Moshe Idel

Read more about the article The Event Marking the Closing of the Department of Mysticism and Spirituality
Education and higher education / Judaism and Kabbalah / Science/medicine and technology

The Event Marking the Closing of the Department of Mysticism and Spirituality

In this event (14th Elul 5784; August 31st, 2023) the end of the journey of the Department of Mysticism and Spirituality at Zefat Academic College (Safed) was marked. An exciting, sad-happy event, which included a presentation by Prof. Marianna Ruah-Midbar Shapiro, memories of students and lecturers, a lecture by Prof. Moshe Idel, a special ceremony, a Playback show by the members of the department, songs and blessings.

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September 13, 2023
Read more about the article Lecture: Bio-Medicine and Alternative Medicine – From a Modernistic Paradigm to a Postmodernistic Paradigm
Magic and paganism / Mind and psychology / Postmodernism / Science/medicine and technology / Typology and comparative study

Lecture: Bio-Medicine and Alternative Medicine – From a Modernistic Paradigm to a Postmodernistic Paradigm

This study compares the conventional bio-medicine's worldview with the one of complementary/alternative medicine, indicating the parallel lines between those worldviews to modernism and postmodernism (respectively). The studt identifies a new and innovative group of therapy, with a logic yet to exist - neiter in the modern nor the traditional world (thus we also present a comparative reference to traditional, pre-modern, therapy). The comparison's focus is the issue of language's role in the therapeutic process. The novel worldview isn't caracteristic to every new or alternative therapy, thus I named this innovative group of therapy methods "the new alternative medicine".

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January 19, 2022
Read more about the article Article: Abracadabra! Postmodern Therapeutic Methods – Language as a Neo-Magical Tool
Judaism and Kabbalah / Magic and paganism / Mind and psychology / Postmodernism / Science/medicine and technology / Typology and comparative study

Article: Abracadabra! Postmodern Therapeutic Methods – Language as a Neo-Magical Tool

"There are only two things in the world – nothing and semantics." (Werner Erhard) This paper (some 6,000 words) argues that a new genre of therapy has appeared in the arena of contemporary spiritual alternative healing, which expresses an outlook never-before-seen in the history of medicine: postmodern therapy. Postmodern therapeutic methods (PTMs) express a popularization of postmodernist philosophy in regards to language and its role in the therapeutic process. These methods will be illustrated, and then analyzed in comparison to two other groups of methods: traditional magic, and modern medicine. In addition, we shall characterize PTMs as neo-magic, as they exercise the psychologization and rationalization of magic.

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January 17, 2022