Arthur Gross Schaefer, JD, CPA(inactive), MAHL, DD(honoris causa)
Rabbi, Lawyer, Professor, Author, Scholar
Life Mission: “To teach people to respect other religions and spiritual traditions.”
Rabbi Arthur Gross Schaefer is the author of The Rabbi Daniels Mysteries. When he's not writing mysteries, Dr. Schaefer is a professor of business law and administration at Loyola Marymount University (LMU) in Los Angeles. Dr. Schaefer has worked in higher education for almost five decades, including his tenure at LMU, frequent guest lectures at Hebrew Union College, Los Angeles, and guest lectures at the Academy of Jewish Religion, Los Angeles. He has received several awards for teaching, as well as research grants and scholarships. He is also a rabbi at Community Shul of Montecito, and has almost 50 years of rabbinic experience.
Dr. Schaefer has authored, co-authored, and contributed to over 175 publications in many fields, including ethics, law, religion, and immigration. He has presented over 70 papers at conferences throughout the United States, and has spoken at numerous other events, both professionally and for the community. His areas of expertise include: business law; employment law; business ethics; professional ethics; legal education for immigrants; religion in public education; academic freedom; sexual misconduct; and spirituality in the workplace. Dr. Schaefer has consulted for numerous private, public, and religious institutions in these areas, and others.
Dr. Schaefer has participated in many special projects, including: developing, organizing, and moderating a program on ethics in the workplace for CBS News; serving as rabbinic advisor to the Holocaust Seder Project; and co-creating the Avi Schaefer Fund, a non-profit in honor of his son, dedicated to changing the climate of the Israeli-Palestinian discussions on North American college campuses. Currently, he serves as: executive director to LMU Hillel; bioethics faculty affiliate; and College of Education faculty affiliate. He has been the recipient of several awards, including: Lehmann Fellow, Brandeis-Bardin Institute; Distinguished Community Service Award, ADL; Rains Award for Excellence in Service, LMU; a distinguished member of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars; and honored for distinguished service, Hillel Hall of Fame.
Dr. Schaefer received his Juris Doctorate in Law at Boston University. He was awarded a Doctor of Divinity, honoris causa, and received his Master of Hebrew Letters from Hebrew Union College, Los Angeles, and he received his Rabbinic Ordination from Hebrew Union College, New York, where his rabbinic thesis was titled “Jewish Ethical Considerations for American Contract Law.” He also studied in Jerusalem for a year, through Hebrew Union College, Jewish Institute of Religion. Organizational affiliations include: Academy of Legal Studies in Business; Pacific Southwest Academy of Legal Studies in Business; California State Bar Association; The Jewish Law Association; Santa Barbara Ministerial Association; board president, Avi Schaefer Fund; Academic Engagement Network; CSJ Center for Reconciliation and Justice; co-organizer, Black/Jewish/Police Dialogue Group; and co-organizer, Care, Refugee Support Project.
Dr.Schaefer lives in Santa Barbara, CA, where he examines teachings, themes, and spiritual traditions across the spectrum of our beliefs and institutions. His mission is “to teach people to respect other religions and spiritual traditions.”
Books by Dr. Gross-Schaefer include:
Videos by Dr. Gross-Schaefer include: