Yehezkel Landau

Lectures, Sermons, and Panels

Teaching and preaching in religious and educational settings

Dr. Landau lectures internationally on interfaith relations and Middle East peace issues, and he participates in panel discussions on interfaith education, Jewish-Christian-Muslim relations, and grassroots peacebuilding in Israel/Palestine.

His public speaking engagements in the U.S. have included presentations at the Chautauqua Institute, Vassar College, Drew University, Sacred Heart School of Theology, San Jose State University, Santa Clara University, the Our Muslim Neighbor conference in Nashville, the University of California in San Bernardino, St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Fort Lauderdale, FL, and Bet Torah Synagogue in Mt. Kisco, NY, where he was a Scholar-in-Residence over a weekend.

In Princeton, NJ, a weekend visit included two teaching sessions on Shabbat at the Jewish Center, a sermon preached at Trinity Episcopal Church on Sunday morning, and then a joint gathering of both congregations on Sunday evening.

He is often invited to give lectures or preach sermons at synagogues, churches, and mosques.

In September, 2016, Dr. Landau delivered a presentation and moderated a panel at the Global Peace Leadership Conference in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

Academic and Informal Learning

Interfaith engagement in schools and communities

From 2002 to 2016, Dr. Landau was a professor of Jewish tradition and interfaith relations at Hartford Seminary in Connecticut, where he held the Chair in Abrahamic Partnerships and directed the Building Abrahamic Partnerships training program for Jews, Christians, and Muslims. In the 2016-17 academic year, he was an Adjunct Instructor at the Boston University School of Theology, teaching a week-long course on “Skills, Tools, and Sensitivities for Interfaith Leadership” and a one-credit course on “Judaism, Islam, and Peacemaking” with Salma Kazmi.

In the 2017-18 academic year, Dr. Landau co-facilitated with Melina Rudman a monthly workshop series on “Meaning, Purpose, and Vocation” for faculty members and administrators at Bay Path University. In 2018 and 2020, he taught an online course for Doctor of Ministry students at Union Theological Seminary on “Interreligious and Intercultural Engagement.” And in June, 2018, he taught a week-long seminar on “Spiritual Resources for Interfaith Peacemaking” as part of the annual Maryknoll Mission Institute in Ossining, NY.

In 2019, Dr. Landau taught an online course on interfaith leadership skills and resources for Hartford Seminary and an online course for Merrimack College on “Spirituality in a Religiously Diverse World”.

In earlier years he taught courses at Drew University, Connecticut College, Seattle University School of Theology and Ministry, the Maryknoll Institute for Justice and Peace, Bard College, and Tufts University. In Israel he delivered lectures and taught courses at several Christian institutions, including the Tantur Ecumenical Institute, St. George’s College, the Sisters of Sion International Program at Ecce Homo, the Swedish Theological Institute, and Nes Ammim Village in the Galilee.

Interfaith Training

Community-based workshops, retreats, and program planning

Dr. Landau has years of experience conducting seminars, workshops, and retreats for interfaith leaders and activists. At Hartford Seminary, his annual Building Abrahamic Partnerships (BAP) course brought Jews, Christians, and Muslims together for a week-long training that combined informative presentations, trust-building exercises, and devotional practices. In 2007, 2008, and 2009, he co-facilitated an advanced capacity-building training for veterans of the BAP course. He has facilitated similar trainings for groups outside the academy, including Canadian Military Chaplains, the Spiritual Life Center, the Fetzer Institute, the clergy leadership of Minneapolis, and a group of international religious leaders convened by the U.S. State Department.

Serving Institutions and Organizations

Consulting on interfaith activities, events, and strategies

Dr. Landau offers consulting services in the areas of Jewish-Christian-Muslim relations, Jewish engagement of Muslims and Christians, interfaith leadership development, how to conduct conversations on Israel/Palestine, the theory and practice of religious peacemaking, and related issues.

His expertise has been sought by educational institutions, congregations, and community groups interested in pursuing interfaith initiatives.

In recent years he has been a Senior Associate at the Center for the Study of Jewish-Christian-Muslim Relations at Merrimack College; a member of the Advisory Council on World Religions and Spiritualities at the Fetzer Institute; a program consultant for the Drew University Center for Religion, Culture, and Conflict; a consultant to the CT and Western MA office of the National Conference for Community and Justice; a consultant to the Office of Religious and Spiritual Life at Vassar College; and a member of the Peacemakers in Action leadership team at the Tanenbaum Center for Interreligious Understanding.

He also serves on the Editorial Board of the Stimulus Foundation, a division of Paulist Press which publishes works in the area of Jewish-Christian relations, and on the Academic Advisory Board of The Foundation for Religious Literacy.

Consulting on interfaith activities, events, and strategies

While in Israel, Dr. Landau served as program director of the Israel Interfaith Association from 1980 to 1982 and executive director of the Oz veShalom-Netivot Shalom religious peace movement from 1982 to 1991. From 1991 to 2003 he was co-founder and co-director of the Open House Center for Jewish-Arab Coexistence and Reconciliation in Ramle, Israel. 

Since returning to the U.S. in 2002, he served on the board of Friends of Open House/USA and has written extensively on Middle East peace issues, especially the religious dimension of Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking. He authored a research report entitled HEALING THE HOLY LAND: INTERRELIGIOUS PEACEBUILDING IN ISRAEL/PALESTINE for the U.S. Institute of Peace and contributed a chapter on “Religion” to the ROUTLEDGE HANDBOOK ON THE ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT (see Resources section).

For his peacebuilding efforts in the Holy Land he was named a Peacemaker in Action by the Tanenbaum Center for Interreligious Understanding in New York City.

A profile of Yehezkel and his work on behalf of peace and justice appears in the book PEACEMAKERS IN ACTION: PROFILES OF RELIGION IN CONFLICT RESOLUTION, edited by David Little. With Joyce Schriebman, Dr. Landau co-authored a 20-page guide entitled HOW TO TALK TO JUST ABOUT ANYONE ABOUT ISRAEL-PALESTINE, which can be downloaded without cost at www.mybrotherfromanothermother.org

With Ms. Schriebman, Dr. Landau facilitates workshops for Jewish educators and rabbis, as well as other religious leaders, on approaches and tools for conducting fruitful encounters about the Holy Land, overcoming the polarization that too often characterizes these exchanges.