Bar-Ilan Honors Deborah Lipstadt With Sacks Prize
The 2026 Jonathan Sacks Institute Prize, worth NIS 100,000, recognizes work that advances the ideas of the late Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks.
Updated on Nov. 10, 2026 in Judaism
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Bar-Ilan University awarded the 2026 Jonathan Sacks Institute Prize to Deborah Lipstadt, a historian who served as U.S. Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism from 2022 to 2025. The award ceremony was followed by the annual Jonathan Sacks Conversation, which featured Prof. Jonathan Rynhold and Prof. Deborah Lipstadt discussing antisemitism.
Why it matters
The prize honors scholarship and public advocacy aligned with the thinking of Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, a major voice in Jewish and interfaith life. Its presentation on the eve of the Kristallnacht anniversary places Lipstadt's work on antisemitism within the historical memory of that anti-Jewish pogrom.
The prize carries a monetary award of NIS 100,000 (£23,560), established by the Gewurz family in memory of Samuel Gewurz. The source does not detail how the award amount compares to other academic prizes.
The players
Deborah Lipstadt
A historian and prominent scholar of Holocaust denial who won the High Court libel case brought against her by David Irving and later served as U.S. Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism.
Bar-Ilan University
An Israeli research university in Ramat Gan that hosts the Jonathan Sacks Institute and presented the prize.
Jonathan Rynhold
A professor who participated in the Jonathan Sacks Conversation discussing antisemitism alongside Deborah Lipstadt.
The details
Handwritten notes in Rabbi Sacks' archives at the National Library of Israel show he praised Lipstadt's advocacy for Israel. Lipstadt, who won the High Court libel trial brought against her by David Irving, is also known for opposing laws prohibiting Holocaust denial; her courtroom battle was portrayed in the 2016 film Denial.
Timeline
Lipstadt served as U.S. Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Antisemitism from 2022 to 2025.
The Hollywood film Denial portrayed the Irving libel trial in 2016.
The prize ceremony was held on November 9, 2026, the eve of the Kristallnacht anniversary.
Historical Memory
Presenting the prize on the eve of the Kristallnacht anniversary links Lipstadt's work on Holocaust denial and antisemitism to the 1938 pogrom that marked a turning point in Nazi persecution of Jews. The timing places contemporary scholarship on antisemitism within a commemorative frame rooted in that event.
The prize and Lipstadt's public work keep the question of antisemitism and Holocaust denial in academic and public discussion. Readers interested in these topics can follow the continuing debates raised in the Jonathan Sacks Conversation.
The takeaway
Recognition like this prize reflects how scholars who confront antisemitism and Holocaust denial are honored within institutions that preserve Jewish intellectual traditions. Following such commemorations offers insight into how historical memory informs present-day scholarship.
Further reading
Explore more on Judaism to see how Jewish scholarship and commemoration shape modern discussions of antisemitism.
Source note: This article includes information reported by The Jewish News.
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