Jonathan Sacks
Encyclopedia
Jonathan Henry Sacks, Baron Sacks, Kt
(born 8 March 1948, London
) is the Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth. His Hebrew name is Yaakov Zvi. As the spiritual head of the United Synagogue
, the largest synagogue body in the UK, he is the Chief Rabbi
of the mainstream British Orthodox
synagogues, but not the religious authority for the Federation of Synagogues or the Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations
or the other movements, Masorti
, Reform
and Liberal Judaism.
, Gonville & Caius College, Cambridge (MA), New College, Oxford
, King's College London
(PhD), Jews' College London and Etz Chaim Yeshiva (London)
.
In addition to the PhD he earned at King's College,
Jonathan Henry Sacks, Baron Sacks, Kt
(born 8 March 1948, London
) is the Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth. His Hebrew name is Yaakov Zvi. As the spiritual head of the United Synagogue
, the largest synagogue body in the UK, he is the Chief Rabbi
of the mainstream British Orthodox
synagogues, but not the religious authority for the Federation of Synagogues or the Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations
or the other movements, Masorti
, Reform
and Liberal Judaism.
. 3 November 2007. Accessed 11 April 2011. One of his daughters, Gila Sacks, is a former Special Adviser to Gordon Brown.
, Gonville & Caius College, Cambridge (MA), New College, Oxford
, King's College London
(PhD), Jews' College London and Etz Chaim Yeshiva (London)
.
In addition to the PhD he earned at King's College,
Jonathan Henry Sacks, Baron Sacks, Kt
(born 8 March 1948, London
) is the Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth. His Hebrew name is Yaakov Zvi. As the spiritual head of the United Synagogue
, the largest synagogue body in the UK, he is the Chief Rabbi
of the mainstream British Orthodox
synagogues, but not the religious authority for the Federation of Synagogues or the Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations
or the other movements, Masorti
, Reform
and Liberal Judaism.
. 3 November 2007. Accessed 11 April 2011. One of his daughters, Gila Sacks, is a former Special Adviser to Gordon Brown.
, Gonville & Caius College, Cambridge (MA), New College, Oxford
, King's College London
(PhD), Jews' College London and Etz Chaim Yeshiva (London)
.
In addition to the PhD he earned at King's College,http://www.philosophersnet.com/magazine/article.php?id=1084 he has also been awarded honorary doctorates from the universities of: Cambridge
; Glasgow
; Haifa
; Middlesex
; Yeshiva University
; Liverpool
and St. Andrews
, Roehampton University and is an honorary fellow of Gonville and Caius
and King's College London
.
as Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth.
Prior to taking up his current post, Rabbi Sacks was Principal of Jews' College, as well as rabbi of the Golders Green and Marble Arch synagogues.http://www.chiefrabbi.org/Articles.aspx?id=1849BIOGRAPHY OF THE CHIEF RABBI
Sacks heads the Chief Rabbi's Cabinet consisting of fourteen other rabbis who advise him on a number of areas, such as Jewish education
, Israel
, Jewish-Christian relations
, matters relating to the Beth Din
(Jewish court), and several other areas of concern to the Jewish community. The Chief Rabbi's Cabinet meets on a quarterly basis and its members are entitled to represent the Chief Rabbi at public events.
Sacks had been Principal of Jews' College, London, the world's oldest rabbinical seminary, as well as rabbi of the Golders Green
(1978–82) and Marble Arch
(1983–90) Synagogues in London. He gained rabbinic ordination
from Jews' College as well as from London's Etz Chaim Yeshiva (London)
.
conferred on him a doctorate of divinity
in recognition of his first ten years in the Chief Rabbinate of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth.
In 2004, his book The Dignity of Difference was awarded the Grawemeyer Award
for Religion.
Sacks was knighted
in the Queen's Birthday Honours List in 2005 'for services to the Community and to Inter-faith Relations'.
He was made an Honorary Freeman of the London Borough of Barnet
in September 2006.Honorary Freemen of the London Borough of Barnet
On 13 July 2009 it was announced that Sacks was recommended for a life peer
age with a seat in the House of Lords
by the House of Lords Appointments Commission
.House of Lords Appointments Commission He took the style Baron Sacks of Aldgate
in the City of London
.
He was invited to the wedding of Prince William of Wales and Kate Middleton as a representative for the Jewish community.
