Castle in Time Orchestra is an independent contemporary large ensemble that contains acoustic and electronic instruments that perform original music based in Israel. This piece samples Heschel’s interview with Carl Stern. Matan Daskal, one of the cofounders of the company, shared his reflections on how Heschel inspired the establishment of this group.

Rap song created at the Heschel-King Festival in Philadelphia, January 2013, by youth from Mishkan Shalom and Mt. Zion Baptist Church under the direction of Matt Bar of Bible Raps.

Sermon delivered by Rev. Dr. Colin Bossen delivered as part of a series on “The Lives of the Spirit.” The civil rights activist and Jewish theologian Abraham Joshua Heschel understood God as pathos. He explores Heschel’s belief that religious piety and social justice activism, which he named the prophetic, were inextricably linked. 

Chancellor Emeritus Arnold Eisen spoke with Christa Tippet about Heschel’s embodiment of “the passionate social engagement of the prophets, drawing on wisdom at once provocative and nourishing.”

Documentarian Martin Doblemeier’s film which explores Heschel’s activism. The site includes clips and educational materials on themes relating to Heschel’s justice work, his theology, and his interfaith dialogue.

God in Search of Man

The Prophets

Repairing the World

No Religion is an Island

Heschel and the Vietnam War

Heschel and Jewish Tradition

The Sabbath

How does the legacy of Heschel speak to us today? On the 50th yahrtzeit of Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, Rabbi Cosgrove calls upon us to honor his values and to do our share to redeem the world.

Heschel’s thoughts on King on the first yahrzeit (anniversary) of his death. Heschel speaks from 12:50 to 15:50.

Martin Luther King’s life is an unfinished symphony. It is our task at this memorial service to remember him, to be committed to his ideas.

This iconic image was taken at the March on Selma on March 21, 1965.  From far left: John Lewis, an unidentified nun, Ralph Abernathy, Martin Luther King, Jr., Ralph Bunche, Abraham Joshua Heschel, Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth.

After returning from Selma, Heschel wrote the following:

For many of us the march from Selma to Montgomery was about protest and prayer. Legs are not lips and walking is not kneeling. And yet our legs uttered songs. Even without words, our march was worship. I felt my legs were praying.

The last sentence became a rallying cry for many activists. It is sometimes misquoted as “praying with his feet.”

Additional Text

Jewish Voices from the Selma to Montgomery March

On the evening of March 25, 1968, 10 days before he was assassinated, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. appeared at the 68th annual convention of the Rabbinical Assembly, where he was introduced by Abraham Joshua Heschel. The event took place at the Concord Hotel in Kiamesha Lake in the Sullivan County Catskills.

Heschel’s remarks start at the 3:30 mark.

Digitzed Audio at the JTS Library

JTS. Institutional Recordings, The Library of the Jewish Theological Seminary, New York, New York, R.G. 42, (Box 79, AV_0898). Digitization and cataloging funded by a grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC).

Additional Text:

Transcript of Heschel and King’s remarks