Judaism Books

Book SynopsisThe first few decades of the eighteenth century witnessed an important moment in Jewish-Christian relations, as influential Christian scholars increasingly looked to Jewish texts to reveal the truths of their own faith. To what extent could postbiblical writings help them better understand the New Testament? And who would best be able to explicate these connections?Connecting the Covenants focuses on two separate but entwined stories, the first centering around the colorful character of Moses Marcus. The English-born son of wealthy parents and the grandson of the famous autobiographical author Glikl of Hameln, Marcus was a prominent Jew educated in the Ashkenazic yeshivah at Hamburg. On New Year''s Day, 1723, Marcus was baptized as a Christian, later publishing a justification of his conversion and a vindication of his newly discovered faith in a small book in London. A trophy convert, he was promoted by figures at the highest levels of the Anglican Church as a culturalTrade Review"Connecting the Covenants uses previously untapped archival sources and little-studied printed books to explore an important episode in the early eighteenth century 'battle of the books.' It sheds light on the famous debate between Ancients and Moderns as well as the status of the Bible in early Enlightenment thought. At the same time, Ruderman uncovers a fascinating episode in the history of European Jewry and Jewish-Christian intellectual relations. Connecting the Covenants is compelling as both narrative and history." * Matt Goldish, The Ohio State University *Table of ContentsIntroduction Chapter 1. Covenants Connected and Unconnected: David Nieto and His Anglican Adversaries, Humphrey Prideaux and Moses Marcus Chapter 2. Moses Marcus's Conversion to Christianity Chapter 3. The Career of Moses Marcus in London: An Expert on Judaism and a Defender of Religious Orthodoxy Chapter 4. Restoring the "True Text" of the Old Testament: William Whiston and His Critics, Johann Carpzov and Moses Marcus Chapter 5. Anthony Collins's Attack on William Whiston: Could the Rabbis Ultimately Rescue Christianity from Its Own Exegetical Crisis? Chapter 6. On the Proper Education of an English Divine: William Wotton and His Learned Friends Conclusion Appendix 1. The Dutch Edition of Moses Marcus's Conversionary Treatise Appendix 2. Constructing a Genealogy of a Christian Scholarly Discipline: William Wotton's History of Christian Writers on the Legal Writings of the Jews Notes Index Acknowledgments

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Book SynopsisThis study examines the concept of yetzer hara, or evil inclination. Analyzing the some one hundred and fifty appearances of the yetzer in rabbinic literature, Rosen-Zvi contends that the term should not be read under the traditional rubric of sexual desire, but rather in the context of ancient Jewish demonology.Trade Review"In addition to comprehensive analysis of the classical rabbinic literature on the evil yetzer, and the changing perceptions of it, Rosen-Zvi traces related developments in early Christian literature, especially within the trajectories of asceticism and monasticism of the Alexandrian tradition" * Jewish Book World *"Rosen-Zvi's learned book opens up new vistas for the discussion of Jewish theological anthropology. His careful philological work traces the numerous connections between rabbinic and early Christian conceptions of human nature and sin. Ultimately, Rosen-Zvi emphatically endorses the view that the rabbinic conception of the human person is fundamentally optimistic." * Jewish Review of Books *"Demonic Desires analyzes a crucial element of late antique Jewish religious thought, the concept of the yetzer hara. Rosen-Zvi aims to correct misplaced assumptions about the yetzer, in terms of both anachronistic readings of the rabbinic tradition and misleading comparisons made between the yetzer and other aspects of late antique religious thought in the Hellenistic world. The book is a valuable contribution to an important area of study." * Columba Stewart, Saint John's School of Theology Seminary *Table of ContentsIntroduction. The Riddle, or: How Did the Evil Yetzer Become a Mighty King? Chapter 1. "The Torah Spoke Regarding the Yetzer": Tannaitic Literature Chapter 2. Yetzer and Other Demons: Patristic Parallels Chapter 3. Yetzer at Qumran: Proto-Rabbinic? Chapter 4. Coming of Age: Amoraic Yetzer Chapter 5. Refuting the Yetzer: The Limits of Rabbinic Discursive Worlds Chapter 6. Sexualizing the Yetzer Chapter 7. Weak Like a Female, Strong Like a Male: Yetzer and Gender Afterword: Toward a Genealogy of the Rabbinic Subject Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisFor much of the twentieth century, most religious and secular Jewish thinkers believed that they were witnessing a steady, ongoing movement toward secularization. Toward the end of the century, however, as scholars and pundits began to speak of the global resurgence of religion, the normalization of secularism could no longer be considered inevitable. Recent decades have seen the strengthening of Orthodox movements in the United States and in Israel; religious Zionism has grown and radically changed since the 1960s, and new and vibrant nondenominational Jewish movements have emerged.Secularism in Question examines the ways these contemporary revivals of religion prompt a reconsideration of many issues concerning Jews and Judaism from the early modern era to the present. Bringing together scholars of history, religion, philosophy, and literature, this volume illustrates how the categories of religious and secular have frequently proven far more permeable than fixed. The Trade Review"Ari Joskowicz and Ethan Katz have offered an embarrassment of riches in this fine volume . . . of collected essays of such uniformly high quality and originality . . . The overall virtue of this book is to challenge and revise a number of shopworn assumptions in the study of Jewish secularism. Rather than regarding the secularization of the Jews as solely the product of external forces, the authors here are attentive to the inner dynamics of this process. But they-and especially the editors in their introduction-are also aware of the need for a comparative approach to the subject." * Politics, Religion & Ideology *"This volume has an excellent subject and an important agenda . . . [It] aspires to e-imagine the field by challenging 'the very terms that animate many of the most contentious debates in contemporary Jewish life.' It is surprisingly successful in doing so." * Journal of Contemporary History *"This is an important book. It deals intelligently with the issues of secularism from many different perspectives and contexts and will be of great interest to students and scholars of modernization, Jewish studies, and religion." * Richard I. Cohen, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem *Table of ContentsIntroduction. Rethinking Jews and Secularism —Ari Joskowicz and Ethan Katz PART I. NARRATIONS Chapter 1. "Our Rabbi Baruch": Spinoza and Radical Jewish Enlightenment —Daniel B. Schwartz Chapter 2. Reading Mendelssohn in Late Ottoman Palestine: An Islamic Theory of Jewish Secularism —Jonathan Marc Gribetz Chapter 3. Tradition and the Hidden: Hannah Arendt's Secularization of Jewish Mysticism —Vivian Liska PART II. TRANSFORMATIONS Chapter 4. Messianism Without Messiah: Messianism, Religion, and Secularization in Modern Jewish Thought —Christoph Schulte Chapter 5. In the Name of the Devil: Reading Walter Benjamin's "Agesilaus Santander" —Galili Shahar Chapter 6. The Secular and Its Dissonances in Modern Jewish Literature —Michal Ben-Horin Chapter 7. Civil Society, Secularization, and Modernity Among Jews in Turn-of-the-Century Eastern Europe —Scott Ury Chapter 8. Secular French Nationhood and Its Discontents: Jews as Muslims and Religion as Race in Occupied France —Ethan Katz PART III. ADAPTATIONS Chapter 9. Galician Haskalah and the Discourse of Schwärmerei —Rachel Manekin Chapter 10. Secularism and Neo-Orthodoxy: Conflicting Strategies in Modern Orthodox Fiction —Eva Lezzi Chapter 11. Secularism and Nationalism: The Modern Halakhic Discourse on the Identity and Boundaries of the Jewish Community —Arye Edrei PART IV. NEW CONCEPTIONS: A FORUM Chapter 12. Between Supersessionism and Atavism: Toward a Neosecular View of Religion —David N. Myers Chapter 13. Secularism, the Christian Ambivalence Toward the Jews, and the Notion of Exile —Amnon Raz-Krakotzkin Chapter 14. "Eleven Calendars": Beyond Secular Time —Andrea Schatz Notes List of Contributors Index