, accused Sacks of heresy against traditional Orthodox viewpoint. According to them, some words seemed to imply an endorsement of pure relativism between religions, and that Judaism is not the sole true religion, e.g. "No one creed has a monopoly on spiritual truth". This led him to rephrase more clearly some sentences in the book for its second edition, though he refused to recall books already in the stores.
In his "Preface to the Second Edition" of the book, Sacks wrote that certain passages in the book had been misconstrued: he had already explicitly criticised cultural and religious relativism in his book, and he did not deny Judaism's uniqueness. He also stressed however that mainstream rabbinic teachings teach that wisdom, righteousness and the possibility of a true relationship with God are all available in non-Jewish cultures and religions as an on-going heritage from the covenant that God made with Noah and all his descendants, so the tradition teaches that one does not need to be Jewish to know God or truth or to attain salvation.Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, The Dignity of Difference, 2nd edition, 2003, pp. vii, 52-65; see also http://www.chiefrabbi.org/ReadArtical.aspx?id=454 and http://www.chiefrabbi.org/ReadArtical.aspx?id-453 As this diversity of covenantal bonds implies, however, traditional Jewish sources do clearly deny that any one creed has a monopoly on spiritual truth. Monopolistic and simplistic claims of universal truth he has characterized as imperialistic, pagan and Platonic, and not Jewish at all.See ibid., Chapter 3: "Exorcising Plato's Ghost," and reaffirmed in his most recent book, Future Tense, 2009, Chapter 4: "The Other: Judaism, Christianity and Islam."
Rabbi Hugo Gryn
and a private letter he had written in Hebrew
, which (in translation) asserted that Gryn was "among those who destroy the faith," was leaked and published. He wrote further that he was an "enemy" of the Reform, Liberal and Masorti movements, leading some to reject the notion that he is "Chief Rabbi" for all Jews in Britain. He attended a memorial meeting for Gryn, a move that brought the wrath of some in the ultra-Orthodox community."Jonathan Sacks: Defender of the faith", The Independent, 8 September 2001Ian Burrell, "Leaked letter widens schism in Jewry", The Independent, 15 March 1997 Rabbi Dow Marmur argued that after attending the memorial service, Sacks then attempted to placate the ultra-Orthodox community, an attempt which Marmur has described as “neurotic and cowardly."http://www.thejc.com/news/40113/lord-sacks-criticised-progressive-rabbi
A similar stance was taken by Sacks and his Beth Din when they prevented the retired rabbi Louis Jacobs
, who had helped establish the British branch of the Masorti
movement, from being called up for the Reading of the Torah on the Saturday before his granddaughter's wedding.
In a later statement, the Chief Rabbi's office said: 'The Chief Rabbi meant no criticism of either Steve Jobs personally or the contribution Apple has made to the development of technology in the 21st century.'http:///www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2063546/Chief-Rabbi-blasts-late-Apple-boss-Steve-Jobs-helping-create-selfish-consumer-society.html
Sacks is also a frequent guest on both television
and radio
, and regularly contributes to the national press. He delivered the 1990 BBC
Reith Lectures on The Persistence of Faith.
Knight Bachelor
The rank of Knight Bachelor is a part of the British honours system. It is the most basic rank of a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not as a member of one of the organised Orders of Chivalry...
(born 8 March 1948, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
) is the Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth. His Hebrew name is Yaakov Zvi. As the spiritual head of the United Synagogue
United Synagogue
United Synagogue is an organisation of London Jews that was founded with the sanction of an Act of Parliament, in 1870. , it remains the largest religious grouping within the British Jewish community and indeed in Europe, covering 62 Orthodox Jewish communities...
, the largest synagogue body in the UK, he is the Chief Rabbi
Chief Rabbi
Chief Rabbi is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities...
of the mainstream British Orthodox
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...
synagogues, but not the religious authority for the Federation of Synagogues or the Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations
Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations
The Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations of England was founded in 1926 with the stated mission "to protect traditional Judaism". It acts as an umbrella organisation for the chareidi Jewish community in London and comprises over a hundred synagogues and educational institutions. It is responsible...
or the other movements, Masorti
Masorti
The Masorti Movement is the name given to Conservative Judaism in Israel and other countries outside Canada and U.S. Masorti means "traditional" in Hebrew...
, Reform
Reform Judaism (United Kingdom)
Reform Judaism in the United Kingdom in one of the two forms of Progressive Judaism found in the United Kingdom, the other being Liberal Judaism. Reform Judaism is both historically earlier and more traditionalist than Liberal Judaism....
and Liberal Judaism.
