Social groups: religious groups and communities Books

Book SynopsisThe family tomb as a physical claim to the patrimony, the attributed powers of the dead and the prospect of post-mortem veneration made the cult of the dead an integral aspect of the Judahite and Israelite society. Over 850 burials from throughout the southern Levant are examined to illustrate the Judahite form of burial and its development. Vessels for foods and liquids were of paramount importance in the afterlife, followed by jewellery with its protective powers. The cult of the dead began to be an unacceptable feature of the Jerusalem Yahwistic cult in the late eighth to seventh century BCE. This change of attitude was precipitated by the fall of the northern kingdom of Israel and the consequent theological response.

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Book SynopsisThis clearly written text explores the rational theology of Islam, the conflict between the "defenders of God" and the "defenders of reason", and the controversy's historical roots.Table of ContentsIntroduction - a tale of two texts; the rise and fall of the Mu'tazila in premodern Islam; the life and works of Qadi' abd Al-Jabbar; a "thick description" of the five Usul; Kiab Al-Usul Al-Khamsa (book of the five fundamentals) - a translation; the persistance of traditionalism and rationalism; the significance of Mu'tazilism in Indonesia; Harun Naustion's defense of Mu'tazilism; Kaum Mu'tazilah dan Pandangan Rasionalanya (the Mu'Tazila and rational philosophy) - a translation; modern and postmodern glosses of Mu'tazilism; the implication of modernity - deconstructing the argument.

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Book SynopsisThis text gives a formative account of the development of Islamic thought from the death of Muhammad in 632, to 950. It demonstrates how various religions and political movements within Islam contributed to what has become standard form, including the positive contribution of sects later regarded as heretical, and the key interaction of religion and politics. Drawing on many previously unresearched Arabic sources, it presents a comprehensive, balanced and clear picture of the main lines of philosophical development in this important period.Table of ContentsPart 1 The beginnings: the Kharaijites; Proto-Shi'ite phenomena under the Umayyads; the general religious movement; God's determination of events; faith and community. Part 2 The century of struggle (750-850): the establishment of the 'Abbasids; the attraction of reasoning; the great Mu'tazilites. Part 3 The triumph of Sunnism; the political background; the maturing of Sunnite theology.

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Book SynopsisA fresh look at the origins and development of Islam, this is a fascinating reconstruction of the era of the first three generations of Muslims. Using a wealth of classical Arabic sources, it chronicles the lives of the Prophet Muhammad, his Companions, and the subsequent two generations of Muslims, together known as the "the Pious Forebears". Examining the adoption in contemporary times of these early Muslims as legitimizing figureheads for a variety of causes, both religious and political, Afsaruddin tries to establish where their sympathies really lay. Essential reading for anyone interested in the inception of the Islam, this important book will captivate the general reader and student alike.Trade Review"Well-researched and measured. An eloquent and cogent explanation of the historical roots and meanings of many key concepts relevant to today's discussion of contemporary Islam, including the role of jihad in the Islamic tradition. Her book should be required reading for any Muslim or non-Muslim who mistakenly believes the faith is immutable." * Washington Post *"Well-researched and measured. An eloquent and cogent explanation of the historical roots and meanings of many key concepts relevant to today's discussion of contemporary Islam, including the role of jihad in the Islamic tradition. Her book should be required reading for any Muslim or non-Muslim who mistakenly believes the faith is immutable." * Washington Post *"A nuanced and erudite portrait of early Muslim lives and ideas. This is a rich and much-needed text. Its range of scholarship, balanced statements and acute sense of the past and the present makes it required reading for both specialists and non-specialists." * The Times Higher Educational Supplement *"A nuanced and erudite portrait of early Muslim lives and ideas. This is a rich and much-needed text. Its range of scholarship, balanced statements and acute sense of the past and the present makes it required reading for both specialists and non-specialists." * The Times Higher Educational Supplement *"A thoughtful, critically informed reading of Islam's early history from a modernist perspective." * Choice *"A thoughtful, critically informed reading of Islam's early history from a modernist perspective." * Choice *"This attractive and readable book", "Afsaruddin has a clear argument, and her passion and commitment to the modernist position shine through" * Speculum - A Journal of Medieval Studies *Table of ContentsIntroduction: Writing about the "First Muslims" Chapter One: The Rise of Islam and Life of the Prophet Muhammad Chapter Two: The Issue of Succession to the Prophet Chapter Three: The Age of the Rightly-Guided Caliphs Chapter Four: the End of Rightly-Guided Leadership Chapter Five: The Age of the Companions Chapter Six: The Age of the Successors Chapter Seven: The Successors to the Successors I: Administration, Leadership, and Jihad Chapter Eight: The Successors to the Successors II: Education, Humanism, and Mystical Spirituality Chapter Nine: Constructing the Pious Forbears: Historical Memory and the Present. Part One: The Islamist Construction Chapter Ten: Constructing the Pious Forbears: Historical Memory and the Present. Part Two: The Significance of the Salaf al-Salih for the Modernists Chapter Eleven: Assessment of Islamist and Modernist Views Conclusion

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Book SynopsisWhile many in the West regard feminism and Islam as a contradiction in terms, many Muslims in the East have perceived Western feminist forces in their midst as an assault upon their culture. In this career-spanning collection of influential essays, Margot Badran presents the feminisms that Muslim women have created, and examines Islamic and secular feminist ideologies side by side. Borne out of over two decades of work, this important volume combines essays from a variety of sources, ranging from those which originated as conference papers to those published in the popular press. Also including original material written specifically for this book, Feminism and Islam provides a unique and wide-ranging contribution to the field of Islam and gender studies.Trade ReviewHumanities \ Religion Badran, Margot. Feminism in Islam: secular and religious convergences. Oneworld, 2009. 349p bibl index; ISBN 9781851685561 pbk, $29.95. Reviewed in 2010may CHOICE. Written by Badran (Georgetown Univ.), this collection of essays based on fieldwork, conference presentations, and literary historical analysis ranks among the best works investigating feminism and Islam. The first part is devoted to feminism in Egypt, and the second traces the spread of feminism in the broader Muslim world. Badran carefully balances attention to major thinkers and writers with her grasp of the issues feminists faced and addressed, along with the opponents and obstacles in their paths. She demonstrates points of divergence and convergence in her historical portrayal of the rise and growth of Islamic feminism with the two foundational methodologies of ijtihad (independent reasoning into religious texts) and tafsir (interpretation of the Qur'an). Running throughout her analysis are many crucial issues: political Islam, nationalism, education, the modernity and secularism introduced by the West, and an excellent discussion of female genital mutilation. Her discussion of "gender activism" and "Islamic feminism" (p. 219: " . . . a middle space . . . between secular feminism and masculinist Islam") is particularly helpful. The scope, clarity of argument, depth of analysis, and wealth of new information make this a very useful work. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-level undergraduates and above; general readers. -- L. J. Alderink, emeritus, Concordia College More than 35,000 academic librarians, faculty, and key decision makers rely on the reviews in Choice magazine and Choice Reviews Online for collection development and scholarly research. Choice reaches almost every undergraduate college and university library in the United States. http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/acrl/publications/choice/index.cfm * Choice *"this book excels and is bound to create more than just a splash in the midst of ongoing debates about the vexed ‘Muslim woman question’ " * Muslim World Book Review *

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Book SynopsisAlthough a large body of the great poetry of the Islamic world has been translated into English, except for a few fragments, the poetry of the Isma'ilis is still only accessible in the original. This anthology should enable lovers of devotional and mystical poetry to sample the great range and depth of Isma'ili poetry. The selection spans 1000 years of Isma'ili history, from the time of the Fatimid caliphate to the present day. It includes both sophisticated and popular verses from the Isma'ili poets of Arabia, Africa, Iran, Afghanistan, Central Asia, China, India and Pakistan composed in Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Burushaski and Urdu. In addition to the theme of divine love and the virtues of the prophet and the Immans, the poems present some of the central ideas of the Isma'ilis and their esoteric interpretation of Islam.Table of ContentsAl-Qadi al-Nu'man; Ibn Hani al-Andalusi; Amir Tamim al-Fatimi; Al-Mu'ayyad fi'l-Din al-Shirazi; Nasir-i Khusraw; Hasan-i Sabbah; Ra'is Hasan; Nizari Quhistani; 'Abd Allah Ansari; Khayrkhwah-i Harati; Khaki Khurasani; Shaykh Khudr; Fida'i Khurasani; 'Allama Nasir Hunzai; Isma'il Adra; 'Ali Kasm.

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Book SynopsisThis is the first English translation of Joseph Roth's portrayal of the Jews of Eastern Europe: their poverty, their towns and trades, their feast days and the mysticism of their rabbis. Roth was conscious that this was a community living under the threat of extermination.Trade ReviewThis [is a] rich little book ... Roth's gift of phrasing, which can switch without warning from lyrical sentiment to irony, never deserts him * Observer *Almost every page has flashes of the novelist's descriptive wit and the trained journalist's eye for a story * Sunday Telegraph *It shows some prophetic insights, and some illusions * Evening Standard *The Wandering Jews reconnects with the rich complexities of European Jewish culture before it was swallowed up by the Holocaust. Roth's brilliant and penetrating analysis proved tragically prophetic. At this distance, it gives a timeless perspective on the vulnerability of dispossessed people everywhere * The Times *Of the many books written about the Jewish people few have approached the clarity and exactness achieved in this short, astonishing study. Roth's reportage remains vivid and pertinent. As a cultural study of a homeless, persecuted race it is as perceptive as it is practical. His lightness of touch always prevails. Above all the fiction is unforgettable, the prose fluid and beautiful. It must also be said he is a forgotten master - the fiction is evocative, atmospheric and accessible. Read everything he has written - and wonder at one of literature's most enduring, beguiling and deserving voices -- Eileen Battersby * Irish Times *Roth ... is one of the greatest. Why he was forgotten, I have no idea ... In The Wandering Jews, a book dozens of times larger than itself in love and argument and stern sympathy ... [Roth] also demonstrates that war is not necessary to break our faith. Only civilisation is. Only a writer who had chosen to live with that sound of shattering could do that * New Statesman *This new book contains superb reportage * Irish Times *

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Book SynopsisThe latter part of the thirteenth century is regarded as a key period in the history of Italian Jewry. During that time many Jewish communities sprang up in the regions of central and northern Italy. Their appearance marked a turning-point in the history of Jews in the Italian peninsula as the Jewish presence had previously been focused on Rome and the south. In this much-acclaimed study, originally published in Italian, Ariel Toaff captures all the intricacies of everyday life in the medieval Jewish communities of Umbria. A thorough examination of Hebrew and Italian archival sources enables him to characterize in detail the defining features of Jewish life in the region at that time and to show clearly how the common stereotype of a single, undifferentiated Jewish community does not reflect the reality. Instead, he presents a picture of a complex society that—far from being a ‘mere’ minority and somewhat isolated—actually contributed greatly to contemporary society and played a significant role in shaping it, while at the same time also being influenced by the surrounding Christian society. Professor Toaff elaborates contemporary Jewish traditions and practices associated with love, marriage, food, work, sickness, and death in the context of everyday social relations between Christians and Jews. In so doing he presents a full and fascinating reconstruction of the Jewish life of the period that faithfully reflects the links and divides between the two communities. Engagingly written, Love, Work, and Death: Jewish Life in Medieval Umbria will be of interest to the general reader, while its detailed references to archival documentation make it a particularly valuable source for students of medieval Jewish history and specialists in the social history of medieval and Renaissance Italy.Trade Review‘Fascinating and erudite . . . The fruit of detailed and extensive research, it succeeds in combining scholarly rigour with vivid readability: the result is a compelling picture of daily life in all its dimensions. . . . Toaff's sympathetic study, by setting the Umbrian Jews of an earlier period in the appropriate social context, allows us to view the more tolerant and complex world which existed . . . There is, perhaps, a lesson here for the Jewish historiography of our own time too.’ - Mark Mazower, Jewish Book News & Reviews‘A very thoroughly documented and most readable presentation . . . The Jews of Umbria and Love, Work, and Death constitute two very important and complementary contributions to the reconstruction of a significant and interesting chapter in the history of Jewish life in the pre-modern Diaspora by a scholar thoroughly at home in the relevant languages, literatures, and methodologies. Moreover, the English translation of Love, Work, and Death further opens up the history of the Jews of the Italian peninsula to the reader without Italian. Finally, while most welcome for its own sake, in a wider context, Professor Toaff's work marks an important contribution to the comparative analysis of different Jewish societies over the ages.’ - Benjamin Ravid, Jewish Quarterly Review‘Professor Toaff is the acknowledged master of the social history of Umbrian Jewry. . . . It is to be hoped that the new ideas interspersed in Toaff's presentation will stimulate further research and yield fresh perspectives on medieval Jewish society and culture.’- David Malkiel, Journal of Jewish Studies‘The book has much improved in its English translation: including an index (mandatory item) and a rich bibliography, both lacking in the original edition . . . Toaff is well versed in both Latin and Hebrew sources, and is able to present an impressive picture of the Jewish minority.’ - Alessandra Veronese, Mediterranean Historical ReviewTable of ContentsList of figures List of tables Abbreviations Note on Currency, Weights, and Measures Map showing Jewish settlements in Umbria Introduction 1 Sex, Love, and Marriage 2 Love of Life and Intimations of Mortality 3 Meat and Wine 4 The House of Prayer 5 Outcasts from Society 6 Witchcraft, Black Magic, and Ritual Murder 7 Converts and Apostates 8 The Pattern of Discrimination 9 Merchants and Craftsmen 10 Doctors and Surgeons 11 Banks and Bankers Bibliography Index

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Book Synopsis The two volumes of this work comprise the first comprehensive history of the kibbutz movement in any language. Origins and Growth covers the first thirty years of this fascinating story, from the formation of the kibbutz in the opening years of the twentieth century to the eve of the Second World War. It is a masterly analysis of the genesis and expansion of the kibbutzim and their relations with the world around them. It considers not only the various components of the kibbutz movement but also the pioneering youth movements from which their members came. Henry Near’s analysis of the ideological, political, economic, and social development of the kibbutz movement is illustrated throughout by excerpts from historical sources, affording a wealth of colourful insights into the changing quality of kibbutz life as experienced by its members. The second volume, Crisis and Achievement, 1939-1995 extends the detailed historical analysis to 1977 and gives a comprehensive overview of subsequent developments.Trade Review'Long and scholarly volume ... Near brings us every primary source on the topic, making this material available to the non-Hebrew reader for the first time ... a treasure trove of information.'Sara Reguer, AJS Review'The most systematic and comprehensive book ever written on the first three decades of kibbutz history ... the abundant statistical data and tables convey the realities beyond the aspirations, and there are descriptions of everyday life and of developments in kibbutz society and education.'Yuval Dror, Catedra'Pays special attention to the kibbutz movement as such and has added excerpts from historical sources to give an insight into the changing quality of kibbutz life as experienced by its members.'International Review of Social History'There has been no systematic survey of its historical development until Henry Near's fascinating and detailed account ... The story is told in meticulous detail.'Leon Sheleff, Jerusalem Post'This is an excellent and well researched book that is well written, with illuminating recollections and quotations from memoirs. It is a pleasure to read and its sequel will be well worth waiting for.'Hugh Courts, Jewish Book News & Reviews'Excellent ... the first comprehensive history of the Kibbutz movement in any language.'Barry Shenker, Jewish Chronicle'Henry Near has pioneered the history of the Kibbutz movement for the English reader.'Noah Lucas, Journal of Jewish Studies'Notably thoughtful and scholarly ... he has succeeded in putting together an admirably coherent and clearly written account of the kibbutz movement's history, an authoritative narrative account of which has long been needed. When completed by a second volume, The Kibbutz Movement: A History is sure to serve as the standard text on the subject for years to come.'David Vital, Times Literary SupplementTable of ContentsList of tablesList of illustrations and mapsNote on Translation, Transliteration, Annotation, and ReferencesIntroduction1 Backgrounds and Beginnings, 1904–1920Zionist Settlements and the Second Aliya • Communes and Kvutzot • The Spread of Kvutzot • Historical Dimensions in the Creation of the Kvutza2 Expansion and Consolidation, 1918–1923The Third Aliya and the ‘Fellowship of the Roads’ • Gedud Ha’avoda and Hashomer Hatzair • The Kibbutz Movement in 19233 The Pioneering Youth Movements: Origins and Growth, 1900–1935Hechalutz • The ‘Classic’ Youth Movements • The Smaller Youth Movements • The Youth Movements in the Early 1930s4 The Fourth Aliya and the Creation of the Kibbutz Movements, 1924–1930The Fourth Aliya: Patterns of Settlement • Gedud Ha’avoda and Ein Harod • The Foundation of the Kibbutz Movements • Unity and Variety5 After the Crisis: Recovery and Growth, 1927–1935The World in Transition • Economics and Settlement • Development of the Kibbutz Movements6 Politics and Youth, 1927–1935The Politicization of the Kibbutz Movement • The Expansion of the Youth Movements • Historical Influences on the Development of the Youth Movements7 Glimpses of Social History: The Kibbutz Community, 1925–1935Patterns of Education: The 1920s and 1930s • Community and Culture • Ways of Life: Three Kibbutzim, 19358 Diversity and Unity: The Smaller Movements, 1930–1939Pioneering Youth Movements in the Diaspora • Pioneering Youth Movements in the Yishuv • The Religious Kibbutz Movements • Youth Movements and Kibbutz Movements9 The Heroic Period, 1936–1939The Arab Revolt • The Kibbutz Movement and the Defence of the Yishuv • Tower and Stockade • Hechalutz and Illegal Immigration10 Economics, Politics, and Society, 1936–1939The Kibbutz Economy • Demographic Developments • The Kibbutz in Politics • Social Developments11 Comments and ConclusionsEconomics • Social Developments • The Kibbutz and the Outside World: Ideological Variants • Politics • Reflections • Achievements and ApprehensionsAppendix 1: The kibbutz movement in 1939Appendix 2: Guide to other settlements mentionedGlossaryReferencesIndexMap: The kibbutz movement in context, 1939

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Book SynopsisFrom 1772-1918 Jews were concentrated more densely in Galicia than in any other area in Europe. Bartal (modern Jewish history, Hebrew University of Jerusalem) and Polonsky (Judaic and social studies, Brandeis University) are joined by a number of other scholars of Judaism to explore the Jewish community in Galicia and its relationship with the Poles, Ukranians, and other ethnic groups. Essays include discuss of the consequences of Galician autonomy; Galician Jewish migration to Vienna; the reforms of Maria Theresa and Joseph II in the 18th century, the assimilation of the Jewish elite; and levels of literacy among Poles and Jews.Table of ContentsNote on Names and Place-Names Table of Major Place-Names Note on Transliteration Part I Focusing on Galicia: Jews, Poles, and Ukrainians in Galicia, 1772-1918 Introduction: The Jews of Galicia under the Habsburgs ISRAEL BARTAL and ANTONY POLONSKY Dimensions of a Triangle: Polish-Ukrainian-Jewish Relations in Austrian Galicia JOHN-PAUL HIMKA Austrian First Impressions of Ethnic Relations in Galicia: The Case of Governor Anton von Pergen FRANZ A. J. SZABO The Jewish Question in Galicia: The Reforms of Maria Theresa and Joseph II, 1772-1790 STANISLAW GRODZISKI Ludwig Gumplowicz's Programme for the Improvement of the Jewish Situation HANNA KOZINSKA-WITT Enlightenment, Assimilation, and Modern Identity: The Jewish Elite in Galicia JERZY HOLZER The Consequences of Galician Autonomy after 1867 JOZEF BUSZKO Politics, Religion, and National Identity: The Galician Jewish Vote in the 1873 Parliamentary Elections RACHEL MANEKIN From Austeria to the Manor: Jewish Landowners in Autonomous Galicia TOMASZ GASOWSKI A Ukrainian Answer to the Galician Ethnic Triangle: The Case of Ivan Franko YAROSLAV HRYTSAK Galician Jewish Migration to Vienna KLAUS HA-DL Yiddish as an Expression of Jewish Cultural Identity in Galicia and Vienna GABRIELE KOHLBAUER-FRITZ Part II New Views Benard Singer, the Forgotten 'Most Popular Jewish Reporter of the Inter-War Years in Poland' JANINA KATARZYNA ROGOZIK Johann Anton Krieger, Printer of Jewish Books in Nowy Dwor EMANUEL RINGELBLUM The Alphabetical List of Payers of the Communal Tax in Warsaw for 1912 JOANNA HENSEL-LIWSZICOWA 'The City of Illiterates'? Levels of Literacy among Poles and Jews in Warsaw, 1882-1914 STEPHEN D. CORRSIN Poles, Jews, and Russians, 1863-1914: The Death of the Ideal of Assimilation in the Kingdom of Poland THEODORE R. WEEKS Kazimierz Kelles-Krauz, 1872-1905: A Polish Socialist for Jewish Nationality TIMOTHY SNYDER The Endecja and the Jewish Question ROMAN WAPINSKI The Return of the Troublesome Bird: Jerzy Kosinski and Polish-Jewish Relations MONIKA ADAMCZYK-GARBOWSKA Part III Reviews REVIEW ESSAYS The Historical Besht: Reconstruction of Deconstruction? IMMANUEL ETKES Four Days in Atlantis: Jozef Lewandowski's Complex Vision of the Polish Jewish Past JANUSZ KOREK On the Bowdlerization of a Holocaust Testimony: The Wartime Journal of Calek Perechodnik DAVID ENGEL Judaica in Slovakia ADAM BARTOSZ BOOK REVIEWS OBITUARY Note on Contributors Glossary Index

