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May 19, 1976

Lamm, Norman - Who's Who in World Jewry (1976)

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Biographical Sketch: Dr. Norman Lamm, Erna and Jakob Michael Professor of Jewish Philosophy (1976)

Dr. Norman Lamm, rabbi, philosopher, and teacher known for his interpretations stressing the relevance of traditional Judaism to contemporary life, was named Erna and Jakob Michael Professor of Jewish Philosophy at Yeshiva University in June 1966. Earlier, Dr. Lamm had served as assistant professor of Jewish philosophy at Yeshiva University's Teachers Institute for Men, fore­runner of the present Erna Michael College of Hebraic Studies. Dr. Lamm is also rabbi of The Jewish Center in New York City. Affiliated with The Jewish Center since 1958, he was, prior to that, spiritual leader of Congregation Kodimoh in Springfield, Massachusetts, for five years. Within the religious and scholarly communities, Dr. Lamm has earned wide recognition for his challenging writings and discourses on the contemporaneity of traditional Jewish principles in a world concerned with such questions as the possibility of life on other planets, laboratory-created life, the moral legality of confessions, and social changes which have affected marital relationships. In a much-discussed article in Tradition, a scholarly publication which he helped found, Dr. Lamm contended that discovery of life on other planets and creation of life in a laboratory would not conflict with traditional Judaic principles, but would demonstrate their validity. In 1970–71, during a half-year sabbatical spent teaching and lecturing in Israel, Dr. Lamm proposed a solution to the recurring religious crises concerning Sabbath observance. “The Rosh Hodesh Plan,” as it is known, was submitted to the Knesset and evoked much comment and discussion throughout Israel and abroad. One of his many works, The Royal Reach: Discourses on the Jewish Tradition and the World Today, deals with a variety of themes, offering Jewish viewpoints on such issues as violence, law and order, space exploration, and parent–child relationships in the contemporary world. For this book, and for Faith and Doubt, he received the Abramowitz–Zeitlin Awa…
Biographical Material

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Biographical Sketch: Dr. Norman Lamm, President, Yeshiva University (1976)

Dr. Norman Lamm, philosopher, author, and teacher, and a chemist who became a rabbi, was elected the third president of Yeshiva University in August 1976. He became the first American-born president of the 91-year-old institution – the nation's oldest and largest university under Jewish auspices. Dr. Lamm was born in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, on December 19, 1927, the son of Samuel and Pearl Baumol Lamm. He received his elementary and high school education at the Yeshiva Torah Vodaath in Brooklyn. In 1949 he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree summa cum laude from Yeshiva College of Yeshiva University, where he majored in chemistry and was class valedictorian. During Israel's War of Independence in 1948, as a student at the College, he worked on a secret munitions research project for the struggling state, headed by Dr. Ernst D. Bergmann, who later became head of the Israel Atomic Energy Commission. He continued his studies in chemistry at the Polytechnic Institute of Brooklyn. In 1951 he was ordained at the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary, an affiliate of Yeshiva University. He received the Doctor of Philosophy degree in Jewish philosophy in 1966 from Yeshiva University's Bernard Revel Graduate School. Dr. Lamm was appointed to the faculty of Yeshiva University in 1953, serving first as a philosophy instructor and rising through the ranks. In June 1966 he was appointed Erna and Jakob Michael Professor of Jewish Philosophy at the University. In addition, he served as visiting professor of Judaic studies at Brooklyn College of the City University of New York in 1974–75. Dr. Lamm was spiritual leader of The Jewish Center in New York City, affiliated with the Center since 1958. He served as rabbi of Congregation Kodimoh in Springfield, Massachusetts, from 1954 to 1958, and as assistant rabbi of New York City's Kehilath Jeshurun from 1952 to 1953. Dr. Lamm is widely recognized for his writings and discourses on interpretations of Jewish law in relation to probl…
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Shul Bulletin

Rabbi Norman Lamm Designated as Yeshiva University President (1976)

The entire synagogue family of The Jewish Center was thrilled to learn during the summer of the designation of Rabbi Norman Lamm as the President of Yeshiva University. He succeeds the late Samuel Belkin, of blessed memory, to the leadership of the foremost Jewish institution of higher education in this country. Rabbi Lamm has already begun much of his new duties, but will fulfill many of his rabbinic functions at The Center as well while the search for his successor is under way. During the eighteen years that Rabbi Lamm served at The Jewish Center, The Center membership has come to appreciate his qualities of intellect and personality. His accomplishments within The Center, and the membership and neighborhood which it serves, have been remarkable. Following the tradition of our Senior Rabbi Leo Jung, he has conducted his rabbinate on the highest level of dignity and integrity. He has been successful in bringing to The Center growing numbers of new worshippers and members. His sermons, lectures, seminars, and classes, were always packed events. In many ways, the intellectual stimulation which he provided and which attracted and retained younger members may have of itself been a stabilizing force in the neighborhood. Rabbi Lamm’s educational and leadership activities reached out beyond The Center itself to the neighborhood. He has served as a Vice Chairman of the West Side Jewish Community Council. He is Jakob and Erna Michael Professor of Jewish philosophy at Yeshiva University and led scores of students to their intensive interest in matters of Jewish concern. His educational interests included service and leadership at Camp Morasha, a leading educational summer camp. He has been instrumental in the leadership and support for Gesher, a unique educational foundation in Israel. He served for many years as the Chairman of the Advisory Board of Yavneh, the college level orthodox student organization. Center members came to know Rabbi Lamm’s intellect not only through…
Biographical Material