliade’s friendship is symptomatic for the cultural, moral and political life in interwar Romanian intellectual society.
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