Inspiring Jew from Today: Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks (1948–2020)

Rabbi Sacks is widely regarded as one of the great Jewish scholars of our generation. He combined deep Torah learning with philosophical rigour and an ability to speak to the modern world.

As Chief Rabbi of the Commonwealth from 1991 to 2013, he led the English Jewish community through significant change, strengthened Jewish education and became a respected voice in British public life.

Appointed to the House of Lords in 2009, he spoke regularly on ethics, faith and society, and authored more than 40 books.

His books included The Dignity of Difference, To Heal a Fractured World, Future Tense and Morality, works that brought Jewish thought into contemporary public debate. He often distinguished between optimism and hope, writing, “Optimism is the belief that things will get better. Hope is the belief that we can make things better.”

His ideas still shape how many of us, particularly English-speaking Jews in the Diaspora, think about Judaism and Israel. He gave language to concepts we felt but could not always articulate.

Had he lived to see October 7, there is little doubt he would have been one of the leading Jewish voices helping the world understand what happened and what it means.

This category of Joodles is normally reserved for an inspirational Jew who is alive today. Rabbi Sacks is the exception. Despite his death in 2020, he remains one of the most important Jewish voices for our time.

For more: Rabbi Sacks official website