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<p>This paper pays tribute to a little-known academic, Levy Billig, who studied early Shi’ism at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem during the Palestine Mandate. The paper uses Billig’s life and death to illustrate wider issues, particularly those relating to academics supporting peace in times of nationalist conflict. Billig was a member of Brit Shalom, which believed in equality between Jews and Arabs, but he was murdered as he studied at his desk. This paper analyses how the cultural circles of Brit Shalom and the increasingly nationalist Jewish press of Palestine linked Billig’s scholarly work to his murder in very different ways. Just as Billig’s work on Shi’ism crossed boundaries, so did later tributes to Billig, paid by two scholars, Hamdi Nubani and Mohammad Amir-Moezzi, who crossed the same boundaries, but from the opposite direction. In discussing the case of Billig and why he should be remembered today, the paper introduces the idea of gentle, boundary-crossing scholarship. The paper uses insights from Hannah Arendt and Walter Benjamin, who themselves stand on the fringes of Billig’s story, as both of them knew and admired colleagues of his at the Hebrew University.</p>

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Standing for Peace in a Time of Increasing Conflict: A Tribute to Levy Billig and His Gentle Scholarship During the Palestine Mandate

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  • 发表日期：

    2025年5月29日

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  • Michael Billig

摘要

This paper pays tribute to a little-known academic, Levy Billig, who studied early Shi’ism at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem during the Palestine Mandate. The paper uses Billig’s life and death to illustrate wider issues, particularly those relating to academics supporting peace in times of nationalist conflict. Billig was a member of Brit Shalom, which believed in equality between Jews and Arabs, but he was murdered as he studied at his desk. This paper analyses how the cultural circles of Brit Shalom and the increasingly nationalist Jewish press of Palestine linked Billig’s scholarly work to his murder in very different ways. Just as Billig’s work on Shi’ism crossed boundaries, so did later tributes to Billig, paid by two scholars, Hamdi Nubani and Mohammad Amir-Moezzi, who crossed the same boundaries, but from the opposite direction. In discussing the case of Billig and why he should be remembered today, the paper introduces the idea of gentle, boundary-crossing scholarship. The paper uses insights from Hannah Arendt and Walter Benjamin, who themselves stand on the fringes of Billig’s story, as both of them knew and admired colleagues of his at the Hebrew University.