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"[A] phenomenal and ground-breaking volume...This book should be on the bookshelf of any and every rabbi, minister, priest, Sunday School teacher, instructor in Judaism and/or Christianity in modern times, Christian divinity students, Jewish seminarians, and laypersons who care to cultivate the love and compassion taught by precept and example in the very best of Judaism and Christianity, from the time of Jesus to the present. Teachers and students who study Magid’s book will learn to appreciate that the until now relatively obscure Rabbi Elijah Zvi Soloveitchik was a vital link in that chain of love. Thanks are due Shaul Magid for making him known to the world at large." * The Review of Rabbinic Judaism *"The Bible, the Talmud, and the New Testament is a fascinating book on one of the most intriguing and forgotten rabbinic characters of the nineteenth century. Elijah Soloveitchik was, to be sure, an idiosyncratic figure, but the story of his life and work is extremely instructive for those interested in the Jewish Enlightenment as well as Jewish-Christian relations today." * Ishay Rosen-Zvi, Tel Aviv University *Table of ContentsForeword, by Peter Salovey Introduction: Elijah Zvi Soloveitchik, the Jewish Jesus, Christianity, and the Jews A Note on the Text A Translator's Foreword, by Jordan Gayle Levy The Commentaries Dedication A Word to the Reader Author's Preface The Gospel According to Matthew, with Commentary The Gospel According to Mark, with Commentary Bibliography Acknowledgments

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"Tartakoff's work is groundbreaking. She confirms the processes that shaped the idea of medieval conversion and its practices. She has uncovered its porosity, its cultural fluidity, its interactions, and its connectivity. As among early modern Jews and Christians, the past life of converts could not be eradicated and continued to remain potentially threatening. Without a doubt, this book furthers our understanding considerably not only of the Norwich circumcision case, but of medieval Jewish and Christian conversion in general. It provides an indispensable tool for anyone interested in the subject." * Antisemitism Studies *"Paola Tartakoff is an important voice in the flourishing new scholarship on Jewish-Christian conversions. In this ambitious book she continues her investigation into the social realties of interreligious conversions, turning the spotlight to another aspect this phenomenon that received little attention—the conversion of Christians to Judaism… This impressive book will no doubt become a starting point to any future research on Jewish apostasy among Christians in the Middle Ages. Not only does it assemble the largest collection of allusions to this phenomenon, it also makes a decisive historiographical statement as to its multi-dimensional nature." * Medieval Encounters *"Tartakoff offers a nuanced exploration of how Christians and Jews thought about these compelling yet dangerous movements between faiths. Tartakoff adopts the pioneering approach of intertwining the study of Christian conversion to Judaism with that of Jewish conversion to Christianity . . . By exploring conversion as a bidirectional phenomenon, she offers new insight into both the experiences of converts and the multifaceted attitudes of both communities toward conversion. Her careful delineation of the parallels and divergences between converts paints a portrait of religious transformation, change, and fluidity that is at once broadly synthetic and richly detailed." * Digital Philology *"In her original and impressively researched investigation of medieval Jewish and Christian understandings of religious identity, Paola Tartakoff shows how a single conversion could affect families and entire communities in unpredictable ways. Specialists will welcome the volume of evidence she brings from both archival and published sources, as well as her elegant and persuasive exposition of the critical role of conversion in worsening relationships between Christians and Jews across thirteenth- and fourteenth-century Europe. Non-specialists will find this study entirely accessible." * Robert Stacey, University of Washington *Table of ContentsNote on Usage Introduction Chapter 1. Christian Vulnerabilities Chapter 2. From Circumcision to Ritual Murder Chapter 3. Christian Conversion to Judaism Chapter 4. Return to Judaism Chapter 5. Contested Children Conclusion List of Abbreviations Notes Bibliography Index Acknowledgments

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewThe most important contribution of Jews and Journeys is its focus on those dynamics of Jewish travel literature that upend basic assumptions of much recent scholarship about travel. * Jewish Review of Books *How do Jewish travel narratives function as a vehicle of cultural self-perception? This question serves as a guiding principle for all the contributions in this volume, which presents a longue durée of Jewish travel writing from biblical times to the present. Jews and Journeys is a timely and relevant volume, speaking to a trend in Jewish historiography that looks increasingly beyond the local and towards transnational and cross-cultural connections. * Matthias Lehmann, University of California, Irvine *

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Book SynopsisAfter their expulsion from Spain in 1492, Sephardi Jews such as Isaac Abravanel, Abraham Saba, and Isaac Arama wrote biblical commentaries that stressed the significance of land. They interpreted Judaism as a tradition whose best expression and ultimate fulfillment took place away from cities and in rural settings. Iberian-Jewish authors rooted their moral teachings in an ethical treatment of the natural world, elucidating ancient agricultural laws and scrutinizing the physical context and built environments of Bible stories. The Land Is Mine asks what inspired this and suggests that the answer lies not in timeless exegetical or theological trends, but in the material realities of late medieval and early modern Iberia, during a period of drastic changes in land use.The book uses a highly traditional source base in a decidedly untraditional way. In Jewish Studies, Andrew D. Berns observes, biblical commentary is typically studied as an intramural activity. Though scholarTrade Review"The Land is Mine both challenges typical methodological approaches to medieval Jewish Bible commentaries and introduces a wider body of readers to its medieval Jewish protagonists –Abraham Saba, Isaac Arama and Isaac Abravanel – in elegant translation; a welcome addition across fields." * Journal of Jewish Studies *

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Book SynopsisExplores one of the major issues in Holocaust studies - the intersection of memory and ethics in artistic expression, particularly within literature. This work examines the shifting cultural contexts for Holocaust representation and reveals how writers articulate the shadowy borderline between fact and fiction, and between event and expression.Trade Review"Bringing together some of the best known thinkers in the field of Holocaust literary studies, this volume will quickly become required reading for advanced undergraduates, graduate students and scholars of the Shoah."— Irene Kacandes, co-editor of Teaching the Representation of the Holocaust "A provocative and engaging volume." — Holocaust and Genocide StudiesTable of ContentsPreface Introduction Part One. Is the Holocaust Still to Be Written? The Holocaust, History Writing, and the Role of Fiction Nostalgia and the Holocaust Death in Language Oskar Rosenfeld and Historiographic Realism (including Sex, Shit, and Status) Part Two. A Question for Aesthetics? Nazi Aesthetics in Historical Context Writing Ruins "If I forget thee, O Jerusalem" Part Three. Does Culture Influence Memory? The Holocaust and the Economy of Memory, from Bellow to Morrison (The Technique of Figurative Allegory) "And in the Distance You Hear Music, a Band Playing" Reading Heart of Darkness after the Holocaust Theorizing the Perpetrator in Bernhard Schlink's The Reader and Martin Amis's Time's Arrow

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Trade Review"Thompson’s book is an original and powerfully suggestive intervention in the scholarship on intermarriage. Her argument is fresh and sound. She is particularly persuasive presenting her compelling ethnographic material." -- Deborah Dash Moore * Frederick G. L. Huetwell Professor of History, University of Michigan *"Jewish on Their Own Terms challenges the prevailing intermarriage paradigm by examining the lived experience of intermarried couples and analyzing the meaning and impact of intermarriage discourse in the Jewish community." -- Bruce Phillips * Hebrew Union College *"Thompson explores the ways in which individuals and couples directly involved in and affected by intermarriage define themselves, their perspectives on their own Jewishness, and their attempts at juggling the larger questions of individualism and communal responsibilities. Recommended." * Choice *"To read Thompson's work is to see clearly the imperative facing American Jewish institutions." * H-Judaic *"Thompson’s book is an original and powerfully suggestive intervention in the scholarship on intermarriage. Her argument is fresh and sound. She is particularly persuasive presenting her compelling ethnographic material." -- Deborah Dash Moore * Frederick G. L. Huetwell Professor of History, University of Michigan *"Jewish on Their Own Terms challenges the prevailing intermarriage paradigm by examining the lived experience of intermarried couples and analyzing the meaning and impact of intermarriage discourse in the Jewish community." -- Bruce Phillips * Hebrew Union College *"Thompson explores the ways in which individuals and couples directly involved in and affected by intermarriage define themselves, their perspectives on their own Jewishness, and their attempts at juggling the larger questions of individualism and communal responsibilities. Recommended." * Choice *"To read Thompson's work is to see clearly the imperative facing American Jewish institutions." * H-Judaic *Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction 1 Defining Judaism by Debating Intermarriage 2 American Contradictions: Conversations about Self and Community 3 “What You Are” and “What’s in Your Heart” 4 Translating Jewish Experience 5 Sovereign Selves in a Fractured Community 6 Moving Forward, Inconclusively: The Crisis of Jewish Identity AfterwordNotes References Index

