LOUIS NEWMAN has been thinking, teaching, and writing about Jewish ideas for over 30 years. One of the country’s leading scholars of Jewish ethics, his most recent book is Repentance: the Meaning and Practice of Teshuvah (Jewish Lights 2010).
He is also the author of Past Imperatives: Studies in the History and Theory of Jewish Ethics (SUNY Press, 1998) and of An Introduction to Jewish Ethics (Prentice Hall, 2005). He has also co-edited, with Elliot Dorff, two anthologies, Contemporary Jewish Ethics and Morality (Oxford University Press, 1995) and Contemporary Jewish Theology (Oxford University Press, 1999). He is co-editor (with Elliot Dorff) of three volumes in the Jewish Choices, Jewish Voices series (Jewish Publication Society, 2008/09) that address contemporary moral issues from a range of Jewish perspectives.
Louis Newman is the John M. and Elizabeth W. Musser Professor of Religious Studies, the Humphrey Doermann Professor of Liberal Learning and the Director of the Perlman Center for Learning and Teaching at Carleton College in Northfield, Minnesota. Born and raised in St. Paul, Minnesota, he received his B.A. in philosophy and Hebrew and his M.A. in philosophy from the University of Minnesota. He received his Ph.D. in Judaic Studies from Brown University and has been teaching at Carleton ever since to great student reviews.
He is a member of several professional organizations, including the American Academy of Religion, Association for Jewish Studies, and Academy for Jewish Philosophy. He was the first president of the Society of Jewish Ethics, an organization he helped found. He has also been actively involved in the educational programs of several community organizations. He serves on the International Council of the New Israel Fund. He served as president of the board of directors of the St. Paul Talmud Torah from 1994-96, and as president of the board of Beth Jacob Congregation (Conservative) from 2009-11.
He offers philanthropy advising to individuals, families and foundations. His values-based approach to issues of wealth and legacy planning draws on his long experience in non-profit board leadership and fundraising, together with his academic expertise in ethics and his skills as a teacher. He also serves as a consultant on issues of learning and teaching in higher education. A faculty member for nearly thirty years and the Director of the Perlman Center for Learning and Teaching at Carleton, he brings a wealth of experience to discussions of pedagogy, curricular innovation, institutional change and faculty development.
Louis Newman is married to Rabbi Amy Eilberg. Together they have three children with whom he loves to travel. He still gets his fingers dirty reading the New York Times print edition every morning.
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New! Recent op/ed pieces:
"Senator Byrd: Unorthodox Yom Kippur Role Model"