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The Martin Buber Society of Fellows in the Humanities and Social Sciences
The Martin Buber Society of Fellows in the Humanities and Social Sciences
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The Martin Buber Society of Fellows is dedicated to upholding the highest standards of academic excellence. students will also be appointed for one year.
Our goal is to foster innovative research of broad cultural relevance and to create a community of scholars who can inspire one another. The Martin Buber Society of Fellows in the Humanities at the Hebrew University, Jerusalem, is a German Foundation financed by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF). Its research facility is situated at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. It is aim
ed at creating a creative, vibrant scholarly environment for outstanding young scholars in all fields of the Humanities and Social Sciences. Scholars from the two countries who have completed their Ph.D. degrees within the last five years are eligible to apply, on the basis of a detailed research proposal, for generous fellowships, initially for a period of one year, but renewable for further periods thereafter upon submission of a long-term research project which will be evaluated by the Academic Committee. The Fellows-five from Israel and five from Germany in each annual batch-- will be housed at the Hebrew University and work in offices in the beautifully appointed Rabin Building on the Mount Scopus campus. They will have the freedom to carry out their research under optimal conditions, and they will take part in regular activities including a weekly seminar or colloquium, periodic workshops and conferences, study trips, lectures, and social events. Senior scholars from both countries will be associated with the Society as Senior Fellows and mentors, and a small number of select Ph.D. Israeli Fellows will be encouraged to spend one year in Germany at major institutions of higher learning. The Society is governed by a binational Kuratorium which meets regularly in Germany to decide on questions of strategy, budget, and development. All academic activity is overseen by the Academic Committee of seven members representing a wide range of disciplines: Prof. David Shulman (Director, Hebrew University), Prof. Maria Mavroudi (University of California), Prof. Margalit Finkelberg (Tel Aviv University), Prof. Yakov Metzer (Hebrew University), Prof. Dr. Ursula Lehmkuhl, (Freie Universitaet Berlin), Prof. Theda Skocpol (Harvard) and Prof. Dorothea Weltecke (University of Konstanz). The Academic Committee is responsible for selecting the next year's Fellows from among the candidates who have applied. The Society of Fellows, like similar institutions at Harvard, Konstanz, Princeton, University of Michigan, and elsewhere, is committed to the highest standards of academic excellence and to a strong inter-disciplinary orientation. Our goal is to foster innovative, path-breaking research of broad cultural meaning and relevance and to create a community of scholars who can learn from and inspire one another. Scholars who have acquired a strong basis in their chosen discipline will be encouraged to embark upon broader, imaginative projects and to explore new disciplines and methodologies, thus crossing academic boundaries and challenging ossified conceptions. The primary values that guide us are originality, depth of insight, breadth of vision, cross-cultural and inter-disciplinary curiosity, collegiality, and (of course) solid erudition. The Society is funded by a generous grant from the German government with significant matching from the Hebrew University. The Director is nominated by the President of the Hebrew University and approved by the Kuratorium. The Society maintains close ties with other academic institutions in the two countries, including the Institute for Advanced Studies at the Hebrew University.
16/06/2026
Marking over 15 years of academic partnership between the Zukunftskolleg in Konstanz and the MBSF, a group of our fellows participated last week in a joint 3-day workshop at the University of Konstanz. This event marks the first installment of our annual exchange, with the second part scheduled to take place this autumn in Jerusalem.
Under the title "From Tool to Teammate: How Does AI Fundamentally Transform Research Practice?" the workshop examined the intersection of historical preservation and emerging methodological frontiers. The workshop ranged from archival site visits at the St. Gallen Abbey Library and the Archive of the Kanton St. Gallen to discussions on contemporary methods. Key sessions addressed AI-driven behavioral insights, the role of prompting as a scholarly expertise, and the ethical dimensions of AI-mediated research collaboration.
We look forward to reconvening with our partners in Jerusalem this autumn to continue these vital academic dialogues!
27/05/2026
We were delighted to welcome Verena Shifferman, Director of the German-Israeli Foundation for Scientific Research and Development (GIF) to our weekly Kaffeestunde yesterday! She introduced us to the work of the GIF and we had an engaging discussion about possible avenues for future collaboration.
Jack, Joseph & Morton Mandel School for Advanced Studies in the Humanities
25/05/2026
It is always wonderful to hear about two Buberians meeting somewhere around the globe!