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Book SynopsisThe set of Jewish mystical teachings known as Kabbalah are often imagined as timeless texts, teachings that have been passed down through the millennia. Yet, as this groundbreaking new study shows, Kabbalah flourished in a specific time and place, emerging in response to the social prejudices that Jews faced.Trade Review"This book is an exceptionally fresh and significant contribution. It is an important corrective to the tendency to sublimate social history to the history of ideas." -- Marc Michael Epstein * Vassar College *"Lachter's work is a compelling and important study of the manner in which Kabbalah responded to political and cultural pressures in Castile at a time of striking proliferation of kabbalistic literature." -- Jonathan Dauber * professor of Jewish mysticism, Yeshiva University *"A worthwhile and edifying contribution to contemporary scholarship on medieval Jewish mysticism." * H-Judaic *"Lachter succeeds admirably in moving scholarship forward." * AJS Review *Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction: Kabbalistic Writing in Late Thirteenth-Century Castile1 Masters of Secrets: Claiming Power with Concealed Knowledge2 Secrets of the Cosmos: Creating a Kabbalistic Universe3 Secrets of the Self: Kabbalistic Anthropology and Divine Mystery4 Jewish Bodies and Divine Power: Theurgy and Jewish Law5 Prayer Above and Below: Kabbalistic Constructions of the Power of Jewish WorshipConclusionPostscript—Cultural Logics: Kabbalah, Then and NowNotesBilbiographyIndex

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Book SynopsisThis volume reconsiders the history of Zionism through the lens of emotion. By highlighting the series of emotional states that are key to any national or social movement, including the Zionist project, Penslar shows how Zionism is distinct for the breadth and depth of feeling of those engaged in it, of outside observers, and of its opponents.Trade Review"[W]ith great care and clarity...Derek Penslar’s Zionism: An Emotional State, zero[es] in on those emotions, like love and fear, which are so seldom acknowledged for what they are but play an outsize role in shaping politics." -- Robert Zaretsky * The Atlantic *“Derek Penslar has written a brave and thought-provoking book that seeks to understand the well-springs of hope and belief in Zionism. Yet he does not shy away from less attractive passions, especially hatred in the name of Zionism and hatred of Zionism itself. Anyone keen to understand the way such deep emotions animate and shape history must read this compelling book.” -- Ruth Harris * author of Dreyfus: Politics, Emotion, and the Scandal of the Century *“Derek Penslar’s masterfully written history of emotions adds a whole new dimension to our understanding of both Zionism and the State of Israel and is crucial reading for anyone interested in grasping the nature of modern nationalism.” -- Michael Brenner * author of In Search of Israel: The History of an Idea *“Derek Penslar introduces a ‘new key’ to the history of Zionism with his examination of the emotions involved, helping us understand the passionate dynamics of both Zionist and anti-Zionist sensibilities as they have emerged and developed over time. This is a must read.” -- Ute Frevert * author of Emotions in History—Lost and Found *"For a topic as contentious and complex as Zionism, Penslar’s expertise, sober voice, and informed critique shine through as he provides a much-needed addition to ongoing debates that touch at the heart of Jewish identity today." -- Shaul Magid * author of Meir Kahane: The Public Life and Political Thought of an American Jewish Radical *"Perhaps the finest book on Zionism written in recent memory. This slim, brilliant volume probes with rare equanimity every volatile corner of this topic with its focus squarely on why it generates such promiscuous, even universal heat. Derek Penslar is an outstanding historian who knows so well how to marshal knowledge of the past to illuminate the aching complexities of the present." -- Steven J. Zipperstein * author of Pogrom: Kishinev and the Tilt of History *“If you think you understand Zionism, read this book and think again. Carefully, elegantly and with tremendous erudition, Derek Penslar takes an ideology many think they understand and illuminates it in a fascinating new way.” -- Peter Beinart * author of The Crisis of Zionism *"Why does Zionism evoke such intense passions? Because as much as it is a political and ideological movement, it is also an emotional movement. Penslar has outdone himself with this intriguing history of the emotions of Zionism's champions and its adversaries." -- Susannah Heschel * author of The Aryan Jesus: Christian Theologians and the Bible in Nazi Germany *Table of ContentsContents Introduction Part I: Terms of Debate Chapter One: Staging Zionism Part II: State of the Question Chapter Two: Zionism as Colonialism Part III: In a New Key Chapter Three: Zionism to 1948: Passion and Solidarity Chapter Four: Zionism since 1948: A Great Romance Chapter Five: Zionism and the International Community: From Gratitude to Betrayal Chapter Six: Hating Zionism Conclusion Acknowledgments Notes For Further Reading Index

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Book SynopsisThe Hebrew Goddess demonstrates that the Jewish religion, far from being pure monotheism, contained from earliest times strong polytheistic elements, chief of which was the cult of the mother goddess. Lucidly written and richly illustrated, this third edition contains new chapters of the Shekhina.

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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Book SynopsisFocusing on the experiences of religious women who participated in a midrasha at Bar-Ilan University, this book explores the spreading practice of intensive Judaic studies among women in the religious Zionist community.

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Book SynopsisA comprehensive study of Jewish magic in late antiquity and the early Islamic period—the phenomenon, the sources, and method for its research, and the history of scholarly investigation into its nature and origin.

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Book SynopsisHalf a century after Hasidism blossomed in Eastern Europe, its members were making deep inroads into the institutional structure of Polish Jewish communities, but some devotees believed that the movement had drifted away from its revolutionary ideals. Menashe Unger's A Fire Burns in Kotsk dramatizes this moment of division among Polish Hasidim in this historical account.

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Book SynopsisThrough the ages, theology in Judaism has played roles of varying importance. But the role of theology is minor compared with that of law and observance. This book is devoted to a study of the evolution of normative Judaism from the time of Ezra (ca. 400 B.C.) to Judah I, the Prince (ca. 200 A.D.). Its focus on law represents a realistic approach to the history of applied Judaism.

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Book SynopsisAddresses for the first time the complex relationships between American Jews and Germany over the fifty years following the end of World War II, and examines American Jewry's' ambiguous attitude toward Germany that continues despite sociological and generational changes within the community.

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Book SynopsisAgainst the gloomy forecast of ‘The Vanishing Diaspora’, the end of the second millennium saw the global emergence of a dazzling array of Jewish cultural initiatives, institutional modalities, and individual practices. This volume explores the global transformations of Jewishness, which give renewed meaning to identity, tradition, and politics.