Family
He is married with three children. One of his daughters, Gila Sacks, is a former Special Adviser to Gordon Brown.Education
Sacks was educated at St Mary's Primary School and Christ's College FinchleyChrist's College Finchley
Christ's College is a state comprehensive secondary school in East Finchley, London, United Kingdom. It falls under the London Borough of Barnet Local Education Authority. It is a boys' school up to and including Year 11, and the sixth form is mixed, admitting up to 25% girls. The school presently...
, Gonville & Caius College, Cambridge (MA), New College, Oxford
New College, Oxford
New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.- Overview :The College's official name, College of St Mary, is the same as that of the older Oriel College; hence, it has been referred to as the "New College of St Mary", and is now almost always...
, King's College London
King's College London
King's College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London. King's has a claim to being the third oldest university in England, having been founded by King George IV and the Duke of Wellington in 1829, and...
(PhD), Jews' College London and Etz Chaim Yeshiva (London)
Etz Chaim Yeshiva (London)
Etz Chaim Yeshiva is an Ashkenazi Orthodox yeshiva in Golders Green, London, England. It is associated with the Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations.- History :...
.
In addition to the PhD he earned at King's College,
Jonathan Henry Sacks, Baron Sacks, Kt
Knight Bachelor
The rank of Knight Bachelor is a part of the British honours system. It is the most basic rank of a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not as a member of one of the organised Orders of Chivalry...
(born 8 March 1948, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
) is the Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth. His Hebrew name is Yaakov Zvi. As the spiritual head of the United Synagogue
United Synagogue
United Synagogue is an organisation of London Jews that was founded with the sanction of an Act of Parliament, in 1870. , it remains the largest religious grouping within the British Jewish community and indeed in Europe, covering 62 Orthodox Jewish communities...
, the largest synagogue body in the UK, he is the Chief Rabbi
Chief Rabbi
Chief Rabbi is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities...
of the mainstream British Orthodox
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...
synagogues, but not the religious authority for the Federation of Synagogues or the Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations
Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations
The Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations of England was founded in 1926 with the stated mission "to protect traditional Judaism". It acts as an umbrella organisation for the chareidi Jewish community in London and comprises over a hundred synagogues and educational institutions. It is responsible...
or the other movements, Masorti
Masorti
The Masorti Movement is the name given to Conservative Judaism in Israel and other countries outside Canada and U.S. Masorti means "traditional" in Hebrew...
, Reform
Reform Judaism (United Kingdom)
Reform Judaism in the United Kingdom in one of the two forms of Progressive Judaism found in the United Kingdom, the other being Liberal Judaism. Reform Judaism is both historically earlier and more traditionalist than Liberal Judaism....
and Liberal Judaism.
Family
He is married with three children.Sylvester, Rachel; Thomson, Alice. "Jonathan Sacks's solution to family breakdown". The Daily TelegraphThe Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
. 3 November 2007. Accessed 11 April 2011. One of his daughters, Gila Sacks, is a former Special Adviser to Gordon Brown.
Education
Sacks was educated at St Mary's Primary School and Christ's College FinchleyChrist's College Finchley
Christ's College is a state comprehensive secondary school in East Finchley, London, United Kingdom. It falls under the London Borough of Barnet Local Education Authority. It is a boys' school up to and including Year 11, and the sixth form is mixed, admitting up to 25% girls. The school presently...
, Gonville & Caius College, Cambridge (MA), New College, Oxford
New College, Oxford
New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.- Overview :The College's official name, College of St Mary, is the same as that of the older Oriel College; hence, it has been referred to as the "New College of St Mary", and is now almost always...
, King's College London
King's College London
King's College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London. King's has a claim to being the third oldest university in England, having been founded by King George IV and the Duke of Wellington in 1829, and...
(PhD), Jews' College London and Etz Chaim Yeshiva (London)
Etz Chaim Yeshiva (London)
Etz Chaim Yeshiva is an Ashkenazi Orthodox yeshiva in Golders Green, London, England. It is associated with the Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations.- History :...
.
In addition to the PhD he earned at King's College,
Jonathan Henry Sacks, Baron Sacks, Kt
Knight Bachelor
The rank of Knight Bachelor is a part of the British honours system. It is the most basic rank of a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not as a member of one of the organised Orders of Chivalry...
(born 8 March 1948, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
) is the Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth. His Hebrew name is Yaakov Zvi. As the spiritual head of the United Synagogue
United Synagogue
United Synagogue is an organisation of London Jews that was founded with the sanction of an Act of Parliament, in 1870. , it remains the largest religious grouping within the British Jewish community and indeed in Europe, covering 62 Orthodox Jewish communities...
, the largest synagogue body in the UK, he is the Chief Rabbi
Chief Rabbi
Chief Rabbi is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities...
of the mainstream British Orthodox
Orthodox Judaism
Orthodox Judaism , is the approach to Judaism which adheres to the traditional interpretation and application of the laws and ethics of the Torah as legislated in the Talmudic texts by the Sanhedrin and subsequently developed and applied by the later authorities known as the Gaonim, Rishonim, and...
synagogues, but not the religious authority for the Federation of Synagogues or the Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations
Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations
The Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations of England was founded in 1926 with the stated mission "to protect traditional Judaism". It acts as an umbrella organisation for the chareidi Jewish community in London and comprises over a hundred synagogues and educational institutions. It is responsible...
or the other movements, Masorti
Masorti
The Masorti Movement is the name given to Conservative Judaism in Israel and other countries outside Canada and U.S. Masorti means "traditional" in Hebrew...
, Reform
Reform Judaism (United Kingdom)
Reform Judaism in the United Kingdom in one of the two forms of Progressive Judaism found in the United Kingdom, the other being Liberal Judaism. Reform Judaism is both historically earlier and more traditionalist than Liberal Judaism....
and Liberal Judaism.
Family
He is married with three children.Sylvester, Rachel; Thomson, Alice. "Jonathan Sacks's solution to family breakdown". The Daily TelegraphThe Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
. 3 November 2007. Accessed 11 April 2011. One of his daughters, Gila Sacks, is a former Special Adviser to Gordon Brown.
Education
Sacks was educated at St Mary's Primary School and Christ's College FinchleyChrist's College Finchley
Christ's College is a state comprehensive secondary school in East Finchley, London, United Kingdom. It falls under the London Borough of Barnet Local Education Authority. It is a boys' school up to and including Year 11, and the sixth form is mixed, admitting up to 25% girls. The school presently...
, Gonville & Caius College, Cambridge (MA), New College, Oxford
New College, Oxford
New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom.- Overview :The College's official name, College of St Mary, is the same as that of the older Oriel College; hence, it has been referred to as the "New College of St Mary", and is now almost always...
, King's College London
King's College London
King's College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London. King's has a claim to being the third oldest university in England, having been founded by King George IV and the Duke of Wellington in 1829, and...
(PhD), Jews' College London and Etz Chaim Yeshiva (London)
Etz Chaim Yeshiva (London)
Etz Chaim Yeshiva is an Ashkenazi Orthodox yeshiva in Golders Green, London, England. It is associated with the Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations.- History :...
.
In addition to the PhD he earned at King's College,http://www.philosophersnet.com/magazine/article.php?id=1084 he has also been awarded honorary doctorates from the universities of: Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
; Glasgow
University of Glasgow
The University of Glasgow is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ancient universities. Located in Glasgow, the university was founded in 1451 and is presently one of seventeen British higher education institutions ranked amongst the top 100 of the...
; Haifa
University of Haifa
The University of Haifa is a university in Haifa, Israel.The University of Haifa was founded in 1963 by Haifa mayor Abba Hushi, to operate under the academic auspices of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem....
; Middlesex
Middlesex University
Middlesex University is a university in north London, England. It is located in the historic county boundaries of Middlesex from which it takes its name. It is one of the post-1992 universities and is a member of Million+ working group...
; Yeshiva University
Yeshiva University
Yeshiva University is a private university in New York City, with six campuses in New York and one in Israel. Founded in 1886, it is a research university ranked as 45th in the US among national universities by U.S. News & World Report in 2012...
; Liverpool
University of Liverpool
The University of Liverpool is a teaching and research university in the city of Liverpool, England. It is a member of the Russell Group of large research-intensive universities and the N8 Group for research collaboration. Founded in 1881 , it is also one of the six original "red brick" civic...
and St. Andrews
University of St Andrews
The University of St Andrews, informally referred to as "St Andrews", is the oldest university in Scotland and the third oldest in the English-speaking world after Oxford and Cambridge. The university is situated in the town of St Andrews, Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It was founded between...
