Albert Einstein (1879-1955) was not only one of the most influential physicists of all time, he was also a prominent booster of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and star fundraiser for the Zionist cause. In 1952 David Ben-Gurion asked Einstein to be the president of Israel, an offer he declined.

Einstein believed that whatever their beliefs, all Jews shared common traits. The first trait was an ability to face the world with a sense of awe and joy.

The second was a sense of social justice, as he wrote in 1938: “The bond that has united the Jews for thousands of years and that unites them today is, above all, the democratic ideal of social justice coupled with the ideal of mutual aid and tolerance among all men.”

Einstein visited Israel once, for 12 days in 1923. The trip’s high point was a speech about his theory of relativity given on Mt. Scopus where the Hebrew University was being built. Tel Aviv mayor Meir Dizengoff was in attendance and said, “From his entire lecture I understood one thing—that the entire audience understood nothing of it.”

Last month, on June 13, 2023, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem held the groundbreaking for Albert Einstein House on its Givat Ram campus which will house the 80,000 documents Einstein bequeathed to the school. Perhaps they will explain his theory of relativity in a way that ordinary people can understand.

This sketch of Einstein is by Hungarian-born painter, caricaturist and medalist Ivan Sors who drew portraits of thousands of public figures including Zionist and Jewish leaders.