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Book SynopsisAgainst the gloomy forecast of The Vanishing Diaspora, the end of the second millennium saw the global emergence of a dazzling array of Jewish cultural initiatives, institutional modalities, and individual practices. These Jewish Revival and Jewish Renewal projects are led by Jewish NGOs and philanthropic organizations, the Orthodox Teshuva (return to the fold) movement and its well-known emissary Chabad-Lubavitch Hasidism, and alternative cultural initiatives that promote what can be termed lifestyle Judaism. This range between institutionalized revival movements and ephemeral event-driven projects circumscribes a diverse space of creative agency, which calls for a bottom-up empirical analysis of cultural creativity and the re-invention of Jewish tradition worldwide. Indeed, the trope of a Jewish Renaissance has become both a descriptive category of an increasingly popular and scholarly discourse across the globe, and a prescriptive model for social action. This volume explores the gl

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Book SynopsisPresents essays mapping the history of relief parcels sent to Jewish prisoners during World War II. More than Parcels: Wartime Aid for Jews in Nazi-Era Camps and Ghettos explores the horrors of the Holocaust by focusing on the systematic starvation of Jewish civilians confined to Nazi ghettos and camps.Trade Review"More than Parcels is an impressive and readable anthology on a topic that has not played a major role in historical research for a long time..." - SEHEPUNKTE Online Journal [translated from German]

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Book SynopsisThe image of the West looms large in the American imagination. Yet the history of American Jewry and particularly of American Jewish women - has been heavily weighted toward the East. This book traces the history and contributions of Jewish women in the American West.Trade Review"[This book] is a landmark of scholarship in Western Womens history." * Oregon Historical Quarterly *"Jeanne E. Abrams enriches our understanding of Jewish women and the ways in which, through practical and spiritual commitments, they promoted Judadism, extended the reach of its rituals, spread knowledge of its tenets, and guaranteed their faith a permanent and vibrant presence in the American West." * American Jewish History *"Respected authority Abrams breaks new ground with this work broadly researched in newspapers, memoirs, correspondence, other archival materials, and a vast secondary literature." * Choice *"Abrams has written a sweeping, challenging, and provocative history of Jewish women in the American West. . . . Overall, Jewish Women is a pathbreaking work. . . . It is a fast and engrossing read. As a piece of scholarly writing it should be required reading in any course on the American West that seeks to broaden the definition of what it means to be a Westerner." * Colorado Book Review Center *"Abrams pathbreaking study is filled with remarkable stories, attesting to the fact that Jewish women played a prominent role in commerce, politics, education, the professions, and religious life." * Reform Judaism *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction: A View from the West 1 From the Old Country to the New Land: "Going West" 2 Building a Foundation 3 From Generation to Generation 4 Religious Lives of Jewish Women in the West 5 From "Women's Work" to Working Women 6 Scaling the Ivy Walls and into the Professions 7 Entering the Political World Conclusion: Opening New Doors Notes Bibliography Index About the Author

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Book SynopsisBrings together two often neglected topics in the study of American Jews the roles of women and of Jewish communities outside the Northeast. This book traces the history and contributions of Jewish women in the American West. It contains stories from the memoirs and records of Jewish pioneer women.Trade Review"[This book] is a landmark of scholarship in Western Womens history." * Oregon Historical Quarterly *"Jeanne E. Abrams enriches our understanding of Jewish women and the ways in which, through practical and spiritual commitments, they promoted Judadism, extended the reach of its rituals, spread knowledge of its tenets, and guaranteed their faith a permanent and vibrant presence in the American West." * American Jewish History *"Respected authority Abrams breaks new ground with this work broadly researched in newspapers, memoirs, correspondence, other archival materials, and a vast secondary literature." * Choice *"Abrams has written a sweeping, challenging, and provocative history of Jewish women in the American West. . . . Overall, Jewish Women is a pathbreaking work. . . . It is a fast and engrossing read. As a piece of scholarly writing it should be required reading in any course on the American West that seeks to broaden the definition of what it means to be a Westerner." * Colorado Book Review Center *"Abrams pathbreaking study is filled with remarkable stories, attesting to the fact that Jewish women played a prominent role in commerce, politics, education, the professions, and religious life." * Reform Judaism *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction: A View from the West 1 From the Old Country to the New Land: "Going West" 2 Building a Foundation 3 From Generation to Generation 4 Religious Lives of Jewish Women in the West 5 From "Women's Work" to Working Women 6 Scaling the Ivy Walls and into the Professions 7 Entering the Political World Conclusion: Opening New Doors Notes Bibliography Index About the Author

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Book SynopsisProviding a discussion of the Jewish experience in Mediterranean and Western societies over the last 2000 years, these papers concentrate on the doctrinal substance of the Jewish-Christian dispute in the order that it developed.

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Book SynopsisProviding a discussion of the Jewish experience in Mediterranean and Western societies over the last 2000 years, these papers concentrate on the doctrinal substance of the Jewish-Christian dispute in the order that it developed.

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Book SynopsisProvides a portrait of East European and American Jewish life in the immigrant generation at the turn of the twentieth century.Trade ReviewA treasure trove of Yiddish autobiographical gems available for the first time in English. These heartfelt and moving narratives reveal the rich, complex and multi-textured experience of the East European Jewish immigrant milieu. The masterful translations rendered by Cohen and Soyer capture the lyric, sophisticated and often times profound dimensions of the writers' contributions. To this considerable achievement, Cohen and Soyer add a valuable introductory essay and detailed notes that make the book accessible to students, researchers and thoughtful readers alike. This volume plugs a significant gap in the field of modern Jewish studies and belongs in every library collection, where it will update and complement classics like A Bintel Brief and World of Our Fathers -- Mark A. Raider,author of American Jewish Women and the Zionist Enterprise and The Plough Woman: Records of the Pioneer Women of PalestineCohen and Soyer have done a masterful job of collecting and translating these gripping immigrant narratives. A must read for anyone interested in immigration, American history, or the Jewish experience in America. -- Beth S. Wenger,Katz Family Chair in American Jewish History, University of PennsylvaniaTable of ContentsAcknowledgments vii A Note on Annotations and Transliteration xi Introduction: Yiddish Social Science and Jewish Immigrant Autobiography Jocelyn Cohen and Daniel Soyer * 1 Success or Failure? Minnie Goldstein * 2 Why I Came to America Ben Reisman * 3 I Have Nothing to Complain About Shmuel Krone * 4 Why I Left My Old Home and What I Have Accomplished in America Aaron Domnitz * 5 What Drove Me to America and My Experiences in Europe and America Rose Schoenfeld * 6 My Future Is in America Rose Silverman * 7 The Movies Pale in Comparison Bertha Fox * 8 Why I Left the Old Country and What I Have Accomplished in America Chaim Kusnetz 9 I Haven't Lost Anything by Coming to America Minnie Kusnetz Glossary Index About the Editors

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"An excellent overview of the history of Jewish mysticism from its early beginnings to contemporary Hasidism...scholarly and complex." --Library Journal "An excellent work, clear and solidly documented by Joseph Dan on Gershom Scholem and on his work." --Notes Bibliographiques "An excellent guide to Scholem's work." --Christian Century

