Who is wise? One who eats well? Maimonidean Perspectives on Health and the Good Life
Sarah Zager
Sarah Zager received her PhD from Yale University in 2022, where her research focused on the influence of Judaism and Christianity on moral philosophy. Originally from Albuquerque, New Mexico, Sarah earned an MA in Religion from the University of Chicago Divinity School and a BA from Williams College. She was awarded the Leo Baeck Fellowship for the study of German Jewry, and was a David Hartman Center Fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute of North America. She has also learned at Yeshivat Hadar. She has written for The Lehrhaus, JewSchool, The Journal of Jewish Ethics, and Nashim.
In a section of the Mishnah Torah dealing mostly with ethical and philosophical matters, the Rambam devotes a whole chapter to culinary advice. In this class, we’ll explore the potential significance of the Rambam’s perplexing advice on eating, and consider how this apparently antiquated advice might still influence how eating and health are understood in contemporary halakhah.