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Seymour Siegel (September 12, 1927 - February 24, 1988), often referred to as "an architect of Conservative Jewish theology," was an American Conservative rabbi, a Professor of Ethics and Theology at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America (JTS), the 1983-1984 Executive Director of the United States Holocaust Memorial Council,"〔Ari L. Goldman, "Rabbi Seymour Siegel, 61, Leader In Conservative Judaism, Is Dead," ''The New York Times'', Feb 25, 1988.〕 and an advisor to three American Presidents, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, and Ronald Reagan.〔''Encyclopedia Judaica, Second Edition,'' 2007, Vol 18, p.556.〕 Siegel was associated with JTS for 41 years, first as a student and later as an instructor, holding the Ralph Simon Professor of Ethics and Theology chair, succeeding his friend and mentor, Abraham Joshua Heschel, in that position. He was an outspoken champion of political conservatism, delivering a prayer at the 1973 second term inauguration of President Richard Nixon, but just as strong a champion of religious causes sometimes associated with liberalism, such as the ordination of female rabbis. In his obituary, New York Times religion writer, Ari L. Goldman, wrote that the writings of Seymour Siegel "helped open the door for the ordination of female rabbis" in the Conservative movement.〔 ==Life and work== Seymour Siegel was born in Chicago, Illinois, attending the University of Chicago (B.A., 1958) and the Hebrew Theological College for undergraduate studies, then earning rabbinic ordination, and both a Masters and Doctorate in Hebrew Literature at JTS (M.A., 1951; DHL, 1960), in New York City.〔''Encyclopedia Judaica, Decennial Book (1973-1982), Keter Publishing House, Jerusalem:1982, p556.〕 He remained at JTS, as a Professor of Theology and Ethics, and over the years, held other positions for varying amounts of time, including Dean of Students ("Registrar") for the Rabbinical School, and Assistant Dean of the Herbert H. Lehman Institute of Ethics.〔"The Lay Leader in the LEAD (Laymens' Enrichment and Devotional Program) Program," Official Navy Report (NAVPERS 15156) of "The Consultation on the Lay Ministry," Naval Base, Charleston, South Carolina, May 16–19, 1967, sponsored by the Chief of Chaplains, U.S. Navy, and the Commander, Submarine Force, U.S. Atlantic Fleet.〕 From 1973-1980, he served as Chair of the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards of the Rabbinical Assembly (RA). He also served on the ''Commission on the Ideology of Conservative Judaism''—later renamed, ''The Commission on the Philosophy of Conservative Judaism''—that produced the 1988 document, (''Emet Ve'Emunah: Statement of Principles of Conservative Judaism.'' ) Siegel grew up in a "close-knit Yiddish family and community," with "his yeshiva education preparing him to be an orthodox rabbi or Talmudic scholar. But after graduating from the University of Chicago, he gravitated toward the Conservative movement. There, his friends, Samuel Dresner and Wolfe Kelman, urged him to study with Heschel."〔(Edward J. Kaplan, ''Spiritual Radical: Abraham Joshua Heschel in America, 1940-1972,'' Yale University:2007, p91. )〕 As a teacher, Siegel was ahead of his time in many ways. He taught Holocaust studies in the mid-1960s, well before it was considered a field of serious study, and he was a pioneer in the field of medical ethics in particular, and religious ethics in general. He believed that teaching should not be confined to the classroom, and shared Heschel's "conviction that the Jews had a vision of society which could and should influence general society as much as the general society influenced Judaism.".〔 Putting these beliefs into practice, he became one of the first ethical advisors to American commercial corporations, chairing the ethics committee of the public relations firm, Ruder Finn and serving on the Biohazards Committee of the giant pharmaceutical concern, Hoffman-La Roche.〔(Byron L. Sherwin, "Jewish Ethics for the Twenty-First Century: Living in the Image of God," 2000, p70. )〕 As part of this position, he worked on guidelines in recombinant DNA research.〔Richard Freund, "The Ethical Realism of Seymour Siegel," ''Conservative Judaism,'' 45:1 Fall 1992 pp. 67-81.〕 Siegel felt a tremendous responsibility, in his role as a Professor of Ethics and Theology at the Jewish Theological Seminary, to be both a general public servant serving the public of the United States of America from his understanding of the teachings of Judaism and at the same time a servant to the Jewish people in his role as the Chairman of the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards of the Rabbinic Assembly.〔Freund, ''op.cit.,'' p. 75.〕 The well-known scholar Jacob Neusner recalls that Siegel was his "best Talmud teacher" at JTS.,〔(Jacob Neusner, ''Judaism's Theological Voice: The Melody of the Talmud,'' The University of Chicago Press:1985, p.83. )〕 and a generation of rabbis praised Siegel's "full control" of the broad range of classical Jewish texts, ranging from Talmud, to Jewish law, to Jewish mysticism,〔Elliot Gertel, "Remembering Seymour Siegel," ''The Jewish Spectator,'' Spring-Summer 1989, pp.14-20.〕 along with his ability to explain difficult issues in clear and straightforward ways. He was called "the most versatile and well-rounded scholar at the Jewish Theological Seminary."〔 In addition to his positions at JTS, and his work with the RA, Siegel served as a visiting senior research fellow at the (Kennedy Institute for Bioethics ) at Georgetown University (1976–1977); a visiting scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars (1981), in Washington, DC; a Hastings Center Fellow; and a Fellow for the Society of Religion in Higher Education.