Alan Mittleman
Encyclopedia
Alan Mittleman is a professor of Jewish Philosophy
and the director of the Tikvah Institute for Jewish Thought at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
.
and his MA and PhD from Temple University
.
. He helped to draft a resolution by the United Church of Christ
which made it the first Protestant denomination in the United States
to declare that Christianity
did not supersede Judaism
.
Mittleman went on to serve as a professor of Religion at Muhlenberg College
from 1988 to 2004. He was the head of the Muhlenberg College Religion Department from 1997-2003.
From 2000 until 2004, he was also the director of a major research project on "Jews and the American Public Square" initiated by the Pew Charitable Trusts.
In 2004, Mittleman became Professor of Jewish Philosophy at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
(JTS). In 2007, he served as Visiting Professor of Religion at Princeton University
, and in that same year he became Chair of the Department of Jewish Thought at JTS.
Upon joining the Jewish Theological Seminary faculty, he also became director of the JTS's Louis Finkelstein Institute for Religious and Social Studies, a position he held until 2010.
In 2010, he became director of the Tikvah Institute for Jewish Thought at the Jewish Theological Seminary.
He thinks that "pure secularism may be incoherent" but that "robust religious hope needs the secularist critique."
at Muhlenberg College
. They reside in Allentown, Pennsylvania, and have two sons.
He is the editor of:
His writings have appeared in journals including Harvard Theological Review, Modern Judaism, the Jewish Political Studies Review, the Journal of Religion, and First Things
.
Jewish philosophy
Jewish philosophy , includes all philosophy carried out by Jews, or, in relation to the religion of Judaism. Jewish philosophy, until modern Enlightenment and Emancipation, was pre-occupied with attempts to reconcile coherent new ideas into the tradition of Rabbinic Judaism; thus organizing...
and the director of the Tikvah Institute for Jewish Thought at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
Jewish Theological Seminary of America
The Jewish Theological Seminary of America is one of the academic and spiritual centers of Conservative Judaism, and a major center for academic scholarship in Jewish studies.JTS operates five schools: Albert A...
.
Education
Mittleman received his BA from Brandeis UniversityBrandeis University
Brandeis University is an American private research university with a liberal arts focus. It is located in the southwestern corner of Waltham, Massachusetts, nine miles west of Boston. The University has an enrollment of approximately 3,200 undergraduate and 2,100 graduate students. In 2011, it...
and his MA and PhD from Temple University
Temple University
Temple University is a comprehensive public research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Originally founded in 1884 by Dr. Russell Conwell, Temple University is among the nation's largest providers of professional education and prepares the largest body of professional...
.
Career
From 1984 to 1988, Mittleman served on the staff of the American Jewish CommitteeAmerican Jewish Committee
The American Jewish Committee was "founded in 1906 with the aim of rallying all sections of American Jewry to defend the rights of Jews all over the world...
. He helped to draft a resolution by the United Church of Christ
United Church of Christ
The United Church of Christ is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination primarily in the Reformed tradition but also historically influenced by Lutheranism. The Evangelical and Reformed Church and the Congregational Christian Churches united in 1957 to form the UCC...
which made it the first Protestant denomination in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
to declare that Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
did not supersede Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
.
Mittleman went on to serve as a professor of Religion at Muhlenberg College
Muhlenberg College
Muhlenberg College is a private liberal arts college located in Allentown, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1848, Muhlenberg is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and is named for Henry Melchior Muhlenberg, the patriarch of the Lutheran Church in America.- History...
from 1988 to 2004. He was the head of the Muhlenberg College Religion Department from 1997-2003.
From 2000 until 2004, he was also the director of a major research project on "Jews and the American Public Square" initiated by the Pew Charitable Trusts.
In 2004, Mittleman became Professor of Jewish Philosophy at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
Jewish Theological Seminary of America
The Jewish Theological Seminary of America is one of the academic and spiritual centers of Conservative Judaism, and a major center for academic scholarship in Jewish studies.JTS operates five schools: Albert A...
(JTS). In 2007, he served as Visiting Professor of Religion at Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, and in that same year he became Chair of the Department of Jewish Thought at JTS.
Upon joining the Jewish Theological Seminary faculty, he also became director of the JTS's Louis Finkelstein Institute for Religious and Social Studies, a position he held until 2010.
In 2010, he became director of the Tikvah Institute for Jewish Thought at the Jewish Theological Seminary.
Philosophical views
Mittleman has described himself as being a "rationalist" in his religious beliefs. He may be placed within the Jewish rationalist tradition of Jewish philosophy.He thinks that "pure secularism may be incoherent" but that "robust religious hope needs the secularist critique."
Personal
Professor Mittleman is married to Patti Mittleman, who is the director of the Hillel: The Foundation for Jewish Campus LifeHillel: The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life
Hillel: The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life is the largest Jewish campus organization in the world, working with thousands of college students globally...
at Muhlenberg College
Muhlenberg College
Muhlenberg College is a private liberal arts college located in Allentown, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1848, Muhlenberg is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and is named for Henry Melchior Muhlenberg, the patriarch of the Lutheran Church in America.- History...
. They reside in Allentown, Pennsylvania, and have two sons.
Publications
Mittleman's books include:- Between Kant and Kabbalah (SUNY Press, 1990)
- The Politics of Torah (SUNY Press, 1996)
- The Scepter Shall Not Depart From Judah (Lexington Books, 2000)
- Hope in a Democratic Age (Oxford University Press, 2009)
- A Short History of Jewish Ethics (under contract with Wiley-Blackwell)
He is the editor of:
- Uneasy Allies: Evangelical and Jewish Relations (Lexington Books, 2007)
- Jewish Polity and American Civil Society (Rowman & Littlefield, 2002)
- Jews and the American Public Square (Rowman & Littlefield, 2002)
- Religion as a Public Good (Rowman & Littlefield, 2003).
His writings have appeared in journals including Harvard Theological Review, Modern Judaism, the Jewish Political Studies Review, the Journal of Religion, and First Things
First Things
First Things is an ecumenical journal focused on creating a "religiously informed public philosophy for the ordering of society". The journal is inter-denominational and inter-religious, representing a broad intellectual tradition of Christian and Jewish critique of contemporary society...
.