On a chilly Tuesday morning, several Boston University students run down Bay State Road to reach their respective classes on time. They run past a two-story building encircled by rusting green fence bars. It is almost 8:30 a.m. as the individuals seated in one of the building’s rooms talk amongst their classmates. A few yawns escape.
But the room becomes quiet as a thin man with thinner gray hair, wearing a black suit, walks in. Elie Wiesel’s presence creates a sort of ripple effect impossible to ignore. As he walks by his students, he smiles and politely greets them.
At age 79, Wiesel has seen his life story retold many times around the world. He is, essentially, a living memory of the Holocaust, one of the worst genocides in human history. His memoir, Night, garnered him global acclaim and was translated into more than 30 languages. He was awarded a Nobel Peace prize in 1986, and is viewed by many political and religious leaders as one of the most iconic figures of the 21st century.
But back at the Elie Wiesel Center for Judaic Studies, where his office and main classroom are located, he has been enjoying the life of a teacher, sitting in a black chair surrounded by his students, most of whom are far less than half his age. Here he is just a man, who for more than 30 years has been teaching at BU. And next year, he will take a Sabbatical leave, placing a pause on his popular annual lecture series, disappointing upperclassmen who have aspired to enroll in one of his classes during their final year.
Yesterday morning as he entered the room and surveyed the faces staring back at him, nothing else seemed important.
It was the last day of class, and it was an opportunity for students to ask Wiesel anything.
He moved to the front of the classroom and smiled.
“Any questions?”
Someone quickly raised their hand, and the discussion began.
THE TEACHER
Invited to teach at the university by former BU President John Silber, Wiesel has been the Andrew W. Mellon Professor in the Humanities since 1976. He also teaches through the University Professors Program and holds a position within the philosophy department.
“He is the most influential Jewish personality and one of the most influential personalities altogether in the world today,” said Stephen Katz, director of the Judaic Center.
Through the years, though, the internationally known man has found a basic formula, a teaching schedule to live by. Two courses every fall semester, and the spring semester is spent traveling and writing. He never teaches a course more than once, and with the help of his teaching aide Ariel Burger, a Ph.D. student, he prepares an extensive syllabus which includes more than a dozen required books for course reading.
What he doesn’t plan on is the way in which his students progress and grow throughout the semester, as they question their readings and the world around them.
THE STUDENTS
The individuals who walk into Wiesel’s once-a-week courses, which took place Mondays and Tuesdays this semester, come from different walks of life. Undergraduates, Evergreen students and graduate students sign up for Wiesel’s courses every year — some of whom do not intend to study religion.
School of Education graduate student Shaaroni Wong said she enrolled in Wiesel’s ‘Hope and Despair in Hasidism’ course this semester because she was primarily interested in Hasidism, a form of Judaic religion.
“I was interested in seeing what Professor Wiesel had to say on the topic of Hasidim,” she said. “You hear about this phenomenal opportunity. He’s just had such a wealth of life experience.”
Wong also said she has been interested in taking a class with Wiesel since her time as a BU undergraduate.
“When I came to BU, I didn’t know Wiesel was here,” she said. “I was a little star-struck.”
Wong said Wiesel’s teaching style, which consists primarily of listening and asking deep questions to encourage discussion, is conducive for her classmates to voice their opinions.
“He made Hasidism, which is not very personal to many of us, a very personal topic,” she said.
Burger said Wiesel’s lectures are personal in tone because he asks questions that evoke deep listening and deep responses.
“It’s a process that’s created together,” Burger said. “It’s not just a frontal lecture.”
Wong said Wiesel’s close attention to his students shows how much he invests in making sure they learn the day’s important concepts.
“I would notice he would always relate things to humanity,” she said. “The way he treats everybody with such respect.”
Gary Fox, who has enrolled in at least one Wiesel course every year as a non-degree student, said the weekly commute from Washington, D.C., where he works as a lawyer, is worth it. After all, he said he has been making the commute since 2001.
“Wiesel has a deep respect for learning and for reading,” he said. “He has a deep respect for people.”
Burger said one of the most distinctive aspects of Wiesel’s class is the extent to which students become involved in the course material.
“[The classes are] all memorable because of the students,” he said. “Every year there’s a different makeup of really excellent students.”
Burger, who will complete his teaching aide position this year, said that difference is what makes the classes so strong year after year.
“It creates diversity, and because there is a lot of respect, it creates a lot of opportunities for different learning.”
“I think there is a real sense of community in these classes because of the tone that Professor Wiesel sets,” he added. “He is teaching them how to be open. He’s really teaching a deep sense of respect and listening.”
TAKING A BREAK
Wiesel will be taking a Sabbatical leave next fall semester, his first break from fall teaching in several years. Wiesel said in a private interview that he wanted to take the opportunity to travel and reflect. Burger, who said he has worked and studied closely with Wiesel over the years and since his teaching aid post began in 2003, said Wiesel may also want to take the opportunity to write.
“I think he wants to concentrate on writing and contemplation for a year,” said Burger, who also does class grading and said his working relationship with Wiesel is very close.
“He’s a very dear teacher to me and someone who has really guided me and given me a lot of wisdom.”
Katz said Wiesel’s extended leave will not hinder Wiesel’s involvement in planning some of the Center’s spring programs, though he will not host his annual lecture series next year, which has been a staple event at the George Sherman Union Metcalf Hall for decades.
THE FUTURE
Back in the classroom, the questions being directed at Wiesel range from the particulars of mysticism to his creative process when he prepares to write. Ultimately, though, Burger said the topic of remembering the past is a repeating theme, as well as the appreciation students feel when they leave Wiesel’s class every week.
“Memory, and the opportunity to make a real connection with a witness,” Burger said. “I think the sense of responsibility and empowerment that people feel walking out of his classes, feeling that they have a responsibility to him, that they’re capable of making a difference in the world.”
Barbara Rodriguez is a student of Wiesel’s.