, Roehampton University and is an honorary fellow of Gonville and Caius
Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge
Gonville and Caius College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The college is often referred to simply as "Caius" , after its second founder, John Keys, who fashionably latinised the spelling of his name after studying in Italy.- Outline :Gonville and...
and King's College London
King's College London
King's College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London. King's has a claim to being the third oldest university in England, having been founded by King George IV and the Duke of Wellington in 1829, and...
.
Career
In September 1991 Sacks succeeded Lord JakobovitsImmanuel Jakobovits
Immanuel Jakobovits, Baron Jakobovits, Kt was the Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth from 1967 to 1991. His successor is the present Chief Rabbi, Jonathan Sacks.-Biography:...
as Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth.
Prior to taking up his current post, Rabbi Sacks was Principal of Jews' College, as well as rabbi of the Golders Green and Marble Arch synagogues.http://www.chiefrabbi.org/Articles.aspx?id=1849BIOGRAPHY OF THE CHIEF RABBI
Sacks heads the Chief Rabbi's Cabinet consisting of fourteen other rabbis who advise him on a number of areas, such as Jewish education
Torah study
Torah study is the study by Jewish people of the Torah, Hebrew Bible, Talmud, responsa, rabbinic literature and similar works, all of which are Judaism's religious texts...
, Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
, Jewish-Christian relations
Jewish views of religious pluralism
Religious pluralism is a set of religious world views that hold that one's religion is not the sole and exclusive source of truth, and thus recognizes that some level of truth and value exists in other religions...
, matters relating to the Beth Din
Beth din
A beth din, bet din, beit din or beis din is a rabbinical court of Judaism. In ancient times, it was the building block of the legal system in the Biblical Land of Israel...
(Jewish court), and several other areas of concern to the Jewish community. The Chief Rabbi's Cabinet meets on a quarterly basis and its members are entitled to represent the Chief Rabbi at public events.
Sacks had been Principal of Jews' College, London, the world's oldest rabbinical seminary, as well as rabbi of the Golders Green
Golders Green
Golders Green is an area in the London Borough of Barnet in London, England. Although having some earlier history, it is essentially a 19th century suburban development situated about 5.3 miles north west of Charing Cross and centred on the crossroads of Golders Green Road and Finchley Road.In the...
(1978–82) and Marble Arch
Marble Arch
Marble Arch is a white Carrara marble monument that now stands on a large traffic island at the junction of Oxford Street, Park Lane, and Edgware Road, almost directly opposite Speakers' Corner in Hyde Park in London, England...
(1983–90) Synagogues in London. He gained rabbinic ordination
Semicha
, also , or is derived from a Hebrew word which means to "rely on" or "to be authorized". It generally refers to the ordination of a rabbi within Judaism. In this sense it is the "transmission" of rabbinic authority to give advice or judgment in Jewish law...
from Jews' College as well as from London's Etz Chaim Yeshiva (London)
Etz Chaim Yeshiva (London)
Etz Chaim Yeshiva is an Ashkenazi Orthodox yeshiva in Golders Green, London, England. It is associated with the Union of Orthodox Hebrew Congregations.- History :...
.
Praise and recognition
In September 2001 the Archbishop of CanterburyArchbishop of Canterbury
The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and principal leader of the Church of England, the symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion, and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. In his role as head of the Anglican Communion, the archbishop leads the third largest group...
conferred on him a doctorate of divinity
Doctor of Divinity
Doctor of Divinity is an advanced academic degree in divinity. Historically, it identified one who had been licensed by a university to teach Christian theology or related religious subjects....
in recognition of his first ten years in the Chief Rabbinate of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth.
In 2004, his book The Dignity of Difference was awarded the Grawemeyer Award
Grawemeyer Award
The Grawemeyer Awards are five awards given annually by the University of Louisville in the state of Kentucky, United States. The prizes are presented to individuals in the fields of education, ideas improving world order, music composition, religion, and psychology...
for Religion.
Sacks was knighted
Knight Bachelor
The rank of Knight Bachelor is a part of the British honours system. It is the most basic rank of a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not as a member of one of the organised Orders of Chivalry...
in the Queen's Birthday Honours List in 2005 'for services to the Community and to Inter-faith Relations'.
