Yotam Hotam
Biographic Data
| ID | 491002 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Yotam Hotam |
| GIVEN NAMES | Yotam |
| FAMILY NAME | Hotam |
| SIGNATURE | HOTAM Y |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Haifa |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 15 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 11 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 13 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 2 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2004 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 2 |
Dreams, messianism and politics
This paper presents a case for the intersection of religion and literature, secularism and theology, faith and politics in Israeli culture, by focusing on the acclaimed Hebrew Oratorio “Tikkun Hatzot” (Midnight Vigil). The oratorio was composed by Mordecai Seter (1916–1994) with a libretto by the poet Mordecai Tabib (1910–1979). The paper shows how the text offers a modern artistic dialogue with Zoharic notions and how, within this context, the t…
Face control
The paper analyzes micro-inequality in Tel Aviv night clubs, relying upon Levinas’s concept of the face. In-depth interviews with nightclub doormen, or “selectors”, as they are called in Israel, revealed that the clients’ faces comprise a critical component of their screening work. At the same time, they reported that customers’ faces make it difficult for them to do their jobs and force them to engage in evading faces and suspending ethical judg…
Education between Critique and Theology
Recent debates in Israel highlight a resurfacing of the tensions between secular education and religion by assuming a clear separation between a critical attitude toward religion and the preparing of students for a life of religious obedience. Drawing on Theodor Adorno's discussion of education from the 1960's I wish to challenge this taken-for-granted assumption. I show how Adorno's famous educational appeal for "critical selfreflection" can be …
Bildung
This paper revisits the admixture of secular and spiritual aspects in Bildung. It aims at re-examining the intimate relations between the secular, rational and enlightened educational ideals, which were invested in the formation of the Bildung concept at the turn of the eighteenth century, and the religious, and mystical foundations of these ideals. The paper argues that Bildung should be regarded as a symbol of the unvarying presence of what soc…
Theory and measure in the psychological field
In this article, we pose a question about the link between theory and measure within the field of psychology and use an influential psychological theory—attachment theory—as a case study to test our question. Using a multidisciplinary approach, we incorporate broad historical, sociological, and philosophical perspectives to support our thesis that in today’s psychological field there is pressure to achieve instantaneous empirical answers to broad…
An Outline for Critical Theology
In recent years, critical thought and theological discourse have been challenging each other, as they share mutual themes alongside contesting motivations. Against this broad background, this outline presents a possible formula for “critical theology,” which negotiates between the critical and the theological fields of inquiry. Stemming from the contemporary Israeli framework of religion, society and political imagination, the formula points to t…
Education in post-secular society
Three transformative social movements stand out in the present. The first is the digital revolution. Digitalization, and its network infrastructures, is more than an ‘upgrade’ in the economy. It is
Modern Gnosis and Zionism
In the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, the German intellectual world was challenged by a growing distrust in the rational ideals of the enlightenment, and consequently by a belief in the existence of a radical ‘cultural crisis’. One response to this crisis was the emergence of ‘Life Philosophy’, which celebrated the irrational, expressive, instinctive and spontaneous, while rejecting the rational, conscious, and logical. Around the s…
Pedagogy in practice
This paper introduces the concept of ‘pedagogy in practice’ (PiP), referring to the immediate interaction between students’ learning experiences and school’s pedagogy and distinct from the pedagogy advocated ‘from above’ by the school. We bring the concept of PiP into focus by analysing students’ open‐ended discourse about their learning experiences in 24 open group conversations, comparing two holistically different learning environments (conven…
Deutsch-Jüdische Jugendliche im »Zeitalter der Jugend«
Overcoming the mentor
German scholars of Jewish origin who were students of Martin Heidegger in the 1920s and 1930s are frequently criticized for their supposed postwar refusal to ‘disavow earlier liaisons with Heidegger.’ These scholars are thus indicted for being fundamentally anti-liberal or apolitical, and for those reasons dangerous disciples of Heidegger. By examining the works of Karl Löwith and Hans Jonas, two of Heidegger's influential former students, the fo…
Nationalized Judaism and Diasporic Existence. Jakob Klatzkin and Hans Jonas
