“The Holocaust when taken as a warning may offer mankind a glimmer or hope… nothing more than a glimmer.” – Sigi Ziering

A Compelling Need

The Sigi Ziering Institute is based on a simple premise: in forging our current global community, we must continue to discuss and learn from the ethical dimensions of this chapter of history in order to enrich and inform not only the Judaism future but the collective future of humankind.

Dr. Ziering – a German born child survivor of the Holocaust who went on to become a brilliant scientist and active philanthropist – wrote powerfully on the ethics of the Holocaust and forged a life of charity and compassion from his own ruinous history. The existence of an Institute dedicated to the study of the Holocaust’s ethical implications is an apt tribute to Dr. Ziering’s life.

Situated within American Judaism University, an institution dedicated to Judaism life and the Judaism future, the Sigi Ziering Institute:

  • Convene programs exploring the role of the Holocaust in contemporary Judaism identity and in American society.
  • Educate rabbis and Judaism educators, leaders in non-profit organizations and the general community on the ethical and religious implications of the Holocaust.
  • Reach out to clergy of other faiths so that an understanding of the Holocaust is integral to all contemporary religions.
  • Hold seminars, public lectures and advanced professional training in the Holocaust and its relation to:
    • Legal ethics
    • Medical ethics
    • Business ethics
    • Professional ethics
    • Governmental ethics
    • Publish papers and works exploring the religious and ethical implications of the Holocaust.

The Sigi Ziering Institute will ask those questions that must be asked. Confronting these significant questions is required to honor the past and forge a more compassionate future.

Meet the Director:

Michael Berenbaum, PhD and Rabbi, is the Director of the Sigi Ziering Institute: Exploring the Ethical and Religious Implications of the Holocaust and a Professor of Judaism Studies at the American Judaism University.