Almost 500 people joined Rabbi Dr Zarum to hear his inaugral lecture on Monday night, entitled “The Seven Pillars of Wisdom: Towards a Judaism for the 21st Century”. The event was held in person and online and saw an international audience which included the Zandan family from the USA. who generously established the Chair.
Joanne Greenaway, LSJS Chief Executive said “this new Chair is one of the key ways that we will honour the legacy of Rabbi Sacks zt’l at LSJS. I’m so delighted that Rabbi Dr Zarum will have this platform to continue to build his thought leadership at LSJS and to address the challenges of our age through teaching Torah in his own unique way and furthering the vision of Rabbi Sacks of ‘a Judaism engaged with the world’.
Rabbi Dr Zarum said, “I tried to lay out my thinking of a meaningful Judaism for the 21st century, based on Rabbi Sacks’s ideas of the interplay between Torah and worldly wisdom.”
LSJS has had a deep connection with Rabbi Sacks zt”l spanning over 40 years, as he progressed from student to lecturer and then Principal and President. Following his term as Chief Rabbi he became the Honorary President of LSJS. This long-standing association made the creation of the Rabbi Sacks Chair of Modern Jewish Thought a natural step for LSJS to continue to recognise Rabbi Sacks zt”l contribution to contemporary Jewish thought and further his teachings.
The inaugral lecture kicks off an exciting first year for the Rabbi Sacks Chair of Modern Jewish Thought which will see Rabbi Dr Zarum conduct speaking tours in the US, Israel and across the UK. He will also be mentoring future Jewish leaders, in a similar way to how Rabbi Sacks zt”l mentored him. Rabbi Dr Zarum is also completing his first book which is due to be published in 2023.
To find out more about the Rabbi Sacks Chair of Modern Jewish Thought or about LSJS courses and events please call 0208 203 6427 or email lsjsadmin@lsjs.ac.uk