Will Herberg

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Will Herberg ( June 30, 1901 in Lyachavichy , Russian Empire - March 26, 1977 (according to other information: March 27, 1977 ) in Morristown , New Jersey ) was an American Jewish religious philosopher .

Life

Young years

Will Herberg grew up in a secular Jewish family in Manhattan , New York . He had to abandon his school career when he was expelled from City College . In his early years he was an active member of the Young Communist League ( Young Communist League ) and co-editor of publications of the Communist Party of the United States , from which it was but ruled in September 1929 because he was Jay Lovestone had joined that of the dominant factions was assessed as a deviator .

Middle years

In the 1940s, Will Herberg changed his ideological attitude, turned away from communism and became increasingly interested in Judaism and the philosophy of existentialism . One focus of his studies were the writings of Martin Buber , of which he published an edition in America in 1956 and on which he published his own treatise in 1972. Herberg also dealt with the Protestant theologian Paul Tillich , who emigrated to the USA in 1933 . He became known a few years earlier, in 1951, with his work Judaism and modern man (Judaism and modern man). In it he coined the expression cut flower culture , with which he wanted to describe the fact that the society of North America (including Europe and Australia) would wither like a flower whose roots were cut off if it continued to forget or suppress its Judeo-Christian roots instead of itself to become more aware of them again.

Later years

He also suggested conservative tones in a 1965 article in the National Review . The September 7, Civil Rights' and Violence: Who Are the Guilty Ones? contained the thesis that the actions of the civil rights movement intend to change society too quickly, abruptly and violently, but that sustainable changes are only possible more slowly in a growth process (and largely without violence). This rather conservative-reformist attitude, in contrast to the revolutionary attitude of his young years, he retained until the end of his life. Religiously, however, he was less a conservative than a liberal Reform Judaism, which at the same time promoted tolerance towards other religions and denominations.

Fonts (selection)

  • American Revolutionary Traditions . New York: New Workers School, 1932.
  • Judaism and Modern Man: An Interpretation of Jewish Religion . New York, Farrar, Straus and Young, 1951.
  • Dimensions Symposium: Human Values ​​in a Technological Society . (Contributor.) New York: UAHC, 1971.
  • Martin Buber: Personalist Philosopher in an Age of Depersonalization . West Hartford, CT: Saint Joseph College, 1972.
  • Faith Enacted As History: Essays in Biblical Theology . Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1976.
  • From Marxism to Judaism: The Collected Essays of Will Herberg . (David G. Dalin, ed.) New York: Marcus Wiener Publishing Co., 1989.

literature

  • Harry J. Ausmus: Will Herberg: A Bio-Bibliography. Greenwood Press, Westport CT 1986, ISBN 0-313-25067-7 .
  • Harry J. Ausmus: Will Herberg: From Right to Right. University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill NC 1987, ISBN 0-8078-1724-4 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Mary Elizabeth Brown: Shapers of the Great Debate on Immigration: A Biographical Dictionary. Greenwood Press, 1999, ISBN 0313303398 , p. 288 ( limited preview in Google Book Search).
  2. ↑ Ralph E. Luker: Herberg, Will . American National Biography Online, doi : 10.1093 / anb / 9780198606697.article.0801836 .
  3. ^ Harry J. Ausmus: Will Herberg: From Right to Right. University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill NC 1987, ISBN 0-8078-1724-4 , p. 211 ( limited preview in Google Book Search).
  4. ↑ a b K. Healan Gaston: The Cold War Romance of Religious Authenticity: Will Herberg, William F. Buckley Jr., and the Rise of the New Right ( English ) vol 99. Journal of American History , 2013 S. 1133 -1158, doi : 10.1093 / jahist / jas588 .
  5. ^ "Denounces Provocative Acts of Lovestone Gang," Daily Worker, B. 6, No. 162 (Sept. 13, 1929), p. 4.
  6. ^ The Encyclopedia of Religion and Society
  7. ^ David G. Dalin: The Myth of Hitler's Pope: Pope Pius XII And His Secret War Against Nazi Germany. Regnery History, Washington DC 2005, ISBN 0-89526-034-4 , p. 5 ( limited preview in Google book search).
  8. ↑ Schwartz, Joel: Protestant, Catholic, Jew ... (retrospective book review) ( English ), Volume 155. Public Interest, 2004, pp. 106-136.
personal data
SURNAME Herberg, Will
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American Jewish religious philosopher
DATE OF BIRTH June 30, 1901
PLACE OF BIRTH Lyachavichy , Russian Empire
DATE OF DEATH March 26, 1977
Place of death Morristown , New Jersey