Geoffrey Claussen


Geoffrey Claussen is an American rabbi and scholar who serves as a professor of Religious Studies at Elon University. His scholarship focuses on Jewish ethics, theology, and the Musar movement.

Education

Claussen received his BA in Classical Languages from Carleton College. He was ordained as a rabbi and received his M.A. and Ph.D. from the Jewish Theological Seminary of America.

Career

Claussen joined the Elon faculty in August 2011 as an assistant professor of religious studies. In April 2012, he was named the Lori and Eric Sklut Emerging Scholar in Jewish Studies. He is also the founding director of Elon’s Jewish Studies program, which launched in fall 2012.
Claussen served as president of the Society of Jewish Ethics from 2015–2017.

Jewish Veganism

In 2017, Claussen was one of the rabbis who signed a statement by Jewish Veg encouraging veganism for all Jews. Claussen has argued that teachings of the Musar movement may enrich Jewish vegan practices today.

Scholarship

Claussen has been noted for his book Sharing the Burden: Rabbi Simhah Zissel Ziv and the Path of Musar. Christian B. Miller claimed that in his book, Claussen "succeeded in making the teachings of Simhah Zissel Ziv relevant today, both to contemporary Jewish ethics and, I would argue, to other traditions of both secular and religious thought about morality." Claussen's work has also pointed to the significance of the 21st century revival of the Musar movement and the value of a virtue-centered approach to moral reasoning. His articles and book chapters include: