Annual Israel Heritage Room Lecture

How did pleasure become a religious goal in Judaism? Classical Judaism differs from contemporaneous Graeco-Roman and Christian theologies in its emphasis on the physical as a complement to the spirit. This appreciation of the religious significance of physicality is its hallmark and helps explain its approach to physical pleasure, the physical world, the physical body, and the physical resurrection. Indeed, it explains more about the distinctive theological positions of classical Judaism than any other factor, for it invested in the body the significance that others invested in the soul.

Dr. Reuven Kimelman of Brandeis University presents “Judaism as a Philosophy of Pleasure” from 3-5 p.m. at the Cathedral of Learning. For more information, visit jewishstudies.pitt.