Poznań | May 25-26, 2026

International Conference

Two hundred Years of Progressive Judaism in Polish Lands - in commemoration of Rabbi Leo Baeck‘s 70th anniversary of his passing

by Centre for Axiology of New Technologies and Social Change
Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań (Poland)
and University of Potsdam (Germany)

ABOUT CONFERENCE

Welcome to Two hundred Years of Progressive Judaism in Polish Lands - in commemoration of Rabbi Leo Baeck‘s 70th anniversary of his passing

2026 will mark a series of significant anniversaries in the history of Polish Jewry—moments that offer a unique opportunity to explore the enduring legacy of progressive Judaism in Poland. We cordially invite your participation at an academic conference at Adam Mickiewicz University of Poznan to unite current research, foster dialogue among leading scholars, and open new perspectives on this vibrant tradition.

Rabbi Leo Baeck (1873 – 1956)
Sculpture by Mila Vázquez Otero, Zurich 2026

Agenda OF

Conference

Two hundred Years of Progressive Judaism in Polish Lands - in commemoration of Rabbi Leo Baeck‘s 70th anniversary of his passing

Word of welcome:
Prof. Rafał Witkowski, PhD (Vice-Rector for International Cooperation at AMU in Poznań)
Rev. Prof. Mieczysław Polak, PhD (Dean of the Faculty of Theology at AMU in Poznań)

A Word of Introduction:
Rev. Prof. Andrzej Pryba MSF, PhD (Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań)
Rabbi Prof. Walter Homolka, PhD (University of Potsdam)

Session 1

Chair: Rev. Przemysław Zgórecki, PhD (Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań)

Monika Katarzyna Waluś, PhD (John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin)
Rabbi Dr Leo Beack: heritage educator and master of dialogue

George Wilkes, PhD (University of Edinburgh)
The Poznań Maskil David Caro

Prof. Rafał Witkowski, PhD (Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań)
Joseph Perles and the First Generation of Progressive Rabbis in the Province of Posen

Discussion and coffee

Session 2

Chair: Rev. Prof. Andrzej Pryba MSF, PhD (Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań)

Prof. Ewa Kula, PhD (Jan Kochanowski University in Kielce)
The Council for Public Education in the Kingdom of Poland and the administrative and financial problems of the Warsaw Rabbinical School

Szymon Pietrzykowski, PhD (Jewish Historical Institute in Warsaw)
Antoni Eisenbaum and 200 years Warsaw Rabbinical Seminary

Zuzanna Kołodziejska-Smagała, PhD (University of Wrocław)
The cultural influence of the ‘Israelites’ in Poland

Discussion

Lunch

Session 3

Chair: Monika Katarzyna Waluś, PhD (John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin)

Prof. Ela Bauer PhD (Kibbutzim College, Tel Aviv)
Progressive Jewish sermons as a bridge between the intelligentsia and the Jewish masses in Warsaw in the late 19th century

Rabbi Meir Azari, (Tel Aviv)
The Legacy of Leo Baeck in Israel

Rev. Przemysław Zgórecki, PhD (Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań)
Rabbi Leo Baeck`s “The Essence of Judaism” and the Ethical Foundations of Modern Jewish Philosophy

Jakub Stefek, PhD (Academy of Art in Szczecin)
The Music of the Great Synagogue of Warsaw: from Jakub Leopold Weiss to Dawid Ajzensztadt

Discussion and coffee

Organ concert at St Anthony’s Church in Poznań, 2 Franciszkańska Street.

Silesian synagogue music in honour of Rabbi Leo Baeck.
Dr Jakub Stefek (Szczecin) will perform on the organ; he also serves as principal organist at the synagogue on Pestalozzistrasse in Berlin.

Two hundred Years of Progressive Judaism in Polish Lands - in commemoration of Rabbi Leo Baeck‘s 70th anniversary of his passing

Session 4

Chair: Rabbi Prof. Walter Homolka, PhD (University of Potsdam)

Prof. Shoshana Ronen PhD (University of Warsaw)
Between Athens and Jerusalem: The Religious Synthesis of Ozjasz Thon

Rev. Prof. Stanisław Rabiej, PhD (University of Warsaw)
“The Opole Episode” in the biography of Rabbi Leo Baeck: context, networks and significance for progressive Judaism in Poland

Katarzyna Kosakowska (The Good State Foundation, Poznań)
Beyond Thetic Formalism: On Leo Baeck's Normative Foundation of Human Freedom

Rev. Prof. Andrzej Pryba MSF, PhD (Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań)
The context of Jewish and Catholic moral teaching in the reflections of Rabbi Leo Beack

Discussion and coffee

Session 5

Chair: Dr Hanna Kozinska-Witt (Jagiellonian University, Kraków)

Alicja Maślak-Maciejewska, PhD (Jagiellonian University, Kraków)
Progressive Jews in 19th-century Krakow – who were they, what did they believe in, and how did they pray?

Rabbi Stanisław Wojciechowicz (Warsaw)
Progressive Judaism in Poland Today

Rabbi Prof. Walter Homolka, PhD, (University of Potsdam)
Leo Baeck – Inspiration for the Future

Discussion

Lunch

speakers

Meet Our Speakers

Organisers: