Ha-Tov v’ha-Meitiv: Contemporary Scholarship in Jewish Studies

“This volume celebrates a half century of the fulfillment of Touro University founder Rabbi Dr. Bernard Lander’s vision for an institution of higher education that would be dedicated to academic excellence, social responsibility and the community at large, accompanied by a major commitment to the needs of the Jewish community. In its first fifty years, Touro University has done much to make Rabbi Dr. Lander’s vision a reality. It is thus most appropriate that this book presents the proceedings of two Touro University conferences, one held in New York on the subject of ‘Jewish leadership,’ which Rabbi Dr. Lander exemplified, and the other, on an important aspect of Holocaust studies, held at Touro University’s Berlin campus, which symbolizes Rabbi Dr. Lander’s worldwide aspirations for the institution he founded.”

— Ira Robinson, Distinguished Professor Emeritus/ Department of Religions and Cultures/ Concordia University.

“Ha-Tov v’ha Meitiv: Contemporary Scholarship in Jewish Studies. Essays in Honor of the 50th Anniversary of Touro University, edited by Simcha Fishbane and Eric M. Levine, is a collection of outstanding essays by noted scholars, professors, rabbis, and writers, eminent experts on their subjects who are devoted to preserving and maintaining Jewish history and culture. Students of all ages will find a wealth of interesting material here on such topics as Holocaust studies, Jewish, Polish, Ukrainian history, the expulsion from Spain, the Dreyfus Affair, leadership, rabbinical authority, and finding meaning in work. Touro University has done a true mitzvah by publishing this excellent anthology, dedicated to the memory of Dr. Bernard Lander, Touro’s Founding President. This volume deserves a place of honor in university, public, and private libraries throughout the English-speaking world. 

A reading knowledge of Hebrew is not essential for persons interested in the subject, as most quotations have been translated. A comprehensive introduction by Dr. Alan Kadish prepares readers for the wide variety of articles included here, and the material has been arranged both chronologically and by subject, beautifully edited to assist the reader in going through this volume.”

— Dr. Lynn Visson, United Nations, Retired