Zvi Hirschfield – Rav Kook: The Particular and the Universal

The tension between the particular and the universal lies at the heart of Torah and many of today’s cultural challenges. R’ A.Y. HaCohen Kook was one of the great thinkers and holy souls of the Jewish people in the early 20th century. He saw himself at the crossroads of history – the world was between the wars and the Jewish people between exile and redemption. His writings offer a relationship between the particular and universal which combines ancient and modern wisdom and which is more relevant every day.

Zvi Hirschfield

Rabbi Zvi Hirschfield teaches Talmud, Halakha and Jewish Thought at Pardes. He is also deeply involved in Pardes’s programs for Jewish educators, with a focus on tefilah in educational settings, modern Jewish thought, and Israel education. Zvi holds a B.A. in History from Columbia University, pursued graduate studies at Harvard University in Medieval and Modern Jewish Thought, studied at Yeshivat Har Etzion, and received rabbinic ordination from the Chief Rabbinate of Israel.

Before joining Pardes, Zvi served as Director of Judaica at the JCC of Cleveland and taught at the Cleveland College of Jewish Studies. He also works as a curriculum writer and staff trainer for the Nesiya Institute. Zvi lives in Israel with his wife, Dina, and their four children.