BUBER, Martin
- Era: 1878 - 1965
- Location: Austria-Germany/Hungary
- Categories: PHILOSOPHY, RELIGION
German educated, Jewish social philosopher for whom engagement with Hasidic life and thought and threat from Nazism inspired relocation to Palestine in 1938. His Zionist commitment was qualified by a sense of territory shared with Palestinians; he was a ‘Hebrew Humanist’. He published and lectured widely but his I and Thou book is what he is best known for. Whilst he was critical of self-centredness in philosophy, his own focus on the specialness of I-Thou relations led to criticism that that undervalues more inclusive I-You ones. He is central to the development of Jewish-Christian dialogue with its spirit of mutual appreciation, rooted in a sense of the ‘Eternal Thou’.
Life
-
Brief Jewish Virtual Library account of the life and work of Buber
-
Buber's life and work from the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Writings