Kassel Rosenzweig Professorship awarded to philosopher Micha Brumlik

Micha Brumlik, a native of Switzerland, studied philosophy at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and philosophy and education at the Goethe University in Frankfurt am Main. From 1981 to 2000 he held the chair of education with a focus on social pedagogy at the University of Heidelberg, and from 2000 to 2013 he was professor of theories of education at the Institute of General Education at Goethe University Frankfurt am Main. From 2000 to 2005, he also served as director of the Fritz Bauer Institute, the research and documentation center on the history of the Holocaust at Goethe University Frankfurt. Since 2013, he has been a senior professor at the Center for Jewish Studies Berlin/Brandenburg.

"With Mr. Brumlik, we have been able to gain a distinguished voice of Judaism in Germany. His contributions are indispensable for Jewish-Christian dialogue - an expression of this is the award of this year's Buber-Rosenzweig Medal. We are very pleased that Micha Brumlik will enrich the university's teaching program with his topics," said Prof. Dr. Ilse Müllner, member of the search committee and Professor of Catholic Theology / Old Testament at the University of Kassel.

Brumlik himself commented, "Receiving the Rosenzweig Professorship is an honor and an incentive for me. Like no other, Franz Rosenzweig acted out the contradictions of modern Jewish life in himself and his work - tracing these contradictions will be the goal of my teaching in Kassel." The inaugural public lecture, titled "Franz Rosenzweig and Zionism - Between Theology and Politics," will take place April 20, from 6 to 8 p.m., in the Science Park conference room, Universitätsplatz 12.

In addition to this public event, Micha Brumlik will hold two other events as part of the University's teaching program: first, a weekly lecture on "Critical Intellectual History of Zionism." It spans an arc from the first Jewish state theorist, Moses Hess, to the socialist and revisionist Zionists of the early 20th century, to the last, politically far-right national-religious Zionists of the present and the debates about so-called "post-Zionism." The additional seminar "Messianism in Judaism" deals with the question of the hope for a saving and redeeming anointed one, a Messiah. It is devoted to the literary and theological motifs and the corresponding political discourse expressed therein.

Memory of a great son of the city of Kassel

The Franz Rosenzweig Visiting Professorship, unique in Germany, commemorates the work and legacy of the Jewish religious philosopher who came from Kassel. The professorship is awarded each summer semester. To date, the Visiting Professorship has honored numerous scholars from various disciplines, including philosophy, history, art, literature, and religious studies from Israel, Europe, and North America.

The Franz Rosenzweig Visiting Professorship has been awarded by the University of Kassel since 1987. It was established following an international congress held to mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of the eminent philosopher of religion. In recent years, the professorship has increasingly served to bring to mind the culture of European Jewry destroyed by National Socialism and to engage with the Jewish present.

A photo of Micha Brumlik is available to journalists upon request from Nina Ludwig of the Goethe University Frankfurt press office. E-mail: Ludwig[at]pvw.uni-frankfurt[dot]de

Contact:

Sebastian Mense

University of Kassel

Communication, Press and Public Relations

Phone: +49 561 804-1961

E-mail: presse[at]uni-kassel[dot]de