Boteach, Diamant and Beery Among Top 5 for Brandeis Professorship

I kind of still don't believe it, but my friend and PresenTense Magazine editor/publisher Ariel Beery was named a finalist in the Charles R. Bronfman Visiting Chair in Jewish Communal Innovation competition run by Brandeis University, alongside Anita Diamant (author of "The Red Tent") and Shmuley Boteach (author of everything else). This certainly goes under "Friends Doing Cool Stuff," in addition to a host of other categories. You can read Ariel's proposal, "Translating Judaism for the Post-Digital Age: Creative Zionism and a Renewed Jewish People," here. These additional details are from the JTA.

Applicants were asked to come up with an innovation in Judaism and develop it with proposals for changing the way Jews think about themselves and their community. The winner will receive a visiting professorship at Brandeis and two years to develop the idea into a book that Brandeis will publish. The finalists are Jerusalem Post editorial page editor and columnist Saul Singer; Harvard doctoral candidate Yehuda Kurtzer; author Anita Diamant; Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, the founder of the Jewish Values Network; and Ariel Beery, the publisher of PresenTense magazine. They were selected from 231 applicants, including 49 rabbis and from such countries as Israel, Italy, India, Australia and Sweden. The five will present their proposals Feb. 24 at a symposium for members of the Brandeis community and Boston-area Jewish leaders.

Ariel, together with Aharon Horwitz, also created the PresenTense Institute, which is now also seeking applicants for this upcoming summer. Applications available--in Hebrew and English--here. Kol Hakavod, Ariel! And best of luck with the symposium...

Comments

[Oyster]

It's news like this, plus the cryptic images of Ariel cropping up in Ir HaKoidesh, that leads one to the unmistakable conclusion that he is, in fact, the Messiah. :-p

[Esther Kustanowitz]

Oyster, I'm not sure it proves that. Co-Messiah, maybe.

[VJ]

Good deal still. And nice recognition. Cheers & Good Luck, 'VJ'

[kvetcher]

A clear sign there are no real leaders in this generation.