This article characterizes the modern Jewish debate around Zionism as a profound political theological controversy by juxtaposing the works of two significant twentieth-century Jewish scholars, Jakob Klatzkin (1882–1948) and Hans Jonas (1903–1993). While Klatzkin campaigned for Zionism as Gnosticism, Jonas critically challenged this link in his writings from the 1950s and 1960s. In presenting a theological reading of modern Jewish secular thought…
Gnosis and Modernity – a Postwar German Intellectual Debate on Secularisation, Religion and ‘Overcoming’ the Past
The following paper elaborates on the compound character and the importance of an intellectual discussion regarding Modernity, secularisation and theology that raged within a cluster of German scholars during the 1950s and 1960s (Hans Jonas (1903–93), Hans Blumenberg (1920–96), Gershom Scholem (1897–1982) and Eric Voegelin (1901–85)). It argues that these scholars were united discursively owing to the appearance of the concept of Gnosis in their …
Berdichevsky's Saul and Paul
In addition to his literary work, Micha Joseph Berdichevsky is noted for his diverse academic studies that deal primarily with Jewish Antiquity. Within this framework, Berdichevsky actively pursued a study of the nature and the emergence of Christianity; yet until recently, this aspect of his work has received little scholarly attention. This article focuses on Berdichevsky's view of Christian theology and demonstrates his dissociation of Paul, t…
Populäre Konstruktionen von Erinnerung im deutschen Judentum und nach der Emigration
Education in post-secular society
Three transformative social movements stand out in the present. The first is the digital revolution. Digitalization, and its network infrastructures, is more than an ‘upgrade’ in the economy. It is
Bildung
This paper revisits the admixture of secular and spiritual aspects in Bildung. It aims at re-examining the intimate relations between the secular, rational and enlightened educational ideals, which were invested in the formation of the Bildung concept at the turn of the eighteenth century, and the religious, and mystical foundations of these ideals. The paper argues that Bildung should be regarded as a symbol of the unvarying presence of what soc…
Overcoming the mentor
German scholars of Jewish origin who were students of Martin Heidegger in the 1920s and 1930s are frequently criticized for their supposed postwar refusal to ‘disavow earlier liaisons with Heidegger.’ These scholars are thus indicted for being fundamentally anti-liberal or apolitical, and for those reasons dangerous disciples of Heidegger. By examining the works of Karl Löwith and Hans Jonas, two of Heidegger's influential former students, the fo…
An Outline for Critical Theology
In recent years, critical thought and theological discourse have been challenging each other, as they share mutual themes alongside contesting motivations. Against this broad background, this outline presents a possible formula for “critical theology,” which negotiates between the critical and the theological fields of inquiry. Stemming from the contemporary Israeli framework of religion, society and political imagination, the formula points to t…
Pedagogy in practice
This paper introduces the concept of ‘pedagogy in practice’ (PiP), referring to the immediate interaction between students’ learning experiences and school’s pedagogy and distinct from the pedagogy advocated ‘from above’ by the school. We bring the concept of PiP into focus by analysing students’ open‐ended discourse about their learning experiences in 24 open group conversations, comparing two holistically different learning environments (conven…
Berdichevsky's Saul and Paul
In addition to his literary work, Micha Joseph Berdichevsky is noted for his diverse academic studies that deal primarily with Jewish Antiquity. Within this framework, Berdichevsky actively pursued a study of the nature and the emergence of Christianity; yet until recently, this aspect of his work has received little scholarly attention. This article focuses on Berdichevsky's view of Christian theology and demonstrates his dissociation of Paul, t…
Populäre Konstruktionen von Erinnerung im deutschen Judentum und nach der Emigration
Gnosis and Modernity – a Postwar German Intellectual Debate on Secularisation, Religion and ‘Overcoming’ the Past
The following paper elaborates on the compound character and the importance of an intellectual discussion regarding Modernity, secularisation and theology that raged within a cluster of German scholars during the 1950s and 1960s (Hans Jonas (1903–93), Hans Blumenberg (1920–96), Gershom Scholem (1897–1982) and Eric Voegelin (1901–85)). It argues that these scholars were united discursively owing to the appearance of the concept of Gnosis in their …
Berdichevsky's Saul and Paul
In addition to his literary work, Micha Joseph Berdichevsky is noted for his diverse academic studies that deal primarily with Jewish Antiquity. Within this framework, Berdichevsky actively pursued a study of the nature and the emergence of Christianity; yet until recently, this aspect of his work has received little scholarly attention. This article focuses on Berdichevsky's view of Christian theology and demonstrates his dissociation of Paul, t…
Nationalized Judaism and Diasporic Existence. Jakob Klatzkin and Hans Jonas