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Book SynopsisIsaac Mayer Wise (1819–1900), founder of the major institutions of Reform Judaism in America, was a man of his time—a pioneer in a pioneer’s world. When he came to America from his childhood Bohemia in 1846, he found fewer than 50,000 Jews and only two ordained rabbis. With his sense of mission and tireless energy, he set himself to tailoring the vehicle of Reform Judaism to meet the needs of the growing Jewish community. Wise strove for unity among American Jews, and for a college to train rabbis to serve them. The establishment of Hebrew Union College (1875) was the crowning achievement of his life. His quest for unity also led him to draw up an American Jewish prayer-book, Minhag America, to found the Central Conference of American Rabbis, and to edit two weeklies; their editorials, breathing fire and energy, were no less important in his quest for leadership. Here as elsewhere, it was his persistence that won him the war where his impetuosity lost him many battles. Professor Temkin’s writing captures the vigour of Wise’s personality and the politics and concerns of contemporary Jewish life and leadership in America. Based primarily on material in the American Jewish Archives of the Hebrew Union College, this biography is a lively portrait of a rabbi whose singular efforts in many fields made him a pivotal figure in the naturalization of the Jew and Judaism in the New World. The book was first published in hardback in 1992 under the title Isaac Mayer Wise: Shaping American Judaism.Trade Review'Sefton Temkin has provided us with a much-needed critical and balanced portrayal of Wise ... The best scholarly work on Wise to date. It presents an admiring yet critical picture of Wise's achievements and personality ... Temkin's nuanced portrayal is a welcome contribution to our understanding of the man and his times.'- George L. Berlin, AJS Review'Thorough and extremely competent ... Temkin contributes a great deal through his careful use of materials ... The book will be of interest to general readers ... who wish not only to understand Isaac Mayer Wise but, moreover, to comprehend the attitudes and events that led to the formation of a truly American form of Judaism.' - A. J. Avery-Peck, Choice'This new study, which becomes the authoritative work on Wise, is the product of decades of research.'- Geoffrey Wigoder, Jerusalem Post'Sefton Temkin has outdone himself in this excellent critical biography ... Dr Temkin has performed a great service with this highly readable and insightful book.'- Allen Howard Podet, MannaTable of ContentsPrefatory NoteAbbreviationsNote on Transliteration1 Bohemia (1819–1849)Metternich’s Europe • Jewish Life in an Age of Reaction • Early Years • Departure2 New Beginning (1846–1854)Young America • Jewish Life • Rabbi in Albany • Organizing American Jewry • Early Writings • Sortie in Charleston: Backlash in Albany • Anshe Emeth • Formulating his Beliefs • The Asmonean • A Bible History • Heading West3 Cincinnati (1854–1900)Queen City of the West • Congregation B’nai Jeshurun • The Israelite • Zion College • Conference—Union—Synod • David Einhorn • Cleveland Platform: Quick Victory—Lengthy War • Minhag America • The Essence of Judaism • Fighting for Jewish Rights • Political Dimensions • The Civil War • At North College Hill • First Fruits in Cincinnati • Wider Ambitions • Among the Gentiles (1867–1878) • Years of Sorrow and Strife (1869–1874) • Flirting with the Orthodox • Reformers in Conflict: East versus West (1869) • Establishing the Union (1871–1873) • Call to New York (1873) • ‘We Must have “Union in Israel”’ • President of Hebrew Union College • Appendix: The Principal Changes Introduced in Minhag America4 Fulfilment: Years of HarvestDuties Old and New • Remarriage (1876) • Sustaining the College (1875–1883) • Reform Moves On: The Pittsburgh Platform • A New American Jewish World • Seventieth Birthday: Central Conference of American Rabbis • Sunset • The LegacyBibliographical noteGlossaryIndex