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Book SynopsisA major re-examination of postwar American Jewry that debunks the assumption of silenceTrade ReviewDiner sets out to drive a stake, once and for all, through the heart of a historical falsehood that has proved remarkably durable. This is the notion that, as Diner's subtitle has it, American Jews were initially & silent about the Holocaustthat the greatest catastrophe in Jewish history was somehow swept under the rug of American Jewrys collective consciousness. . . . Perhaps the & myth of silence was a necessary stage in American Jewrys ongoing struggle to make sense of its place in a post-Holocaust world. But even if that myth once served a need, thanks to Hasia Diners work, it must now be retired for good. * Tablet Magazine *Diners worthy, innovative, diligently researched work should spark controversy and meaningful dialogue among Holocaust scholars and in the Jewish community. * Publishers Weekly *We Remember's real interest lies not only in its polemical conclusion, but also in its primary argument and supporting evidence. -- Simon Perego * Books & Ideas *Diner's superb study effectively shatters this notion of avoidance, and argues effectively that American Jews were engaged with the Holocaust and its impact in deep and meaningful ways for many years preceding the trial. She has uncovered massive amounts of untapped evidence of 'widespread and intense American Jewish engagement with the Holocaust precisely in the years when silence supposedly reigned' (367)....Diner drives her point home with a scrupulous research and clear prose style that is readily accessible to the general public. By successfully proving that historical accounts of Jews avoiding the Holocaust in the postwar era are incorrect, Diner's account is revolutionist history at its best. -- Patricia Kollander * Yearbook of German-American Studies *A powerful book worthy of its important subject. Diner revises our understanding of the critical postwar decades when American Jews incorporated bitter memories of the murder of European Jews into their collective consciousness. -- Deborah Dash Moore,author of GI JewsA startling and passionate work of history. No one has written about the early American Jewish response to the Holocaust with more insight, sophistication, and sensitivity. -- Gary Gerstle,author of American CrucibleFor several years the debate over postwar responses to the Jewish catastrophe has simply recycled the same data, with partisans declaring that the cup is neither half empty or half full depending on their point of view. Now, thanks to the mountain of evidence she has excavated, Hasia Diner has landed a knockout punch on those who assert that after 1945 American Jews were silent about the fate that befell the Jewish communities in Nazi-occupied Europe, preferring to forget about it while busily integrating into American society and enjoying the postwar boom. -- David Cesarani,Royal Halloway, University of LondonFundamentally challenges the now widespread view that before the 1960s American Jewry showed little interest in the Holocaust. With a wealth of fascinating documentation, We Remember with Reverence and Love provides a moving account of the early efforts in the U.S. to document, commemorate, and memorialize the tragic fate of the Jews during the Second World War. -- Antony Polonsky,Brandeis UniversityThis research should convince even the most recalcitrant that American Jewry did care far beyond the mundane purposes to which some misused the Holocaust. . . . No course on the postwar period in American Jewish history can afford to ignore it. * The Journal of American History *In her new book We Remember With Reverence and Love. . . Diner argues that Jews not only did not want to forget the Holocaust in the postwar years, but actually pushed hard to memorialize it. * The Jewish Week *Diner sets out to drive a stake, once and for all, through the heart of a historical falsehood that has proved remarkably durable. This is the notion that, as Diner"s subtitle has it, American Jews were initially & silent about the Holocaustthat the greatest catastrophe in Jewish history was somehow swept under the rug of American Jewrys collective consciousness. . . . Perhaps the & myth of silence was a necessary stage in American Jewrys ongoing struggle to make sense of its place in a post-Holocaust world. But even if that myth once served a need, thanks to Hasia Diners work, it must now be retired for good. * The New Republic *Diner hurls a passionate, well-delineated attack on the conventional view that postwar Jews and survivors wanted to forget the Holocaust rather than memorialize the tragedy. . . . A work of towering research and conviction that will surely enliven academic debates for years to come. * Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review *Diner refutes the conventional wisdom that the American Jewish community ignored, or actively resisted, discussing the Holocaust until the 1960s. She makes a convincing case that in the post-1945 era American Jews, through their communal and religious institutions, assiduously grappled with the question of how to understand and commemorate the Holocaust. . . . An important contribution to American Jewish historiography. * Library Journal *Uncovers a rich and varied trove of remembrances in song, literature, liturgy, public display, and hundreds of other forms. * New Jersey Jewish News *A lively and controversial book, it is sure to spark debate and conversation for years to come. * Jewish Book World *Through her meticulously researched book, Diner helps to restore the vital postwar years to our understanding of American Jewish history and to honor those Jewish men and women who helped pick up the pieces of a shattered Jewish world. * Jewish Woman Magazine *In the last hundred pages of her book, Diner turns to other factors that led to more widespread memorialization of Holocaust victims and discusses the evolution of Holocaust commemoration in the United States. She commands enormous knowledge and her observations are astute. * Holocaust and Genocide Studies *The book details how, nationwide, Jews in those years memorialized the victims, documented the catastrophe, mobilized for survivors, sought justice from Germany, and used the Holocaust both to advance a political agenda and to build a Jewish future in America. * Forward *Diner conclusively disproves American Jewish Holocaust amnesia before 1962 or 1967... In over five hundred pages of massively researched text and notes, including numerous illustrations, we see documented in great detail how American Jews not only remembered and memorialized the six million during those earlier years; they invoked them in almost everything they said and did as a community, particularly in the struggle for civil rights, where they drew from memories of Nazism a special hatred and fear for American racism, segregation, and bigotry. * H-Net Reviews *Dismantles the idea of American Jewish & Forgetfulness about the Shoah in the post-war years. * Detroit Jewish News *Diners book successfully proves that American Jews did remember the Holocaust with reverence and love prior to the early 1960s. Rich in documentation, her work challenges preconceived notions extent in many areas. * American Historical Review *The evidencefrom youth groups programs, to memorial ceremonies, from early (and admittedly failed) efforts to build monuments, to synagogue programsis quite overwhelming. So resourcefully has Diner tracked down sermons and song lyrics, posters and programs, that this reviewer finds it hard to imagine any future historians continuing to perpetrate the claim that an explicit communal consciousness of the Holocaust did not really surface until the 1960s. * AJS *Diner persuasively and methodically demonstrates that American Jews established a strong interest in the genocide of European Jewry as early as the waning months of the war. * American Jewish Archives Journal *Diner’s compelling, albeit lengthy, study is an extremely important addition to the literature. Probing and compassionate, it dynamically challenges the myth of silence that has been so durable in popular and scholarly accounts of postwar American Jewish life. * American Jewish Archives Journal *Only a seasoned, mature, and brilliant scholar such as Professor Diner could take it upon herself to challenge long-accepted beliefs maintained by an entire school of historians who preceded her. . .[her] work is a very important, critical addition to the massive output of Holocaust research. * Association of Jewish Libraries *Diner seeks in this passionate volume to shatter the widespread myth that US Jews from 1945 to 1962 had little interest in thinking about, engaging with, and memorializing the Holocaust. * CHOICE *Diner seeks in the passionate volume to shatter the widespread myth that U.S. Jews from 1945 to 1962 & had little interest in thinking about, engaging with, and memorializing the Holocaust. . . . Highly recommended. * Choice *Table of ContentsPreface Introduction: Deeds and Words1 Fitt ing Memorials2 Telling the World3 The Saving Remnant 4 Germany on Their Minds 5 Wrestling with the Postwar World 6 Facing the Jewish Future Conclusion: Th e Corruption of History, the Betrayal of Memory Notes Bibliography Index About the Author

