Philosopher · Contemporary
Martin Buber
1878–1965 · Philosophy of dialogue; Hasidism
Jewish philosopher and Zionist; his “I and Thou” shaped Catholic personalism (Guardini, Ratzinger, Wojtyła) and the theology of encounter.
“I and Thou” (1923) distinguished two ways of meeting the world: as It, to be used and known, and as Thou, to be addressed and met; every particular Thou opens on the eternal Thou, God, who cannot be made an object. He retold the Hasidic tales, translated the Hebrew Bible with Rosenzweig, called Jesus “my great brother,” and argued for a binational state in Palestine.
Why he matters: The Jewish philosopher most read by Catholics, and the one through whom personalism learned that the person exists in relation. Ratzinger said his own theology of revelation as encounter owed Buber a debt.
Where to be careful
Revelation without content, religion without law or institution, and a God who is only Thou and never It leave no room for dogma, sacrament or Church; his reading of Jesus stops at the brother. The Church holds that the encounter has a creed.
Documented positions
Where this thinker stands on each dispute the test covers.