“Repairing the World” (Tikkun Olam): Radical Justice or Conscientious Consequentialism?

A virtual event presentation by Rabbi Will Friedman

EVENT CO-HOSTED BY:

ABOUT THE EVENT:

The Jewish phrase “because of repairing the world” has become a widespread slogan for a commitment to a broad array of social justice causes. But many scholars and activists have cautioned that a phrase that can advocate anything can end up meaning nothing. A careful reappraisal of the rabbinic usage of the term, however, reveals something more: that “repairing the world” was code for public policy that considered the full range of potential consequences for the vulnerable people it meant to protect.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER:

William Friedman is a doctoral candidate in Ancient Judaism at Harvard University, writing a dissertation on reasons for laws in the ancient near east. He also has rabbinic ordination from Rabbi Daniel Landes (Yashrut), and was a Kogod Research Fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute of North America. He has studied and taught at a wide variety of Jewish institutions, including Pardes, YCT, JTS, and Hebrew College. He lives in Chicago with his spouse, Rabbi Sarah Mulhern, and two children, where he is the rabbinic spouse (rebbetzin) of Base LNCLN, welcoming college students and young adults for learning, service, and Jewish experiences.