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Book SynopsisFirst book-length treatment of the history of Sephardic Jews in AmericaTrade ReviewThe book contains a great deal of information about relatively recent Sephardic immigration, much of it from interviews. . .and her research in obscure newspaper sand other printed and manuscripted sources that will be of value to any person who attempts such a history, which is surely one of the more apparent gaps in American Jewish history. -- Roger Daniels,University of CincinnatiThe obscure documentary evidence Ben-Ur has unearthed gives the content of this book a provocative critical edge...this book brings to the fore issues of race, identity, marginalization, and displacement, which in a globalized world are issues of profound and enduring relevance. -- George Lee Cuellar * Journal of the American Academy of Religion *Sephardic Jews in America is...a scholarly landmark...[its] multilayered trove of ethnographic and historical detail will interest scholars of ethnicity as a rich basis for comparative studies. -- David Graizbord * Journal of American Ethnic History *In this excellent book, Ben-Ur helps address a severe gap in the historical scholarship of American Jewry, and blazes a trail for other scholars to follow. . . . Scholars in the field will no longer have an excuse not to mention or give significant space in their works to Sephardic Jewry within American Jewry. Sephardic Jews in America will be of use in any course concerning immigration, ethnic identity, American and Jewish American history, and Ladino culture, as well as Spanish Diasporas. -- Zion Zohar,Director and Chair, President Navon Program for the Study of Sephardic and Oriental Jewry, Florida International UniversityThis wonderfully researched book can help to reconfigure ethnic studies and, certainly, represents the broadening of the Latino heritage in the United States. Ben-Ur’s exhaustive search for the ignored or forgotten Sephardic legacy has gone beyond the printed and academic sources to interviews of survivors and the recovery of all types of manuscript sources literally from coast to coast in the United States. The only term I can conjure up to adequately describe this work is: landmark. -- Nicolas Kanellos,Brown Foundation Professor and Director of Recovering the U.S. Hispanic Literary Heritage, University of HoustonOffers refreshing new insights into the Sephardic migration from Ottoman lands to America in the early twentieth century. Drawing heavily upon the unknown riches of the Judeo-Spanish (Ladino) press, Ben-Ur illuminates many unknown aspects of the Jewish immigrant experience. She sheds new light on American Jewry, providing a different narrative that will be especially welcome to students of ethnicity and immigration in general as well as readers seeking information on the Hispanic-Jewish encounter. -- Jane S. Gerber,Director of the Institute for Sephardic Studies, City University of New YorkNow, more than five centuries later, dozens of musicians, writers, poets . . . are reclaiming that culture to create a veritable Sephardic renaissance. Many artists mine Sephardic culture because they want to popularize a lesser-known Jewish heritage. * Reporter *Now, more than five centuries later, dozens of musicians, writers, poets . . . are reclaiming that culture to create a veritable Sephardic renaissance. Many artists mine Sephardic culture because they want to popularize a lesser-known Jewish heritage. * Intermountain Jewish News *The story Ben-Ur has to tell . . . is largely one of miscommunication. But failures to communicate can be as revealing, in their way, as successes, and the ways Sephardic and Ashkenazi Jews thought about one another in the early 20th century offers some surprising insights into the construction of modern American Jewish identity. That is why Sephardic Jews in America offers so much food for thought. * Jewish Tribune *Now, more than five centuries later, dozens of musicians, writers, poets . . . are reclaiming that culture to create a veritable Sephardic renaissance. Many artists mine Sephardic culture because they want to popularize a lesser-known Jewish heritage. * JJ Monthly Magazine *Now, more than five centuries later, dozens of musicians, writers, poets . . . are reclaiming that culture to create a veritable Sephardic renaissance. Many artists mine Sephardic culture because they want to popularize a lesser-known Jewish heritage. * Heritage Florida Jewish News *An intriguing and academically rigorous book. . . It provides an invaluable survey into an overlooked component of the Jewish American experience and it provides keen insights into the religious dislocation between Ashkenazic and Sephardic Jews in the US. * History In Review *Now, more than five centuries later, dozens of musicians, writers, poets . . . are reclaiming that culture to create a veritable Sephardic renaissance. Many artists mine Sephardic culture because they want to popularize a lesser-known Jewish heritage. * Greater Phoenix Jewish News *Now, more than five centuries later, dozens of musicians, writers, poets . . . are reclaiming that culture to create a veritable Sephardic renaissance. Many artists mine Sephardic culture because they want to popularize a lesser-known Jewish heritage. * New Jersey Jewish News *The most detailed and thoughtful discussion on why Sephardic Jews have been excluded from mainstream Jewish life in the United States. * Moment *Carefully documented with particular reliance on the Ladino press, this book addresses a shortcoming involving both scholarly and communal engagement. Ben-Ur underscores the failure of academics and Ashkenazic Jews to acknowledge Sephardic Jews, which has resulted in historic oblivion. * CHOICE *Ben-Ur’s book is a valuable contribution to American Jewish historiography, within which treatments of the Sephardic experience have either focused exclusively on the “Old” Sephardic “Grandees” who came to the America before 1776 or, in a contemporary context, have limited themselves to a primarily ethnographic concentration on the folkways of particular communities. * American Historical Review *Now, more than five centuries later, dozens of musicians, writers, poets . . . are reclaiming that culture to create a veritable Sephardic renaissance. Many artists mine Sephardic culture because they want to popularize a lesser-known Jewish heritage. * American Israelite *A landmark contribution to the history of those Sephardic and Mizrahi Jews who were all too often invisible to the mainstream Jewish community and to the historiography of American Judaism. * American Jewish Archives Journal *Now, more than five centuries later, dozens of musicians, writers, poets . . . are reclaiming that culture to create a veritable Sephardic renaissance. Many artists mine Sephardic culture because they want to popularize a lesser-known Jewish heritage. * Buffalo Jewish Review *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction: The Jews Who Weren't There: Scholarly and Communal Exclusion 1 Immigration, Ethnicity, and Identity 2 Hebrew with a Sephardic Accent: A Test Case for Impact 3 East Meets West: Sephardic Strangers and Kin 4 Ashkenazic-Sephardic Encounters 5 The Hispanic Embrace 6 Conclusion: A View from the Margins Appendix: Population Statistics of Non-Ashkenazic Jews in the United States of AmericaAbbreviations NotesIndex About the Author

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Book SynopsisFeatures three intellectual currents in East European Jewry - Hasidism, Rabbinic Mitnagdism, and Haskalah. Focusing on the social and intellectual odysseys of merchants, maskilim, and rabbis, and their varied attempts to combine Judaism and European culture, this title chronicles the story of these first modern Jews of Russia.Trade ReviewAn important contribution to the history of Russian Jewry, the Haskalah, and traditional Jewish society. I heartily recommend it. -- Michael Stanislawski,Nathan J. Miller Professor of Jewish History, Columbia UniversityA succinct and well-researched study. Essential. * Choice *

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Book SynopsisArchaeological discovery of documents from the Near East has fuelled the debate as to the Hebrew Bible's relationship with the world. The biblical view that Israel "dwells apart" is belied by the Israelites' vulnerability to worldly attractions and cultural similarities with their neighbours.

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Book SynopsisExplores the questions and doubts surrounding the revitalisation of Jewish life in Germany since the fall of the Wall. The volume includes topics such as the social and institutional role of Jews; the role of religion in daily life; and gender and culture in post-Wall Jewish writing.Trade Review"Provocative and persuasive. In this well-written and meticulously documented book, Cynthia Lee demonstrates how the law has defined reasonableness in criminal law to favor men against women, straight men against gay men, and whites against blacks. Lee's synthesis of many seemingly different examples, with thoughtful responses to the various objections that might be raised, is legal scholarship that can make a difference in our social practices. This is a serious and compelling book that should lead to reform." - Frank H. Wu, author of Yellow: Race in America Beyond Black and White

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Book SynopsisAlthough women constitute half of the Jewish population and have always played essential roles in ensuring Jewish continuity and the preservation of Jewish beliefs and values, only recently have their contributions and achievements received sustained scholarly attention. Scholars have begun to investigate Jewish women's domestic, economic, intellectual, spiritual, and creative roles in Jewish life from biblical times to the present. Yet little of this important work has filtered down beyond specialists in their respective academic fields. Women and Judaism brings the broad new insights they have uncovered to the world.Women and Judaism communicates this research to a wider public of students and educated readers outside of the academy by presenting accessible and engaging chapters written by key senior scholars that introduce the reader to different aspects of women and Judaism. The contributors discuss feminist approaches to Jewish law and Torah study, the spiriTrade ReviewThe volume (Women and Judiasm)functions well for teaching, offering overview essays of recent scholarly developments and case studies of particular sources and genres. -- K. Hannah Holtschneider * Journal of Jewish Studies *In clear language accessible to lay readers, each informed essay provides tantalizing glimpses of the newly discovered lives of Jewish women, past and present. This volume offers a cogent and nuanced overview of current scholarship, outlining its broader implications for the field of Jewish Studies and setting the stage for future research. Ideal for both the university classroom and adult study. -- Dr. Ellen Frankel,CEO and Editor-in-Chief, The Jewish Publication SocietyThese essays shine a clear and helpful light, enabling the reader to watch women from the time of the Bible onward step out from the shadows of history. An enriching and enlivening collection. -- Rabbi David Wolpe,author of Why Faith MattersTable of ContentsPreface Introduction: Reading Mysteries: The Origins of Scholarship on Jewish Mysticism Hartley LachterI. Jewish Mysticism Takes Shape 1 Ancient Jewish Mysticism Michael D. Swartz 2 The Zohar: Masterpiece of Jewish Mysticism Eitan P. Fishbane 3 Abraham ben Samuel Abulafia and the Prophetic Kabbalah Elliot R. Wolfson 4 New Approaches to the Study of Kabbalistic Life in 16th-Century Safed Lawrence FineII. Becoming Modern 5 Mystical Messianism: From the Renaissance to the Enlightenment Matt Goldish 6 Hasidism: Mystical and Nonmystical Approaches to Interpreting Scripture Shaul Magid 7 Christian Kabbalah Allison P. CoudertIII. Contemporary Concerns 8 Kabbalah at the Turn of the 21st Century Jody Myers 9 Gender in Jewish Mysticism Hava Tirosh-Samuelson Epilogue: Kabbalah and Contemporary Judaism Pinchas Giller About the Contributors Index