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Book SynopsisIn Broadening Jewish History Todd Endelman seeks to expand the horizons of modern Jewish historiography by focusing on ‘ordinary’ rather than exceptional Jews, arguing that what ordinary people did or felt can do more to deepen our understanding of Jewish history than what a few exceptional individuals thought and wrote. He also makes a strong case for comparative history, showing convincingly that only a comparison across national borders can identify the Germanness of German Jewish history or the Englishness of English Jewish history, and thereby reveal what is unique about each. This innovative collection of historiographical essays and case studies redefines the area under consideration and deftly restates the need for Jewish social history to counterbalance the current focus on cultural studies. The essays offer an important examination of the major trends in the writing of modern Jewish history and the assumptions that have guided historians in their narration of the Jewish past. Professor Endelman shows in particular how the two watershed events of twentieth-century Jewish history—the Holocaust and the establishment of the State of Israel—influenced Jewish historiography for decades thereafter. He also demonstrates how progressive integration into the scholarly framework of American academia has shaped both the form and the content of Jewish historical research. Each of the case studies focuses on a largely unknown figure whose career illustrates the often tortuous paths of integration and acceptance that Jews faced. Some achieved fleeting fame but many of the people who populate the volume remain altogether unknown, their histories recoverable only as statistics. In its wide-ranging analysis of trends in recent historical writing and its treatment of key themes and issues, this book is essential reading for professional historians, students, and indeed all those with an interest in Jewish history.Trade ReviewReviews'One of the world's leading authorities on the history of European and specifically of British Jewry . . . This volume is subtitled Towards a Social History of Ordinary Jews thereby charting directions others must take if such social histories are ever to be written. The raw material is there, but discovering its location and divining its meaning are no easy tasks. Endelman has provided a guidebook and a manual.'Geoffrey Alderman, Jewish ChronicleTable of ContentsNote on TransliterationIntroductionPART I: METHODS AND PERSPECTIVES1 Making Jews Modern: Jewish Self-Identification and West European Categories of Belonging2 The Legitimization of the Diaspora Experience3 The Englishness of Jewish Modernity in England4 Welcoming Ex-Jews into the Jewish Historiographical FoldPART II: COMPARISONS5 The Social and Political Context of Conversion in Germany and England6 Jewish Self-Hatred in Germany and England7 German Jews in Victorian EnglandPART III: MARGINAL JEWS8 The Chequered Career of ‘Jew’ King9 The Emergence of Disraeli’s Jewishness10 Disraeli and the Myth of Sephardi Superiority11 The Impact of the Converso Experience on English Sephardim12 The Frankaus of London13 Jewish Converts in Nineteenth-Century Warsaw14 Memories of JewishnessBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisShmuel Feiner's innovative book recreates the historical consciousness that fired the Haskalah—the Jewish Enlightenment movement. The proponents of this movement advocated that Jews should capture the spirit of the future and take their place in wider society, but as Jews—without denying their collective identity and without denying their past. Claiming historical legitimacy for their ideology and their vision of the future, they formulated an ethos of modernity that they projected on to the universal and the Jewish past alike. What was the image of the past that the maskilim shaped? What tactics underpinned their use of history? How did their historical awareness change and develop—from the inception of the Haskalah in Germany at the time of Mendelssohn and Wessely, through the centres of Haskalah in Austria, Galicia, and Russia, to the emergence of modern nationalism in the maskilic circles in eastern Europe in the last third of the nineteenth century? These are some of the questions raised in this fascinating exploration of an ideological approach to history which throws a searching new light on the Jewish Enlightenment movement and the emergence of Jewish historical consciousness more generally.Trade ReviewFOR HEBREW EDITION:'This excellent and learned book makes an important contribution to the on-going debate over the origins of modern historical thinking among the Jews [...] the first detailed analysis of the use and abuse of history in the Haskalah [...] It is Feiner's great merit that he is able to take a fresh and lively look at materials previously studied