〔Information about his appointment as a Fellow for the SRHE from the introduction to his speech, "The Challenge of History and the Problem of Evil," included in ''External Links'', below.]〕 He also served, 1982–1983, as the only clergy person〔Richard N. Ostling and Michael P. Harris, ''Time Magazine,'' "Religion: Scientists Must Not Play God, Jun 20, 1983]〕 on the ''President's Commission for the Study of Ethical Problems in Medicine and Biomedical Research'', appointed to that Commission by President Ronald Reagan. In addition, Siegel served on the (Boards of Directors ) of numerous organizations, including the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs (JINSA), and the Jewish Publication Society (JPS), and on the editorial boards of many journals and periodicals, including ''This World.'' In the Fall of 1951, JTS Chancellor Louis Finkelstein arranged for Martin Buber to make his first trip to the U.S., for a six month lecture tour. Finkelstein appointed Siegel to act as the host for Buber and his wife, Pauline, during their time at JTS. Siegel met them at Idlewild Airport (now John F. Kennedy International Airport) on Nov 1, 1951.〔(Kaplan, ''op.cit.'', p. 134. )〕 Twenty four years later, at the memorial service held for Buber in New York, Siegel would be one of three speakers, including Protestant theologian, Paul Tillich.〔(David Novak, "The Jew: Essays from Martin Buber's Journal, Der Jude, 1916-1928," Modern Judaism, Oxford University Press, Vol 2, No. 1, Feb 1982, pp105-110. )〕 In 1962, Siegel helped found the (''Seminario Rabinico Latinoamericano'' ), ''Latin American Rabbinical Seminary,'' in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and "was instrumental in consolidating the relationship" between that seminary and JTS, in NY, by spending summers there, teaching courses in Talmud, theology, and ethics.〔〔 At a news conference after a ten week trip to Buenos Aires to help set up the Seminary, he spoke out about the fear of the Argentinian Jewish community regarding the antisemitism it faced. He said that "...reliable sources say that (Argentinian ) Government officials know who perpetrate the anti-Semitic attacks and yet they have not taken any steps to arrest them." He urged the U.S. government to do whatever it could to strengthen democratic institutions in Argentina, and expressed his concern that the Roman Catholic Church there had taken no official stand against anti-semitic attacks. "The rabbi, who said he had witnessed the machine-gunning of an Israeli shipping line while he was in Buenos Aires, said that such attacks were a recurrence of anti-Semitic acts that date back more than thirty years."〔John C. Wicklein, ''U.S. Rabbi Asserts Argentina Fails to Halt Attacks on Jews,'' ''New York Times,'' Aug 10, 1962.〕 Siegel was fluent in Spanish, and during some New York political campaigns, delivered speeches in Spanish to Hispanic groups on New York's Upper West Side. In 1965, when a Spanish-language Conservative prayerbook was printed for Argentina and other countries in Latin America, one of Siegel's prayers—for the Jewish festival of Sukkot, Tabernacles—was included.〔''Ritual de Oraciones Para Todo El Ano,'' Consejo Mundial de Sinagogas (World Council of Synagogues), Buenos Aires:1965, p495.〕 The prayerbook—the first new translation of a Jewish prayerbook into Spanish since the original Spanish translation had appeared in Ferrara, Italy, in 1552—was a project of the Latin American office of the World Council of Synagogues. Among other Spanish publications of the council was a translation of ''The Jewish Dietary Laws'', written by Siegel and his colleague, Rabbi Samuel Dresner. 〔(American Jewish Committee Archives, Latin America: Argentina, 1966-1968. )〕 During the 1960s, when there was heated debate among rabbis, including those in the RA, about whether or not to engage in Jewish-Christian dialogue, Siegel was a strong voice for its importance, stating flatly that "we must have dialogue." In addition, he was one of the first rabbis to teach at Christian seminaries.〔''United Synagogue Proceedings,'' 1965, 113-116; and ''RA Proceedings,'' XXXI (1967), pp84-86; as cited (both references) in Gilbert Rosenthal, "Four Paths to One God," Bloch Publishing Co., NY:1973.〕 In 1967, when the debate about interfaith dialogue had reached new heights, with some rabbis taking the position that it might be appropriate for Christian and Jewish leaders to discuss issues of "social justice," but not "theology," Siegel once again took a strong position in favor of religious dialogue. He wrote that such dialogue "is imperative today in a world whose vexatious problems are of immediate urgency to Christians and Jews alike," that it would be impossible to come together for discussions about social problems "in depth, without getting down to religion"—and, more than that, that it would be "ludicrous for religious leaders to meet for the purpose of discussing all subjects except the one in which they are most expert -- religion."〔(Daytona Beach Morning Journal, Feb 25, 1967, quoting both Siegel's remarks to reporters and an article he had written in the American Jewish Congress Bi-Weekly. )〕 Later, in 1984, after Jewish-Christian dialogue had developed in many circles, Siegel, ahead of his time, said that he hoped that such dialogue would grow to include Islam—and even more, that the so-called "Western religions" of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, which were for the most part "woefully ignorant" of other religions in the world, including those in Asia and Africa, could develop opportunities to come together in dialogue, as well. Siegel said that, while religion was often a force in war, in could be a force for peace for two primary reasons: first, because it could keep alive the vision of the prophets of a time of future peace; and second, because religion could bring with it a vision that transcended national borders and races, so that it became possible to identify with others as "persons."