AUSTIN —Rabbi Mayer I. Gruber will present his lecture, “The Book of Daniel in Modern Judaism and How We Overcome the Ethical Dilemma That Life Is Not Fair” at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 19, in Mabee Ballroom A. Light refreshments will be served. The event is free and open to the public. The event is sponsored by the Center for Ethics and Leadership.

Gruber is a professor and chair of the Department of Bible, Archaeology and Ancient Near East at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Israel. He has published Aspects of Nonverbal Communication [Body Language] in the Ancient Near East (1980); The Motherhood of God and Other Studies (1992); Women in the Biblical World (1995); Rashi’s Commentary on Psalms (2004); the entry “Job” in the Oxford Jewish Study Bible and scores of chapters in books, entries in encyclopedias, and articles in journals of biblical and Judaic studies. His current research focuses on women in the world of the Bible and Jewish women’s poetry in antiquity and in modern times.

WHO: Mayer I. Grubert
WHAT: Lecture — “The Book of Daniel in Modern Judaism and How We Overcome the Ethical Dilemma That Life Is Not Fair”
WHEN: Monday, Feb. 19, 5:30 p.m.
WHERE: Mabee Ballroom A, Robert and Pearle Ragsdale Center, St. Edward’s University

The following passage is taken from Hunt’s abstract, “The Book of Daniel in Modern Judaism and How We Overcome the Ethical Dilemma That Life Is Not Fair.”

 “The belief or affirmation of divine justice is seriously challenged by the suffering of innocent persons as portrayed in the Book of Job. Essential to the resolution of this dilemma in the faiths is rooted in the Hebrew Bible, commonly called the Old Testament, is the Book of Daniel. Not long ago, a prominent scholar declared at an international conference that the Book of Daniel is of no interest to Jews. Gruber counters this assertion by showing that the Book of Daniel’s promise of true justice beyond the ephemeral life in this world is affirmed in Jewish prayer and is central to Jewish worship and Jewish belief.”

Founded by the Congregation of Holy Cross, St. Edward's University has been named as one of America's Best Colleges for 2006 by U.S. News & World Report and was selected by The Princeton Review for inclusion in the guide Colleges with a Conscience. St. Edward's is a private, Catholic, liberal arts university of more than 4,900 students located in Austin, Texas.