A Call to Ethical Judaism: ‘Hebrew Humanism’ in Martin Buber’s Thought

This article attempts to examine how the concept of “biblical
humanism” took shape in Martin Buber’s thought and to follow
its development as the central core of Buber’s thinking,
beginning with establishing the goal of the Jewish College as
part of a cultural process of Jewish renaissance. The article
goes on to explore the biblical element of “biblical humanism,”
its reshaping as a definition of the goal of the Zionist
movement, “Hebrew humanism,” and Buber’s speech on
receiving the Erasmus Prize, in which he described himself
as a “believing humanist.”
This developmental description of an idea uncovers the
meaning of biblical humanism, not as a definition of a concept
but as a key concept for constructing an educational and
cultural program for the Zionist movement.