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The ideological crisis faced by this generation of Israeli society expresses itself in a number of ways, to the great regret of educators, parents and social activists alike. Manifestations of this post-Zionist malaise include: a diluted version of the Hebrew language; a superficial level of public debate; a worrying decline in social values that are now headed by material gain and characterized by a disregard for the great works, universalism, and Jewish theological values; and the educational crisis faced by Israel's universities which is most aptly exemplified by the collapse of the humanities departments.
For the people of the book who believe that the world was created through words and who believed that the power of ideas have the ability to affect societal change, Israelis today invest very little effort in the historical revision of their cultural and religious roots, literary study and familiarization with the great works that have influenced the course of human history.
The programming staff of the "Rimon" College Leadership Institute believe in the power of ideas and their role as a critical tool to shape the future of the Jewish people. Despite the serious challenges outlined above, we dream of a younger generation that has been enriched by ideas and afforded the tools to take a leading role in future Jewish leadership. By placing the students in the context of their own national and religious tradition, and by cultivating their appreciation of ideas of broader civilization, we hope that these students will be able to actively compensate for the vacuum of leadership that pervades Israel's education system, the army, media, and to an even greater extent, its senior political echelons.
The proposed program will target students who exhibit a high level of intellectual acuity and ability and an interest in what is transpiring in Israel and among the Jewish people. Our goal is to provide these students with the tools and means to significantly enhance their ability to re-examine fundamental ideas and concepts, expose them to the central religious tenets that are integral to the Israeli, Jewish and Western cultural identity, and to inspire them with the ambition to be people with the skills and character needed to bring about real and meaningful changes to Israeli society.
To counter these worrying trends, we intend to engender a deep understanding of the three central tenets of the student's cultural and religious identity: Judaic studies; Zionism; and western culture and philosophy:
- Judaic studies: the Bible, ancient Hebraic texts, Jewish philosophy in the Middle Ages and the modern era;
- Zionism: seminal Zionist leaders and the ideological infrastructure of the Zionist movement, Zionist pioneers, central literary figures and historic role models;
- Universalism: elemental trends in western philosophy and political theory from the origins of Greek philosophy to current theoretical movements.
Program Structure
The program will be based around a series of two seminars, each of which will cater to up to 50 participants, and will be held in the current academic year. Each seminar will focus and deliberate on specific areas of study, which will be all-encompassing and will relate to every aspects of the issue under consideration from the most obvious to the most obscure. The seminars will consider issues such as: the formulation of Israeli and Jewish identities through the prism of biblical, historical, and archeological studies; the analysis and study of the formative Zionist leaders such as David Ben Gurion, Haim Weizmann, Theodore Herzl, and their critical contribution to the shape and course of the Zionist movement; and the study of platonic philosophical tenets and texts, origins of modern philosophy and the concept of the "Ideal State" in particular.
The program's academic structure consists of Program Director, Dr. Daniel Gordis who has overall responsibility for the project and two educational Directors, Dr. Zahi Weiss and Dr. Ido Hevroni.
Dr. Tzahi Weiss
Tzahi is a Graduate of 'Revivim Honors Program for the Teaching of Jewish Studies Teachers', holds a B.A. in Biblical Studies and Jewish Thought, an M.A. and a Ph.D. in Jewish thought, from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem. His areas of research include: Jewish Mysticism, Rabbinic literature, Modern Hebrew literature and Jewish education. Tzahi is currently teaching in the Nisuii high-school, in Revivim Honors Program of the Hebrew University; in the department for Jewish thought of the Hebrew University, and in the department for Hebrew literature at Bar Ilan University. He is also a postdoctoral fellow at the Shalem Center.
Dr. Ido Hevroni
Ido Hevroni holds a B.A. in Jewish Literature, Comparative Literature and Psychology, and a Ph.D. in Jewish Literature from the Bar-Ilan University in Tel-Aviv. His research interests include Hermeneutics, literary theory and the literature of the Talmudic period. Prior to his current position Ido was a Fellow in the post-doctoral fellowship at the Shalem Center. Ido also taught courses in literature and Bible studies in the undergraduate student program at the Shalem Center.
Each seminar will also require three academic facilitators who were chosen by the educational directors in accordance with the level of excellence they exhibited during previously held seminars.
The students will be required to read relevant background material and submit a written assignment.
The seminars will be held in two separate locations in the country, which are designed to reflect, via the physical surroundings, the seminar's particular area of study. Thus for example, the seminar that is scheduled to take place in the former residence of David Ben Gurion, Kibbutz Sde Boker, provides the students with an additional experiential dimension during their study of the Zionist movement's formative leaders. The seminars will be held over the weekend and will comprise of a series of three lectures, intensive textual study, and guided field trips which will focus on a specific facet of the subject matter.
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