Martin Buber

1878 - 1965
Jewish Philosopher, Social Activist, Adult Educator

Submitted by Cory Roberts
November 19, 2001

 

When I meet a man, I am not concerned about his opinions. I am concerned about the man.' Buber has said his inclination was to meet people. What is important is the manner in which he met others; the quality of each relationship was vital to Buber. In Buber's own words 'I think no human being can give more than this. Making life possible for the other, if only for a moment.

http://courses.washington.edu/spcmu/buber/buber71.html

 

Overview

Martin Buber, Jewish philosopher and educator, signified the early pedagogical ideas of learning in adulthood. Buber's primary contribution to the field was his idea of 'dialogue.' This ideology links Buber in a similar circle as Paulo Freire. Buber understood the pedagogical link to dialogue and the significance of relational learning &endash; 'meeting.' Buber wrote &endash; "All real living is meetingÉ and looked to how, in relation, we can fully open ourselves to the world, to others and to God." (http://www.infed.org/thinkers/et-buber.htm) Buber stressed the important of the individual human being, their spiritual quest for open dialogue with God, and the liberation of marginalized groups. His philosophy was also his personal mantra, he lead by example.

Introduction

More than any other single element in his physical appearance except his gentle but penetrating eyes, it was Buber's beard that gave him the appearance of the "Zaddick (Hasidic rabbi) of Zehlendorf," as he was jokingly called even by his family when he lived in that suburb of Berlin. (Friedman 1991, p.3)

Mordechai Martin Buber was born February 8, 1878 in Vienna, Austria. His family home overlooked the Danube River. Around the age of three Buber's mother left the house without a trace, she was rumored dead. At this time he was sent to live with his father's parents Solomon and Adele Buber. Solomon owned a home in Lembert, the capital of Austria (at that time).

In his grandparents' house, private tutors schooled Buber until the age of 10. Both Solomon and Adele valued education and its importance in life. They were both well respected in their community. Solomon, an active businessman, melded his personal ideal of "Jewish Enlightenment" with his business activities. Solomon gifted Martin with the passion to study Jewish Law, mysticism and the Talmud. As Buber would say later in life, his grandfather was unusual in his combination of business and scholarship. Adele emphasized the important of the language and literature; she herself was well read for a Jewish woman of her time. Adele transferred her love of books to Martin at a young age. Buber's favorite language when young was Greek. Buber spoke German, Hebrew, Yiddish, Polish, English, French, Italian and read, in addition to these, Spanish, Latin, Greek, Dutch, and other languages. This polyglot background was of importance for Buber not only as a translator, but also asÉa pre-dominantly German author. (Friedman 1991, p.7)

Education

In 1904 Buber attended the Universities of Vienna (Berlin, Leipzig, and Zurich) to study the history of art and earn his Ph. D. Buber then proceeded to teach religion and philosophy. Buber established himself in the Zionism movement in Zurich, where he was editor for Die Welt, the official Zionist organ in 1901 (Martin Buber on Education web site). His believe in Zionism, the founding of a Jewish homeland would enlighten his ideas and goals for the rest of his life. During this time he meet Paula Winkler, who he would later marry. She was a writer who wrote under the name Georg Munk.

During World War I Buber assisting in founding the Jewish National Commission, which promoted bettering the lives of Eastern European Jews. From 1923 until 1933 he was a professor of Jewish theology and the history of religion at the University of Frankfurt. Buber was the only Jew to hold such a position in the German university. It was not until 1933, when Jewish students were excluded from university, that he became the Director of the Central Office of Jewish Adult Education. In 1938 Buber emigrated from Germany to Israel where he taught Hebrew at the University of Jerusalem. In Israel he was an advocate for the betterment of relations between Israelis and Arabs. He would say later on age, this was one of his most diffucult and greatest focuses.

Adult Education

During his life as an educator Buber was fascinated with the "education of character." He felt that the individual brought a unique perspective to the learning environment. As noted in the introduction of Between Man and Man, written in 1965, Buber explored the ideals of adult learning that influenced his work: religion, ethics, social philosophy, marriage, education, psychology and art. Maurice Friedman mentions the following in the introduction of the book.