He was made an Honorary Freeman of the London Borough of Barnet
London Borough of Barnet
The London Borough of Barnet is a London borough in North London and forms part of Outer London. It has a population of 331,500 and covers . It borders Hertfordshire to the north and five other London boroughs: Harrow and Brent to the west, Camden and Haringey to the south-east and Enfield to the...
in September 2006.Honorary Freemen of the London Borough of Barnet
On 13 July 2009 it was announced that Sacks was recommended for a life peer
Life peer
In the United Kingdom, life peers are appointed members of the Peerage whose titles cannot be inherited. Nowadays life peerages, always of baronial rank, are created under the Life Peerages Act 1958 and entitle the holders to seats in the House of Lords, presuming they meet qualifications such as...
age with a seat in the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
by the House of Lords Appointments Commission
House of Lords Appointments Commission
The House of Lords Appointments Commission is a non-partisan, non-statutory, independent body in the United Kingdom. It has three roles:*to recommend people for appointment as non-party-political life peers;...
.House of Lords Appointments Commission He took the style Baron Sacks of Aldgate
Aldgate
Aldgate was the eastern most gateway through London Wall leading from the City of London to Whitechapel and the east end of London. Aldgate gives its name to a ward of the City...
in the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
.
He was invited to the wedding of Prince William of Wales and Kate Middleton as a representative for the Jewish community.
Orthodox opposition
After the publication of his book The Dignity of Difference, a group of Haredi rabbis, most notably Rabbis Yosef Shalom Elyashiv and Bezalel RakowBezalel Rakow
Rabbi Bezalel Rakow was an orthodox rabbi who headed Gateshead’s Jewish community. He was the chair of the Council of Torah Sages of Agudas Yisroel of Great Britain....
, accused Sacks of heresy against traditional Orthodox viewpoint. According to them, some words seemed to imply an endorsement of pure relativism between religions, and that Judaism is not the sole true religion, e.g. "No one creed has a monopoly on spiritual truth". This led him to rephrase more clearly some sentences in the book for its second edition, though he refused to recall books already in the stores.
In his "Preface to the Second Edition" of the book, Sacks wrote that certain passages in the book had been misconstrued: he had already explicitly criticised cultural and religious relativism in his book, and he did not deny Judaism's uniqueness. He also stressed however that mainstream rabbinic teachings teach that wisdom, righteousness and the possibility of a true relationship with God are all available in non-Jewish cultures and religions as an on-going heritage from the covenant that God made with Noah and all his descendants, so the tradition teaches that one does not need to be Jewish to know God or truth or to attain salvation.Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, The Dignity of Difference, 2nd edition, 2003, pp. vii, 52-65; see also http://www.chiefrabbi.org/ReadArtical.aspx?id=454 and http://www.chiefrabbi.org/ReadArtical.aspx?id-453 As this diversity of covenantal bonds implies, however, traditional Jewish sources do clearly deny that any one creed has a monopoly on spiritual truth. Monopolistic and simplistic claims of universal truth he has characterized as imperialistic, pagan and Platonic, and not Jewish at all.See ibid., Chapter 3: "Exorcising Plato's Ghost," and reaffirmed in his most recent book, Future Tense, 2009, Chapter 4: "The Other: Judaism, Christianity and Islam."
Efforts to accommodate Haredi Jews
A book by the British historian and journalist Meir Persoff, Another Way, Another Time, has argued that "Sacks’s top priority has been staying in the good graces of the Haredi, or strictly Orthodox, faction, whose high birthrate has made it the fastest-growing component of British Jewry." But, Persoff has argued, "the Orthodox circles Sacks strives to placate will never consider him Orthodox enough no matter what he does."http://www.thejc.com/blogpost/is-sacks-britain%E2%80%99s-last-chief-rabbiRabbi Gryn and Rabbi Jacobs
Sacks provoked considerable controversy in the Anglo-Jewish community in 1996 when he refused to attend the funeral service of the late ReformReform Judaism
Reform Judaism refers to various beliefs, practices and organizations associated with the Reform Jewish movement in North America, the United Kingdom and elsewhere. In general, it maintains that Judaism and Jewish traditions should be modernized and should be compatible with participation in the...