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Book SynopsisOver the past generation, scholars have devoted increasing attention to the diverse forms that Jewish mysticism has taken both in the past and today: what was once called nonsense by Jewish scholars has generated important research and attention both within the academy and beyond, as demonstrated by the popular fascination with figures such as Madonna and Demi Moore and the growing interest in spirituality. In Jewish Mysticism and Kabbalah, leading experts introduce the history of this scholarship as well as the most recent insights and debates that currently animate the field in a way that is accessible to a broad audience. From mystical outpourings in ancient Palestine to the Kabbalah Centre, and from attitudes towards gender to mystical contributions to Jewish messianic movements, this volume explores the various expressions of Jewish mysticism from antiquity to the present day in an engaging style appropriate for students and non-specialists alike.Trade ReviewAn excellent summary of the history of Jewish mysticism and Kabbalah and the notes here, as in all of the essays, will provide readers with much additional reading material and resources... This is an excellent book for general readers who wish to learn about this fascinating area of Jewish life and literature, as the jargon of scholar-speak is kept to a minimum * Jewish Book Council *If you have an interest in Kabbalah, but are not aware of recent trends in the field, this is the book to pick up. -- Daniel Scheide * AJL Reviews *Libraries serving religion and Judaic programs will want to add this volume. -- S.T. Katz * CHOICE *Greenspahn has assembled many of the & usual suspects along with some welcome teachers from a newer generation of scholars. The buffet he sets before us refreshingly summarizes much of the current thinking about mysticism in general and Kabbalah in particular. The essays are thoughtful, provocative, and frequently even inspiring. -- Lawrence Kushner,author of I'm God; You're Not: Observations on Organized Religion & Other Disguises of the EgoThis carefully edited collection of essays on Jewish mysticism effectively delivers on its promise to be accessible to broad audiences. The volume amounts to a thoughtful and lucid conversation among leading scholars . . . It provides a sense of overall coherence as themes set forth in one essay regularly intersect with themes developed in other essays, the sum nicely ending up greater than the parts. The literate lay reader as well as faculty and students in a wide range of university courses will find this to be a most useful gateway to Jewish mysticism as well as an illumining account of current trends in scholarship. -- Jeremy Zwelling,Wesleyan UniversityTable of ContentsPreface Introduction: Reading Mysteries: The Origins of Scholarship on Jewish Mysticism Hartley LachterI. Jewish Mysticism Takes Shape 1 Ancient Jewish Mysticism Michael D. Swartz 2 The Zohar: Masterpiece of Jewish Mysticism Eitan P. Fishbane 3 Abraham ben Samuel Abulafia and the Prophetic Kabbalah Elliot R. Wolfson 4 New Approaches to the Study of Kabbalistic Life in 16th-Century Safed Lawrence FineII. Becoming Modern 5 Mystical Messianism: From the Renaissance to the Enlightenment Matt Goldish 6 Hasidism: Mystical and Nonmystical Approaches to Interpreting Scripture Shaul Magid 7 Christian Kabbalah Allison P. CoudertIII. Contemporary Concerns 8 Kabbalah at the Turn of the 21st Century Jody Myers 9 Gender in Jewish Mysticism Hava Tirosh-Samuelson Epilogue: Kabbalah and Contemporary Judaism Pinchas Giller About the Contributors Index

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Book SynopsisTrade Review"Demonstrates the crucial nexus between the long held antipathy of the Catholic and Protestant churches in Hungary toward Hungarian Jewry and the deportation of more than 500,000 Hungarian Jews to Auschwitz in 1944." * Religious Studies Review *"A most valuable addition to our knowledge of a most painful chapter in the histories of both Hungary and the Jewish people." -- Yehuda Bauer,Jona M. Machover Professor of Holocaust Studies, Institute of Contemporary Jewry, Hebrew University of Jerusalem"A valuable contribution . . . Its publication will fill a long-felt need." -- Nathaniel Katzburg,Professor Emeritus in Jewish History, Bar-Ilan University"Based on rich documentation, it contains within it a great deal of information unknown to scholars to date. . . . A real contribution to our understanding of anti-Semitism in Hungary." -- Yisrael Gutman,Yad Vashem, The Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Authority, Jerusalem"Shocks by its very frankness. . . . Absorbing and excellently translated, it is a valuable contribution to Holocaust scholarship." * Association of Jewish Libraries *

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Book SynopsisTraces the story of Eastern Europe's Jews to America and offers a rich portrayal of the East European Jewish experience in New York. It is useful reading for those interested in understanding why these forebears to many American Jews made the decision to leave their homelands, and the challenges these new Jewish Americans faced.Trade Review"World of Our Fathers is a book for Jew and non-Jew, for immigrants and native-born Americans. It is a book for all people." -Chicago Tribune Book World "Irving Howe has written a great book ... a marvelous narrative." -The New York Times Book Review

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Book SynopsisA highly entertaining history of the Hebrew language and its contributions to all languages. Very well written and charming.Trade ReviewThose with a passion for Hebrew, linguistics and religious history will probably find much to captivate them * Na'amat Woman *[I]t is written in an energetic style with a commitment to exploring the evolution of Hebrew from ancient times to the present in ways that a broad audience can comprehend. It will be fortunate, indeed, if future efforts can achieve the commendable promise embodied in this volume’s title with the clarity and enthusiasm that fill its pages. * Religious Studies Review *A fascinating account of the evolution of Hebrew as a language. Those interested in language are in for a delightful surprise. * Record-Review of Scarsdale, NY *Hoffman has a flair for explaining how languages work. * Times Literary Supplement *Hoffman does a good job of pointing out the different traditions of biblical Hebrew that existed in antiquity. * The Jerusalem Post *Table of ContentsList of TablesList of Figures Acknowledgments I Getting Started1 Introduction 2 Rules of the GameII Antiquity3 Writing 4 Magic Letters and the Name of God5 The Masoretes 6 Pronunciation III Moving On7 The Dead Sea Scrolls 8 Dialects in the Bible 9 Post-Biblical Hebrew IV Now10 Modern Hebrew11 Keep Your Voice from Weeping V AppendicesA More about the Rules of the Game B Further Reading Bibliography Index About the Author

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Book SynopsisHighlights the contributions of rebbetzins to the development of American Jewry. Tracing the careers of rebbetzins from the beginning of twentieth century onwards, this title chronicles the evolution of the role from a few individual rabbis' wives who emerged as leaders to a cohort who worked together on behalf of American Judaism.Trade Review"Schwartz adds a new and important dimension to the history of American Judaism, to the history of American women, and to the history of American religion. She has introduced a new set of actors to the historic drama of religion in America." -- Hasia R. Diner,author of The Jews of the United States, 1654-2000"This is the definitive work on the American rebbetzin. At once well-written and well-researched, it makes a notable contribution to the history of women in American Judaism, and puts forth a highly persuasive thesis: that many rabbis' wives in America married what they wanted to be. A landmark study." -- Jonathan D. Sarna,author of American Judaism: A History"This well-written book successfully uses the rebbetzin as a window into larger issues: the evolution of Judaism in America, the opening of possibilities for women in the late twentieth century and the changing mores of the institution of marriage." * Publishers Weekly *"The first book to study the evolution of the role and the women who have filled it, The Rabbis Wife not only honors many unsung heroines but provides a significant contribution to American Jewish history. In this well-written work, the women are no longer footnotes to their husbands careers." * Jewish Week *"[It] will certainly entertain readers with personal stories about many of the well-known rabbis wives (and their husbands) who have graced American Jewish history" * Jewish Book World *"The book overflows with interesting stories and sharp insights into the nature of American Jewish communal life and culture. The strategy of profiling individuals valuably restores these women to the historical narrative...The Rabbis Wife provides a model for further investigation into the role of women’s leadership in American religious life" * Journal of American History *Table of ContentsPrefaceAcknowledgments Introduction 1 The Pioneers 2 The Power behind the Throne 3 "Mr. & Mrs. God" 4 Two for the Price of One 5 "Please [Don't] Call Me Rebbetzin!"6 They Married What They Wanted to Be, But What Does That Mean for the Future? Notes Bibliography IndexAbout the Author

