The Goldstein-Goren International Center for Jewish Thought at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev was established in 2000 by Mr. Avraham Goldstein-Goren of Milan and the Cukier Goldstein-Goren Foundation. The current director of the center is Prof. Haim Kreisel.  The goal of the center is to promote the knowledge and research of Jewish thought both in Israel and around the world. To this end the center sponsors every year a number of activities:

International Conferences
The center organizes conferences on topics of central significance in Jewish Thought. Both Israeli and foreign scholars are invited to participate. Four highly successful conferences were held under the auspices of the center till now: Conferences held under the auspices of the center till now include: "Judaism and the World - Interaction, Influence, and Impact", May 29-31, 2000; "Shabbat - Idea, History, Reality" May 14-16, 2001;  "Study and Knowledge in Jewish Thought", June 6-9, 2004; and “Spiritual Authority – Struggles over Cultural Power in Jewish Thought”, May 28-30, 2007.  The center also participated as a co-sponsor of a conference on "Religious Cultures in the Early Modern Period: Texts and Contexts", May 23-25, 2005.  The next international conference will be on "Kabbalah and Contemporary Spiritual Revival: Historical, Sociological and Cultural Perspectives", May 20-22, 2008.

The Goldstein-Goren Book Award
The center offers an award every three years to the best recent book in the field of Jewish thought published either in English or Hebrew. The amount of the award is $30,000.  Awards that were bestowed are as follows:

1. 2001 -- Moshe Halbertal, Between Torah and Wisdom [Hebrew] (Magnes Press, Jerusalem 2000) and  Dov Schwartz, Astral Magic in Medieval Jewish Thought [Hebrew] (Bar-Ilan University Press, Ramat-Gan 1999).
2. 2004 -- Peter E. Gordon, Rosenzweig and Heidegger: Between Judaism and German Philosophy (University of California Press, Berkeley 2003), and Mordechai Akiva Friedman, Maimonides, the Yemenite Messiah and Apostasy [Hebrew] (Ben-Zvi Institute, Jerusalem 2002).
3. 2007 -- Yair Lorberbaum, The Image of God: Halacha and Aggada [Hebrew] (Schoken Publishing House, Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, 2004).

Those interested in having their books (published between 2007-2009) considered for the award in 2010 should contact the center.

The Goldstein-Goren Library of Jewish Thought
The center launched a new book series under the general editorship of Haim Kreisel. The first three books of this series appeared in 2004: Sabbath – Idea, History, Reality (Hebrew and English) edited by G. J. Blidstein; Studies in Halakhic and Midrashic Thought (Hebrew), by G. J. Blidstein; Shefa Tal: Studies in Jewish Thought and Culture in Honor of Bracha Sack (Hebrew), edited by Z. Gries, H. Kreisel, B. Huss. The following volumes have appeared since: Study and Knowledge in Jewish Thought (2 volumes), edited by H. Kreisel;  Tradition, Heterodoxy and Religious Culture:  Judaism and Christianity in the Early Modern Period, edited by C. Goodblatt and H. Kreisel; Livyat Hen: The Quality of Prophecy and the Secrets of the Torah by R. Levi ben Avraham, edited H. Kreisel. Soon to appear in the series will be 'Al Pi ha-Be'er:  Studies in Jewish Philosophy and in Halakhic Thought Presented to Gerald Blidstein, edited by U. Ehrlich, H. Kreisel and D. Lasker;  Moses Cordovero, Ein Ya'akov, edited by Bracha Sack;  Spiritual Authority:  Struggeles Over Cultural Power in Jewish Thought, edited by B. Huss, H. Kreisel and U. Ehrlich.  The series is published by Ben-Gurion University Press of the Negev and distributed by Mossad Bialik.

The Internet Resource and Learning Center
The new home page of the center includes e-lectures in English and Hebrew on a range of topics related to Jewish thought together with a glossary of terms. The center also supports internet resource projects such as "Prayer in Rabbinic Literature" and Kabbalah books in print [Hebrew].  The site is managed by Dr. Ohr Margalit.

Doctoral and Post-Doctoral Fellowships
The center awards doctoral and post-doctoral fellowships to students who will be registered in the Department of Jewish Thought. The doctoral fellowships are generally renewable for four years; the post-doctoral fellowship for two. At least one new doctoral fellowship is offered each year, and one new post-doctoral fellowship every other year. All applicants must have an excellent knowledge of Hebrew. The yearly stipend of both awards is around $20,000 (the actual amount varies from year to year). At present there are 5 Goldstein-Goren doctoral fellows and one post-doctoral fellows. For further information about both types of fellowship please contact the center.

The center also sponsors seminars and symposia in conjunction with the Goldstein-Goren Department of Jewish Thought.