On Sacrifice

by Moshe Halbertal

Overview

The idea and practice of sacrifice play a profound role in religion, ethics, and politics. In this brief book, philosopher Moshe Halbertal explores the meaning and implications of sacrifice, developing a theory of sacrifice as an offering and examining the relationship between sacrifice, ritual, violence, and love. On Sacrifice also looks at the place of self-sacrifice within ethical life and at the complex role of sacrifice as both a noble and destructive political ideal.


In the religious domain, Halbertal argues, sacrifice is an offering, a gift given in the context of a hierarchical relationship. As such it is vulnerable to rejection, a trauma at the root of both ritual and violence. An offering is also an ambiguous gesture torn between a genuine expression of gratitude and love and an instrument of exchange, a tension that haunts the practice of sacrifice.


In the moral and political domains, sacrifice is tied to the idea of self-transcendence, in which an individual sacrifices his or her self-interest for the sake of higher values and commitments. While self-sacrifice has great potential moral value, it can also be used to justify the most brutal acts. Halbertal attempts to unravel the relationship between self-sacrifice and violence, arguing that misguided self-sacrifice is far more problematic than exaggerated self-love. In his exploration of the positive and negative dimensions of self-sacrifice, Halbertal also addresses the role of past sacrifice in obligating future generations and in creating a bond for political associations, and considers the function of the modern state as a sacrificial community.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780691163307
Publisher:	Princeton University Press
Publication date:	02/22/2015
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	152
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.20(h) x 2.10(d)

About the Author

Moshe Halbertal is the Gruss Professor of Law at New York University School of Law and professor of Jewish thought and philosophy at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. His books include Concealment and Revelation: Esotericism in Jewish Thought and its Philosophical Implications (Princeton) and People of the Book: Canon, Meaning, and Authority.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments ix

Introduction 1

Part I Sacrificing to Offering, Rejection, and Ritual 7

Sacrifice, Exchange, and Love 22

Sacrifice and Its Substitutes 37

Part II Sacrificing for Self-Transcendence and Violence 63

War and the Sacrificial Logic 79

Sacrifice and the Political Bond 90

The State and the Sacrificial Stage 104

Conclusion 114

Notes 117

Index 133

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"Moshe Halbertal has a tremendous knack for turning arcane topics and esoteric texts into the most exciting and topical ideas to think about. On Sacrifice moves from biblical practices of animal sacrifice to modern ideas about self-sacrifice in war. The book is at its most profound in sorting out the relation between violence and sacrifice. Altogether, this is a very moving and deep book—philosophically, anthropologically, and religiously."—Avishai Margalit, author of On Compromise and Rotten Compromises

"A rich, fresh, and gently intense meditation, and one that will engage anyone interested in what the author calls 'the most primary and basic form of ritual' known to humankind. Halbertal is especially compelling in his treatment of the slippery dynamics between the violent and transcendent aspects of sacrifice, and their echoes across moral and political registers of the real."—Peter Cole, translator and editor of The Dream of the Poem: Hebrew Poetry from Muslim and Christian Spain, 950—1492

"This is an important book, full of wonderful ideas about biblical sacrifice, which demonstrates Halbertal's unique ability to conceptualize biblical and rabbinic texts, drawing philosophically interesting implications from their language and narratives. His account of sacrifice as a gift in a hierarchically asymmetric structure provides a corrective to those who would simply appropriate Mauss' theory, and Halbertal's take on the relation between sacrifice and violence reverses in many ways Girard's approach."—Josef Stern, University of Chicago

"Halbertal's brilliant book unearths deep connections between practices of religious sacrifice and modern sacrifice for the state in war and peace."—David J. Luban, Georgetown University

Editorial Reviews

"This is a fascinating book on a critical religious concept, but one that is best suited to the academic or philosophically trained reader."

Association of Jewish Library Reviews

"An exacting and lucidly written narrative."

Choice

"This is a brilliant book."—-Robert A. Segal, Times Higher Education

"If one of the lessons of the Biblical and Midrashic accounts of the giving of the Torah at Sinai is that revelations abound in small venues, then this is an apt metaphor for this small, fascinating, and brilliant work by noted scholar and philosopher Moshe Halbertal. Covering issues of sacrifice to and sacrifice for, Halbertal takes the reader on a thought-provoking journey from the biblical story of Cain and Abel through the binding of Isaac and into modern times, with reflections on the meaning of individual and national sacrifice as it manifests itself in military actions and wars conducted by both Israel and the United States."—-William Liss-Levinson, Jewish Book World

From the Publisher

On Sacrifice is an intensely satisfying analysis of a subject whose complexity and the implications thereof likely eludes most of us who think they know what 'sacrifice' is really all about. It is a worthy addition to Professor Halbertal's already impressive bibliography.

Middleburgh Blog - Charles H Middleburgh

The book presents a good basis for further discussion of the use of sacrifice-related terminology in political and economic discourse. Anyone interested in the continued significance of ancient concepts, ideas, and rituals in modern life and thinking would benefit from reading this book.

LSE Politics and Policy blog - Catherine Hezser

If one of the lessons of the Biblical and Midrashic accounts of the giving of the Torah at Sinai is that revelations abound in small venues, then this is an apt metaphor for this small, fascinating, and brilliant work by noted scholar and philosopher Moshe Halbertal. Covering issues of sacrifice to and sacrifice for, Halbertal takes the reader on a thought-provoking journey from the biblical story of Cain and Abel through the binding of Isaac and into modern times, with reflections on the meaning of individual and national sacrifice as it manifests itself in military actions and wars conducted by both Israel and the United States.

Jewish Book World - William Liss-Levinson

This is a brilliant book.

Times Higher Education - Robert A. Segal

The book presents a good basis for further discussion of the use of sacrifice-related terminology in political and economic discourse. Anyone interested in the continued significance of ancient concepts, ideas, and rituals in modern life and thinking would benefit from reading this book.
— Catherine Hezser

LSE Politics and Policy blog

If one of the lessons of the Biblical and Midrashic accounts of the giving of the Torah at Sinai is that revelations abound in small venues, then this is an apt metaphor for this small, fascinating, and brilliant work by noted scholar and philosopher Moshe Halbertal. Covering issues of sacrifice to and sacrifice for, Halbertal takes the reader on a thought-provoking journey from the biblical story of Cain and Abel through the binding of Isaac and into modern times, with reflections on the meaning of individual and national sacrifice as it manifests itself in military actions and wars conducted by both Israel and the United States.
— William Liss-Levinson

Jewish Book World

This is a brilliant book.
— Robert A. Segal

Times Higher Education