Rabbi Hugo Gryn
Hugo Gryn
Hugo Gabriel Gryn was a British Reform rabbi who was a popular broadcaster and a leading voice in interfaith dialogue....
and a private letter he had written in Hebrew
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
, which (in translation) asserted that Gryn was "among those who destroy the faith," was leaked and published. He wrote further that he was an "enemy" of the Reform, Liberal and Masorti movements, leading some to reject the notion that he is "Chief Rabbi" for all Jews in Britain. He attended a memorial meeting for Gryn, a move that brought the wrath of some in the ultra-Orthodox community."Jonathan Sacks: Defender of the faith", The Independent, 8 September 2001Ian Burrell, "Leaked letter widens schism in Jewry", The Independent, 15 March 1997 Rabbi Dow Marmur argued that after attending the memorial service, Sacks then attempted to placate the ultra-Orthodox community, an attempt which Marmur has described as “neurotic and cowardly."http://www.thejc.com/news/40113/lord-sacks-criticised-progressive-rabbi
A similar stance was taken by Sacks and his Beth Din when they prevented the retired rabbi Louis Jacobs
Louis Jacobs
Rabbi Dr. Louis Jacobs was a Masorti rabbi, the first leader of Masorti Judaism in the United Kingdom, and a leading writer and thinker on Judaism...
, who had helped establish the British branch of the Masorti
Masorti
The Masorti Movement is the name given to Conservative Judaism in Israel and other countries outside Canada and U.S. Masorti means "traditional" in Hebrew...
movement, from being called up for the Reading of the Torah on the Saturday before his granddaughter's wedding.
House of Lords
Sacks has been criticized for failing to speak out on major issues in the House of Lords.http://www.thejc.com/news/uk-news/41437/chief-rabbi-lord-sacks-fails-speak-out-lordsSecularism and Europe's changing demographics
Sacks has expressed concern at what he regards as the negative effects of materialism and secularism in European society, arguing that they undermine the basic values of family life and lead to selfishness. In 2009 Sacks gave an address claiming that Europeans have chosen consumerism over the self-sacrifice of parenting children, and that "the major assault on religion today comes from the neo-Darwinians." He argued that Europe is in population decline "because non-believers lack shared values of family and community that religion has."http://richarddawkins.net/article,4572,n,nConsumerism and Steve Jobs
Rabbi Sacks drew considerable criticism for remarks made at an interfaith reception attended by the Queen, in November 2011, in which he appeared to criticise the recently deceased Apple founder Steve Jobs, who he said helped create a selfish consumer culture that has only brought unhappiness. "The consumer society was laid down by the late Steve Jobs coming down the mountain with two tablets, iPad one and iPad two, and the result is that we now have a culture of iPod, iPhone, iTune, i, i, i. When you're an individualist, egocentric culture and you only care about 'i’, you don’t do terribly well.' http:///www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2063546/Chief-Rabbi-blasts-late-Apple-boss-Steve-Jobs-helping-create-selfish-consumer-society.html http://www.computerweekly.com/blogs/it-downtime-blog/2011/11/does-this-not-make-the-uks-chi.html http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/steve-jobs/8899737/Chief-Rabbi-blames-Apple-for-helping-create-selfish-society.html http://blogs.computerworlduk.com/otoh/2011/11/11121-rabbi-vs-steve-jobs-ithis-ithat-cause-sadness/index.htmIn a later statement, the Chief Rabbi's office said: 'The Chief Rabbi meant no criticism of either Steve Jobs personally or the contribution Apple has made to the development of technology in the 21st century.'http:///www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2063546/Chief-Rabbi-blasts-late-Apple-boss-Steve-Jobs-helping-create-selfish-consumer-society.html
Current positions
- RabbiRabbiIn Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
and Spiritual Leader, Western Marble Arch SynagogueWestern Marble Arch SynagogueThe Western Marble Arch Synagogue was founded 1761. Currently the Western Marble Arch Synagogue is a leading modern orthodox synagogue based in central London, England...
, London (since May 1, 2004). - JakobovitsImmanuel JakobovitsImmanuel Jakobovits, Baron Jakobovits, Kt was the Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth from 1967 to 1991. His successor is the present Chief Rabbi, Jonathan Sacks.-Biography:...
Professor in modern Jewish thought, Jews' CollegeJews' College-Origins and Remit Today:Jews' College, now known as the London School of Jewish Studies , was opened in Finsbury Square, London as a rabbinical seminary in 1855 with the support of Chief Rabbi Nathan Adler and of Sir Moses Montefiore, who had conceived the idea for such a venture as early as...
London, 1982. - Chief Rabbi of the United KingdomUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and Commonwealth (since September 1, 1991). - Visiting professorProfessorA professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
of theologyTheologyTheology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
at King's College LondonKing's College LondonKing's College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London. King's has a claim to being the third oldest university in England, having been founded by King George IV and the Duke of Wellington in 1829, and...