Our alumni Katharina Kraus and Antonios Kalatzis recently crossed paths in Vienna, and they shared some happy updates:
Katharina has officially returned to Europe after nine years in the US (where she taught at the University of Notre Dame and Johns Hopkins University). She is now the Professor of Philosophy of the Enlightenment and Modernity at the University of Vienna! In the photo, she is holding her newly published Cambridge Element, Kant's Ideas of Reason.
Antonios recently delivered a lecture on Hegel and Aristotle at the University of Vienna's Department of Philosophy. Looking ahead, he will soon be assuming a Professorship for Classical German Philosophy at the Department of Philosophy of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens!
Warm congratulations and thank you for sharing this news :)
Jack, Joseph & Morton Mandel School for Advanced Studies in the Humanities
18/05/2026
Proud and delighted for our alumna, Prof. Orly Lewis!
Warmest congratulations to Professor Orly Lewis from the Department of Classical Studies on her election to the Israel Young Academy for 2026!
This impressive milestone is a true testament to her academic excellence, remarkable creativity, and profound contribution to the Humanities.
Standing at the fascinating intersection of classical philology and the Digital Humanities, Prof. Lewis explores the history of medicine and science in antiquity. She leads the highly acclaimed ERC-funded project, ATLOMY, an ambitious endeavor that bridges ancient historical texts with modern technology to create a fully interactive, 3D anatomical atlas of the Greco-Roman understanding of the body.
Her forward-thinking work brings immense pride to our Faculty. We wish Prof. Lewis continued success, fruitful research, and a broad, meaningful impact both within the global academic community and the public sphere.
Congratulations on this highly deserved honor!
Photo credit: Bruno Charbit
10/05/2026
We are happy to share a new podcast project by our fellow
Dr. Níels P. Eggerz, together with Dr. Elke Morlok (University of Hamburg)!
The History of Christian Kabbalah
The podcast explores how Christian thinkers from the Renaissance to the early Enlightenment turned to Kabbalah in search of hidden wisdom, and used it to rethink central questions about God, creation, Christ, and the human soul.
Through narrative episodes and expert interviews, the series traces the emergence and transformation of Christian Kabbalah within its historical contexts, offering insight into the texts, debates, and intellectual worlds that shaped this tradition.
Combining academic research with clear storytelling, the podcast opens up a remarkable chapter in the history of exchange between Judaism and Christianity.
New episodes are released weekly, every Thursday!
Jack, Joseph & Morton Mandel School for Advanced Studies in the Humanities
The History of Christian Kabbalah
Podcast · Níels Eggerz, Elke Morlok · What happens when Christian theology meets Jewish mysticism?The History of Christian Kabbalah explores how Christian thinkers from the Renaissance to the early Enlightenment turned to Kabbalah in search of hidden wisdom, and used it to rethink key questions a...
27/04/2026
We are delighted to introduce the new cohort of elected Buber Fellows who will be joining us in the next academic year!
from Germany
Romy Susanne Koehler, Historical Anthropology
Robert Ziegelmann, Philosophy
Konstantin Funk, Theology
Rachel Dryden, Islamic Studies
Jordan Schnee, Jewish literature
from Israel
Mor Hagbi, Medieval History
Shirly Orr, Linguistics
Oded Marom, Political Sociology
Maayan Shemer, Prehistoric Archeology
Loaay Wattad, Sociology and Literature
25/02/2026
We had a fascinating and inspiring time at the Tel Aviv Museum of Art this week, visiting the 100 years of "New Objectivity" exhibition. Our tour was led by the curator himself, Dr. Noam Gal (from the HU)The exhibition features rare, mostly unseen works from post-WWI Germany. We wrapped up the visit with a beautiful Miniatures exhibition.
10/02/2026
Sometimes the smallest wonders are right in front of us... In this case, in the Botanical Garden next to our building! We set out to explore the first signs of spring together with Dr. Meni Neuman, Head of the Botanical Garden on Mount Scopus.
Jack, Joseph & Morton Mandel School for Advanced Studies in the Humanities
20/01/2026
The annual tradition (no 2016 version though;)) of the foosball tournament with coffee, in collaboration with colleagues from all floors of the Jack, Joseph & Morton Mandel School for Advanced Studies in the Humanities, took place once again in a wonderful atmosphere. The Buber players clearly brought their A-game!
Thanks to everyone who took part!
13/01/2026
It's always great to have an alumna visiting—even if only for a single (and very rainy!) day! We hosted Dr. Mirjam Lücking, now an Assistant Professor at LMU in the Department of Cultural Anthropology. Mirjam was a fellow from 2019 to 2023, and her project here focused on Muslim and Christian tourism from Indonesia to Jerusalem.
16/06/2026
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27/04/2026
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