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Book SynopsisDiscusses how media technology impacts the Jewish experience. This title explores mid-twentieth-century ecumenical radio and television broadcasting, video documentation of life cycle rituals, and museum displays and tourist practices as means for engaging the Holocaust as a moral touchstone.Trade ReviewThe new book Jews, God and Videotape reveals the many ways in which text-oriented Judaism, at least on an unofficial basis, has adapted to the digital media age. * Religion Watch *The message that this richly theorized, well-researched, and crisply written book delivers to historians is that communication, no less than politics and economy, society and culture, can and should become a major venue of historical research. -- Menahem Blondheim * The Journal of American History *Shandler's mastery of the relevant scholarly literature, his penetrating eye, and his sharp ear for a telling anecdote make this volume fascinating and illuminating. It is a valuable balance to the many institutional histories on American Jewry or analyses of American Jewish thought. It is equally important as a model of how new methodologies can offer valuable insights into phenomena that are well known but rarely understood. -- Scott Ury * Religious Studies Review *Insightful and engaging. . . . Jews, God, and Videotape details the remarkable success that Judaism has found beyond the pages of the book. There is a life for Torah and durability of its message, he shows us, outside the scroll. -- Samuel Heilman,Harold M. Proshansky Chair of Jewish Studies, City University of New YorkServing as the definitive road map through the history of American Jews encounters with modern media. Jews, God and Videotape demonstrates that although we tend to think of media and religion as opposed to one another, media practices can enhance religious identities even as they also shape and ultimately change them. -- Lynn Schofield Clark,author of From Angels to Aliens[An] insightful analysis of the impact of modern media on religious beliefs and practices. * Library Journal *In Jews, God, and Videotape, Shandler provides a fresh and fascinating account of the impact of technology on the religious life of American Jews during the last one hundred years. * Philadelphia Inquirer *In this richly detailed study, Shandler examines the complex and multivalent relations between Judaism and media in the US . . . Highly recommended. * Choice *Table of ContentsAcknowledgments Author's Note Introduction 1 Cantors on Trial 2 Turning on The Eternal Light 3 The Scar without the Wound 4 Observant Jews 5 A Stranger among Friends 6 The Virtual Rebbe New Media/New Jews? An Afterword Notes Index About the Author

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Book SynopsisThis collection offers a systematic and accessible account of the central issues in the thought of Rav Kook, the first Ashkenazi chief rabbi of Palestine. It concentrates on three areas: his relationship with Jewish tradition; his approach to faith and culture; and his political thought.

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Book SynopsisThe origin, condition and future of the "Black Jews" of Ethiopia has been a source of debate. This study of the history of this community aims to demythologise the history of the Falasha and to consider them in the wider context of Ethiopian history and culture.Trade Review"...balanced and well informed...a striking piece of scholarship aimed at demythologizing the origins of the Ethiopian Falasha." -Foreign Affairs "Kaplan's definitive treatment will be of interest to students and scholars of Jewish history, African history, and comparative religion, as well as anyone interested in Jewish affairs and the modern Middle East." The Midwest Book Review "Kaplan's conceptualizations are judicious and clearly expressed...incisive and well documented... and provides essential background for the process of assimilation now taking place in Israel." -The International Journal of African Historical Studies "Kaplan's able interdisciplinary approach is of great value for persons interested in religion, civilization, and process of change." -Religious Studies Review "Kaplan's well-written, lucid presentation make[s] this important, competent contribution accessible to all levels of readers. Highly recommended.ChoiceInsightful and thorough, a welcome contribution."Kay Kaufman Shelemay, Professor of Music, Harvard University "Undoubtedly the most detailed, most scholarly, and most dispassionate argument of Falasha history hitherto published. [T]his work deserves ... the most careful study by all those (and in particular in Israel) who have any practical or scholarly connection with the Beta Israel." -- Edward Ullendorff, Emeritus Professor of Ethiopian Studies, University of London, Fellow of the British Academy "Given Kaplan's facility with both written and oral sources, he is in a unique position to synthesize and reconcile the new historical findings of ethnographers with the written sources and differing conclusions of earlier historians and linguists. His work is insightful and thorough, a welcome contribution." -- Kay Shelemay, Wesleyan University

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Book SynopsisContributors consider key topics from the meaning of divine providence to questions of redemption to the link between the Holocaust and the creation of the State of Israel. Together, they push our thinking further about how our belief in God has changed in the wake of the Holocaust.Trade ReviewAn invaluable text. The individual essays are gems, written by recognized authorities in their respective disciplines, and they work as a seamless whole to address the fundamental issues raised by the Holocaust. The volume offers both as a challenge and a stimulus for future thought. . . . Erudite and pathbreaking. -- Alan L. Berger,Raddock Eminent Scholar Chair of Holocaust Studies, Florida Atlantic UniversityIt is essential reading for advanced students and scholars who perhaps think that they possess anything near an understanding of the impact of the tremendum that is Holocaust. * Choice: Recommended *This is a serious book. . . .The scholars represented here wrestle with substantial issues. * Jewish Book World *Table of ContentsEditor's Introduction Steven T. KatzPart I1 Is There a Religious Meaning to the Idea of a Chosen People after the Shoah?2 The Issue of Con?rmation and Discon?rmation in Jewish Thought after the Shoah 3 Philosophical and Midrashic Thinking on the Fateful Events of Jewish History 4 The Holocaust: Lessons, Explanation, Meaning 5 Between Holocaust and Redemption: Silence, Cognition, and Eclipse 6 Ultra-Orthodox Jewish Thought about the Holocaustsince World War II7 Theological Re?ections on the Holocaust8 Building amidst Devastation9 Two Jewish Approaches to Evil in History10 A Call to Humility and Jewish Unity in the Aftermath of the HolocaustPart II11 Is There a Religious Meaning to the Rebirth of the State of Israel after the Shoah?12 The Concept of Exile as a Model for Dealing with the Holocaust 13 Is There a Theological Connection between the Holocaust and the Reestablishment of the State of Israel? 14 The Holocaust and the State of Israel15 Theology and the Holocaust16 Educational Implications of Holocaust and Rebirth About the Contributors Index of Names Index of Places

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Book SynopsisThe theological problems facing those trying to respond to the Holocaust remain monumental. This work brings together an array of senior scholars to consider key topics ranging from the meaning of divine providence to questions of redemption to the link between the destruction of European Jewry and the creation of the State of Israel.Trade ReviewAn invaluable text. The individual essays are gems, written by recognized authorities in their respective disciplines, and they work as a seamless whole to address the fundamental issues raised by the Holocaust. The volume offers both as a challenge and a stimulus for future thought. . . . Erudite and pathbreaking. -- Alan L. Berger,Raddock Eminent Scholar Chair of Holocaust Studies, Florida Atlantic UniversityIt is essential reading for advanced students and scholars who perhaps think that they possess anything near an understanding of the impact of the tremendum that is Holocaust. * Choice: Recommended *This is a serious book. . . .The scholars represented here wrestle with substantial issues. * Jewish Book World *Table of ContentsEditor's Introduction Steven T. KatzPart I1 Is There a Religious Meaning to the Idea of a Chosen People after the Shoah?2 The Issue of Con?rmation and Discon?rmation in Jewish Thought after the Shoah 3 Philosophical and Midrashic Thinking on the Fateful Events of Jewish History 4 The Holocaust: Lessons, Explanation, Meaning 5 Between Holocaust and Redemption: Silence, Cognition, and Eclipse 6 Ultra-Orthodox Jewish Thought about the Holocaustsince World War II7 Theological Re?ections on the Holocaust8 Building amidst Devastation9 Two Jewish Approaches to Evil in History10 A Call to Humility and Jewish Unity in the Aftermath of the HolocaustPart II11 Is There a Religious Meaning to the Rebirth of the State of Israel after the Shoah?12 The Concept of Exile as a Model for Dealing with the Holocaust 13 Is There a Theological Connection between the Holocaust and the Reestablishment of the State of Israel? 14 The Holocaust and the State of Israel15 Theology and the Holocaust16 Educational Implications of Holocaust and Rebirth About the Contributors Index of Names Index of Places

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