This article characterizes the modern Jewish debate around Zionism as a profound political theological controversy by juxtaposing the works of two significant twentieth-century Jewish scholars, Jakob Klatzkin (1882–1948) and Hans Jonas (1903–1993). While Klatzkin campaigned for Zionism as Gnosticism, Jonas critically challenged this link in his writings from the 1950s and 1960s. In presenting a theological reading of modern Jewish secular thought…
Deutsch-Jüdische Jugendliche im »Zeitalter der Jugend«
Overcoming the mentor
German scholars of Jewish origin who were students of Martin Heidegger in the 1920s and 1930s are frequently criticized for their supposed postwar refusal to ‘disavow earlier liaisons with Heidegger.’ These scholars are thus indicted for being fundamentally anti-liberal or apolitical, and for those reasons dangerous disciples of Heidegger. By examining the works of Karl Löwith and Hans Jonas, two of Heidegger's influential former students, the fo…
Modern Gnosis and Zionism
In the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, the German intellectual world was challenged by a growing distrust in the rational ideals of the enlightenment, and consequently by a belief in the existence of a radical ‘cultural crisis’. One response to this crisis was the emergence of ‘Life Philosophy’, which celebrated the irrational, expressive, instinctive and spontaneous, while rejecting the rational, conscious, and logical. Around the s…
Pedagogy in practice
This paper introduces the concept of ‘pedagogy in practice’ (PiP), referring to the immediate interaction between students’ learning experiences and school’s pedagogy and distinct from the pedagogy advocated ‘from above’ by the school. We bring the concept of PiP into focus by analysing students’ open‐ended discourse about their learning experiences in 24 open group conversations, comparing two holistically different learning environments (conven…
Education in post-secular society
Three transformative social movements stand out in the present. The first is the digital revolution. Digitalization, and its network infrastructures, is more than an ‘upgrade’ in the economy. It is
Theory and measure in the psychological field
In this article, we pose a question about the link between theory and measure within the field of psychology and use an influential psychological theory—attachment theory—as a case study to test our question. Using a multidisciplinary approach, we incorporate broad historical, sociological, and philosophical perspectives to support our thesis that in today’s psychological field there is pressure to achieve instantaneous empirical answers to broad…
An Outline for Critical Theology
In recent years, critical thought and theological discourse have been challenging each other, as they share mutual themes alongside contesting motivations. Against this broad background, this outline presents a possible formula for “critical theology,” which negotiates between the critical and the theological fields of inquiry. Stemming from the contemporary Israeli framework of religion, society and political imagination, the formula points to t…
Bildung
This paper revisits the admixture of secular and spiritual aspects in Bildung. It aims at re-examining the intimate relations between the secular, rational and enlightened educational ideals, which were invested in the formation of the Bildung concept at the turn of the eighteenth century, and the religious, and mystical foundations of these ideals. The paper argues that Bildung should be regarded as a symbol of the unvarying presence of what soc…
Face control
The paper analyzes micro-inequality in Tel Aviv night clubs, relying upon Levinas’s concept of the face. In-depth interviews with nightclub doormen, or “selectors”, as they are called in Israel, revealed that the clients’ faces comprise a critical component of their screening work. At the same time, they reported that customers’ faces make it difficult for them to do their jobs and force them to engage in evading faces and suspending ethical judg…
Education between Critique and Theology
Recent debates in Israel highlight a resurfacing of the tensions between secular education and religion by assuming a clear separation between a critical attitude toward religion and the preparing of students for a life of religious obedience. Drawing on Theodor Adorno's discussion of education from the 1960's I wish to challenge this taken-for-granted assumption. I show how Adorno's famous educational appeal for "critical selfreflection" can be …
Dreams, messianism and politics
This paper presents a case for the intersection of religion and literature, secularism and theology, faith and politics in Israeli culture, by focusing on the acclaimed Hebrew Oratorio “Tikkun Hatzot” (Midnight Vigil). The oratorio was composed by Mordecai Seter (1916–1994) with a libretto by the poet Mordecai Tabib (1910–1979). The paper shows how the text offers a modern artistic dialogue with Zoharic notions and how, within this context, the t…
Philosophy (9 works) · Sociology (9 works) · Epistemology (8 works) · Law (7 works) · Theology (7 works) · Jewish and Middle Eastern Studies (6 works) · Political science (6 works) · Religious studies (5 works) · Law (4 works) · Philosophy (4 works)