〔Quest for Peace lecture: "The Lessons of History and the Problem of Evil," 1984, on UC Irvine Library site, "Quest for Peace: Perspectives on the Human Condition." (Video link included under "external links" for this article.)〕 On the other hand, while he was a strong advocate of interfaith dialogue and cooperation, he cautioned against underestimating or blurring the differences among religions. Addressing one issue of Jewish-Christian relations, he wrote, "The two covenants -- Judaism and Christianity -- are like two parallel lines which will meet in eternity. Until that time, we remain separate, but respectful and loving of each other."〔 During the mid-1960s, he was also the founding rabbi of the "West Side Chevre Shas," a New York Upper West Side Talmud study group that attracted some of the luminaries of the New York Jewish world, members of their families, and special guests. The group met weekly, on Shabbat, the Jewish Sabbath, for three decades, rotating among the homes of the participants. During the two years Siegel was in Washington, DC, with the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Council, Rabbi David Weiss HaLivni led the group, but otherwise, from its founding to Siegel's death, he led the group. The group held their annual Tikkun Leil Shavuot session (all night study during the night of the Jewish Festival of Shavuot), at Siegel's home. In addition to this group, he hosted a weekly Saturday-morning Shabbat egalitarian worship service for JTS students when no egalitarian service (where male and female students participated equally in all aspects of worship) was conducted at JTS. Affectionately referred to as "Siegel's Shtiebel," from the Yiddish term for a "little house" used for study and prayer, it was a time for students to pray, to learn together, to enjoy Siegel's home cooking (he was an excellent cook, preparing his Sabbath specialty, cholent, for the group), and his singing (he loved music, and could give a "note perfect rendition" of "vintage cantorial records" or old "Hasidic delights").〔 In 1967, Siegel represented the Jewish community (and the Jewish faith) as the only rabbi to participate in an historic conference convened by the United States Navy, co-sponsored by the Chief of Chaplains, U.S. Navy, and the Commander, U.S. Submarine Force, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, on the subject of lay ministry. Under the best circumstances, many officers and sailors in the U.S. Navy are out of range of chaplains, but with new nuclear submarine technology enabling submarines to stay under water and virtually out of communication with anyone who could offer religious support almost indefinitely (the only limiting factor was how much food could be stored for the crew), new religious support questions had been raised. As a result, the Navy convened the conference in order to learn ways that lay people—military "lay leaders"—could be better trained, prepared, and supported for their roles in providing opportunities for worship, or supporting other forms of religious requirements in the absence of ordained clergy, and even in the absence of communication with them for months at a time. The conference also included discussions of the religious views of each faith group vis-a-vis ecumenical and interfaith prayer.〔 The goal of the conference was to come up with an experimental approach that "will be made in POLARIS submarines, but later application will be made in the entire Naval establishment." Siegel's many involvements in religion, education, and politics, took him around the world. In contrast with his early visit to Vietnam during his time as an anti-war activist, he later traveled to Moscow in 1967, at the request of President Nixon, to deliver a packet and a personal message to Llewellyn Thompson, the U.S. Ambassador to the Soviet Union. As a result of his friendship with the Korean-born Japanese professor, (Jacob Teshima ), a doctoral student of Heschel's, he traveled to Japan to make presentations to the Japanese pro-Zionist group, Makuya. Siegel was one of the readers of Teshima's 1977 doctoral dissertation comparing Zen Buddhism and Hasidic Judaism.〔(Profile of Jacob Teshima. )〕 A prolific writer, Siegel was the author of hundreds of articles, and the editor of two books, "Conservative Judaism and Jewish Law," and "God in the Teachings of Conservative Judaism." His works were extremely diverse, ranging from scholarly papers on religious law, especially in terms of its relation to theology and ethics—including biomedical ethics, and Holocaust theology, to a community guide he co-wrote on kashrut, Jewish religious dietary practices, for the United Synagogue,〔Samuel Dresner, Seymour Siegel and David Pollock, The Jewish Dietary Laws, United Synagogue, New York, 1982〕 and the teacher's guide (dealing with "conceptual issues") for the religious school book on prayer, ''When a Jew Prays.'' He was featured on the JTS Eternal Life television series in 1981, giving a presentation on "The Days of Awe: Their Significance and Relevance." At the time of his death, he was writing a third book, ''Medical Ethics in a Jewish Perspective.'' 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Seymour Siegel」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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