Attitudes toward Idolatry in modern Jewish thought - Einzelansicht

”Whoever denies idolatry is as if he fulfilled the whole Torah.” (Talmud, chullin 5a). In Jewish thought, idolatry serves as a unique religious category that reveals the boundaries of pluralism in religion and outlining the relationships between religions. The second commandment, the ban on a visual representation of God, forms the foundation of the attitude toward idolatry. In the Middle Ages, Moses Maimonides dealt with anthropomorphic expressions of God and formulated his negative theology, which results in the notion that idolatry should be understood within the realm of language and consciousness. In modern times, the discourse on idolatry is explicitly connected to socio-cultural and political debates. Franz Rosenzweig links idolatrous behavior with fundamentalism and fanaticism. Erich Fromm connects idolatry with narcissism, alienation, and necrophilia. He claims that we need an idology, a science of idols, to ”unmask the real objects of our worship”. In this seminar, we will discuss various attitudes toward idolatry in the context of the critique of modernity and religion, ethics and art.

Due to the Coronavirus, the classes will be held at Zoom

The first meeting will take place on 29.4

Please see further information in Moodle at this link: 

https://moodle2.uni-potsdam.de/course/view.php?id=22896

Seminar requirements: reading assignments, one in-class presentation and submission of its manuscript (printed), active participation in class discussion.