The true teacher is not the one who pours information into the student's head as through a funnel-the old-fashioned "disciplined" approach-or the one who regards all potentialities as already existing within the student and needing only to be pumped up-the newer "progressive" approach. It is the one who fosters genuine mutual contact and mutual trust, who experiences the other side of the relationship, and who helps his pupils to realize, through the selection of the effective world, what it can mean to be a man. In the end education, too, center on the problem of man. All education "worthy" of the name is education of character, writes Buber, and education of character takes place through the encounter with the image of man that the teacher brings before the pupil in the material he presents and in the way he stands behind his material. (Buber 1965, p. xix)

Similar to Paulo Freire and Myles Horton, Buber believed in the interpersonal communication between men, producing an experience common to individuals brought about great enlightenment for all groups associated in the learning experience. He attained this goal by placing great emphasis on "dialogue." Buber felt that an open and honest dialogue between two willing parties brought about harmonious learning. He defines this educational encounter as "Philosophy of Dialogue:"

In defining "dialogue," Buber introduces a concept that exists only implicitly in I and Thou, that of "experiencing the other side" of the relationship. This act of "inclusion," as Buber calls it in "Education," is that which makes it possible to meet and know the other in his concrete uniqueness and not just as a content of one's experience. (Buber 1956, p. xv)

Written Work &endash; I and Thou

In 1923 Buber wrote and published I and Thou (also know as Ich und Du), the book emphasized the understanding of Judeo-Christian tradition. In this book, Buber establishes a thought process of the interconnectedness of all human beings. Buber was fascinated with the idea of the "meeting &endash; encounter" between humans and their surrounding environment. Buber connects pieces of each relationship in terms of "I-You" and "I-It". He was heavily influenced by the psychological theory of the id and ego. Buber stresses the relational evolution, his development in "I-Thou" stresses development into either relation and/or irrrelation. When an individual confronts an object, he/she views the object as "I", therefore being part of his self/her self, or the individual can view it as alien, therefore the object becomes an "it. " The distinction can become complex when applied in theory, but Buber clearly stresses "the encounter" and the psychological exchange between participants make the occurrence meaningful. To continue with Buber's theory, he extrapolated that the encounter will change the relation to I-Thou, creating union of the two parties. The reason Buber devised his philosophy this way, is that the meeting, weather psychical or psychological, involves the melding of senses, becoming part of a whole. As Buber explains:

The primary word I-Thou can be spoken only with the whole being. Concentration and fusion into the whole being can never take place through my agency, not can it take place without me. I become through my relation to the Thou; and as I become the I, I say Thou. (http://www.infed.org/thinkers/et-buber-htm)

Judeo-Christian influence on spiritual vision

Buber formulated much of his theories and teachings around spiritualism, especially Hasidism and Jewish mysticism. Solomon Buber, his grandfather, believed in the spiritual enlightenment of man, and that this was achieved through the study of Jewish Law. Buber felt that direct dialogue between man and God, created a relationship that transcended traditional Jewish ideology. Buber stated, "There is no statement about God, which does not at the same time state something about man. (www.buber.de/en/overview.html).

Early in his life, Buber translated many literary texts including the Bible. It is the influence of the Judeo-Christian relationship that deeply impacted Buber's own personal religious philosophy. He was know to say, laws do not construct my relationship with God, I maintain this association through open dialogue with him. This idea of open conversation with God, was radical in comparison to Buber's Hasidic background that emphasized the importance of ritual, community and law.

God is our help in all need and none outside of him. But this was also-of this I am certain-the faith of Jesus himself. I do not believe in Jesus but I believe with himÉ. In firmly believe that the Jewish community in the course of its renaissance, will recognize Jesus; not merely as a great figure in its religious history, but also in the organic context of a Messianic development extending over millennia, whose final goal is the Redemption of Israel and of the world. But I believe equally firmly that we will never recognize Jesus as the Messiah Come, for this would contradict the deepest meaning of our Messianic passionÉ In our view redemption occurs forever, and none has yet occurred. Standing, bound and shackled, in the pillory of mankind, we demonstrate with the bloody body for our people the unredeemedness of the world. For us there is no cause of Jesus; only the cause of God exists for us. (Friedman 1991, p. 293)

For Buber, his radical beliefs about the Messiah and Christianity were much different than traditional Jewish Law. However, Buber's point is valid, Jesus was a man, a Jew, and a social activist, from his life we can learn. As a Jew, Buber did not believe in Jesus as a Messianic figure, but he did believe in Jesus' Judaic faith in God.