. - Honorary fellow of Gonville and Caius College, CambridgeGonville and Caius College, CambridgeGonville and Caius College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in Cambridge, England. The college is often referred to simply as "Caius" , after its second founder, John Keys, who fashionably latinised the spelling of his name after studying in Italy.- Outline :Gonville and...
, 1993. - Presentation (Honorary) fellow, King's College LondonKing's College LondonKing's College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and a constituent college of the federal University of London. King's has a claim to being the third oldest university in England, having been founded by King George IV and the Duke of Wellington in 1829, and...
, 1993. - Member of the Board of World Religious Leaders, The Elijah Interfaith InstituteThe Elijah Interfaith InstituteThe Elijah Interfaith Institute is a nonprofit, international, interfaith organization which was founded by Rabbi Alon Goshen-Gottstein in 1997. Its mission is to foster peace between the world's diverse faith communities through interfaith dialogue, education, research and dissemination...
.The Elijah Interfaith Institute - Jewish Members of the Board of World Religious Leaders
Previous positions held
- Lecturer in moral philosophy, Middlesex Polytechnic, 1971–3.
- Lecturer, Jews' College London, 1973–82; director of its rabbinic facility, 1983–90; Principal, 1984–90.
- Visiting professor of philosophy at the University of EssexUniversity of EssexThe University of Essex is a British campus university whose original and largest campus is near the town of Colchester, England. Established in 1963 and receiving its Royal Charter in 1965...
, 1989–90. - Sherman lecturer at the University of ManchesterUniversity of ManchesterThe University of Manchester is a public research university located in Manchester, United Kingdom. It is a "red brick" university and a member of the Russell Group of research-intensive British universities and the N8 Group...
, 1989. - Riddell lecturer at the University of Newcastle.
- Cook lecturer at the University of OxfordUniversity of OxfordThe University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
, University of EdinburghUniversity of EdinburghThe University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
and the University of St AndrewsUniversity of St AndrewsThe University of St Andrews, informally referred to as "St Andrews", is the oldest university in Scotland and the third oldest in the English-speaking world after Oxford and Cambridge. The university is situated in the town of St Andrews, Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It was founded between...
. - Visiting professor at the Hebrew University of JerusalemHebrew University of JerusalemThe Hebrew University of Jerusalem ; ; abbreviated HUJI) is Israel's second-oldest university, after the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology. The Hebrew University has three campuses in Jerusalem and one in Rehovot. The world's largest Jewish studies library is located on its Edmond J...
.
Sacks is also a frequent guest on both television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
and radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
, and regularly contributes to the national press. He delivered the 1990 BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
Reith Lectures on The Persistence of Faith.
Works by Jonathan Sacks
- Traditional alternatives: Orthodoxy and the future of the Jewish people (1989)
- Tradition in an Untraditional Age (1990)
- BBC Reith Lectures: The Persistence of Faith (1990)
- Persistence of Faith (1991)
- Arguments for the Sake of Heaven (1991)
- Crisis and Covenant (1992)
- One People? (1993)
- Will We Have Jewish Grandchildren? (1994)
- Community of Faith (1995)
- Torah Studies: Discourses by Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson (1996)
- The Politics of Hope (1997 revised 2nd edition 2000)
- Morals and Markets (1999)
- Celebrating Life (2000)
- Radical Then, Radical Now (published in America as A Letter in the Scroll) (2001)
- Dignity of Difference (2002) (Grawemeyer AwardGrawemeyer AwardThe Grawemeyer Awards are five awards given annually by the University of Louisville in the state of Kentucky, United States. The prizes are presented to individuals in the fields of education, ideas improving world order, music composition, religion, and psychology...
winner) - The Chief Rabbi's Haggadah (2003)
- To Heal a Fractured World - The Ethics of Responsibility (2005)
- The Home We Build Together - Recreating Society (2007)
- The Koren Sacks Siddur (2009)
- Covenant & Conversation: A Weekly Reading of the Jewish Bible (2009)
- Future Tense: Jews, Judaism, and Israel in the Twenty-first Century (2009)
- The Great Partnership: God, Science and the Search For Meaning (2011)
External links
- Office of the Chief Rabbi
- The Koren Sacks Siddur website
- Amazon Author Page
- The 1990 BBC Reith Lectures 1990: The Persistence of Faith