Death of a Great Thinker

Buber passed way in 1965. When he passed, the New York Times recognized him as "the foremost Jewish religious thinker of our times and one of the world's most influential philosophers." (http://courses.washington.edu/spcmu/buber/buber71.html). Spirituality permeated Buber's life and work. His ideology of the unification between God and Man with open dialogue was contrary to Jewish Law, was evidenced in his writing of "I and Thou" labeled Buber as a radical thinker. But his belief in education of character and interpersonal communication lead him to an adult educational philosophy that mirrored liberal thinkers like Paulo Freire and Myles Horton. Buber was a learned man who was also a social activist who fought for educational liberalism and self-study.

His critical reflection of his own philosophy lead him to change his believe in self-study. At the end of his life, he felt that the dialogue and meeting with men, more important that books. He is noted to have said:

If I had been asked in my early youth whether I preferred to have dealings only with men or only with books, my answer would certainly have been in favour or brook. In later years this has become less and less the case. Not that I have had so much better experiences with men than books, on the contrary, purely delightful books even now come my way more often than purely delightful men. But the many bad experiences with men have not nourished the meadow of my life as the noblest book could not do, and the good experiences have made the earth into a garden for me. (Friedman 1991, p. 297)

Buber certainly led a full and eventful life. He moved from interaction between the written word, to the interpersonal communication between men. He lived through two world wars and saw the attempted extermination of his people. He stressed the importance of what is right and just, and walked this narrow ridge with his unique blend of spiritual Judaism. I end this inquiry with a quote of Buber and the line he walked in this life.

I have occasionally described my standpoint to my friends as the 'narrow ridge.' Writes Buber. "I wanted by this to express that I did not rest on the broad upland of a system that includes a series of sure statements about the absolute, but on a narrow rocky ridge between the gulfs where there is no sureness of expressible knowledge but the certainty of meeting that remains undisclosed." (Friedman 1991, p. x)

 

References

Buber, M. (1958) I and thou. New York: Scribner Classics

Buber, M. (1965) Between man and man. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company (p. xiii &endash; xxi, 83-117)

Buber on the tasks of the center for jewish adult education Retrieved on November 1, 2001 from http://www.yad-vashem.org.il/about_holocaust/documents/part1/doc17.html

Friedman, M (1960) Introduction. In Buber, M (1965) Between man and man. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company (p. xv &endash; xix)

Friedman, M. (1986) Martin Buber and the eternal. New York: Human Sciences Press, Inc.

Friedman, M. (1993) Encounter on the narrow ridge, a life of Martin Buber. New York: Paragon House

Horton, M. & Freire, P. (1990) We make the road by walking, conversations on education and social change. Philadelphia: Temple University Press

It is time to invite Buber to the peace talks by Peter F. Spalding Retrieved on November 1, 2001 from http://www.buber.de/material/peacetalks.html

Kirschenbaum, H. & Henderson, V. (1989) Carl Rogers: Dialogues. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company (p.1-8, 41-63)

Kohanski, A. (1982) Martin Buber's philosophy of interhuman relation. New Jersey: Associated University Press

Martin Buber Retrieved on November 1, 2001 from http://www.emanuelnyc.org/bulletin/archive/34.html

Martin Buber Retrieved on October 15, 2001 from http://courses.washington.edu/spcmu/buber/buber71.html

Martin Buber on Education, the encyclopedia of information education Retrieved on October 15, 2001 from http://www.infed.org/thinkers/et-buber.htm

Overview of Martin Buber's Life and Work Retrieved on November 1, 2001 from http://www/buber.de/en/overview.html