for their ideological and cultural content or literary style, dissecting their often disjointed and even parenthetical comments on and about history, and reassembling them into a coherent and compelling narrative about the ways in which Jews since the Enlightenment have thought or, more properly, written abut their past [...] wonderfully erudite book, at once impassioned and dispassionate.' - Michael Stanislawski, AJS Review 'Feiner's monumental work is undoubtedly one of the most important to be published in this area, and it will become a bench-mark in the research of modern Jewish history [...] a pleasure to read [...] essential for understanding the modernization of Jewish society in Europe and the emergence of Jewish nationalism, it also makes a significant contribution to the study of the nature of history and historiography and the uses to which they are put [...] the enormous breadth of this work, covering almost a century of the Jewish Enlightenment in Europe, the clarity of its conceptual framework, and its balance between fine detail and the broad overall picture combine to make it an outstanding example of innovative research and exemplary writing on historiography and the representation of the past.' - Zohar Shavit, Ha'aretz 'Insightful [...] Feiner's approach is highly ambitious in its scope [...] his account is always solidly based on little-know primary material, meticulously analysed; as a whole it adds up to a highly innovative picture of nineteenth-century Jewish historiography [...] This unpretentiously written study provides a wealth of new material and a fresh perspective on Jewish historiography. It will undoubtedly become a standard work on the desk of every serious Jewish historian.' - Michael Brenner, Journal of Jewish Studies'This excellent and learned book makes an important contribution to the ongoing debate over the origins of modern historical thinking among the Jews [...] the first detailed analysis of the use and abuse of history in the Haskalah [...] Feiner has performed a crucial service in retrieving, documenting, and explicating the reams of historical claims and commentary on the part of the maskilim from eighteenth-century Berlin to nineteenth-century Berdichev [...] wonderfully erudite book, at once impassioned and dispassionate.'- Michael Stanislawski, Polin'Meticulously researched [...] a definitive account of the Haskalah in its different manifestations.'- David Biale, American Historical Review'Shmuel Feiner's work becomes part of the mainstream of contemporary scholarship examining this aspect of European society and utilizing the paradigms of contemporary research [...] This text is essential to the scholar, particularly those dealing with Jewish thought after the Enlightenment. It is also totally relevant to our time.' - Uri Ben Alexander, European Judaism 'Makes an important and lasting contribution to the study of modern Jewish history and culture [...] excellent.' - Edward Breuer, Jewish Quarterly Review 'A pathbreaking book which surveys a key aspect of Hebrew-language Jewish enlightenment (haskalahA) thought in the modern period with authority, broad scope as well as with a deep and perceptive understanding of the leading and not-so-leading thinkers in the movement [...] breaks new ground by giving serious attention to 'middle level' enlightenment writers as a means of penetrating the mind of the less sophisticated individuals who made up the bulk of the movement [...] offers clear presentations of the thought of almost all the important ideologues of the movement and gives full bibliographical references. This will be a standard reference text for many years [...] should be a basic book in any collection that deals seriously with modern Jewish thought as well as collections interested in religious modernizations in various cultures.' - Shaul Stampfer, Religious Studies Review 'Not only does this work successfully recapture a long-forgotten mental universe of maskilic historical writings, it also demonstrates the author's conviction that the Haskalah cannot be displaced from its central, if not exclusive, position in the narrative of Jewish modernization in Europe. Feiner deserves to be regarded as the leading historian of the Haskalah movement considered in its entirety. His mastery of the relevant sources and the scholarly literature on Enlightenment is phenomenal, as is the quality and quantity of his meticulous studies of key Haskalah phenomena and figures [...] a deeply rewarding book. Its very expansiveness suits its author's ambition to understand the Haskalah in its entirety, a task to which Feiner, as much as anyone, is equal [...] a work the reader can luxuriate in [...] this study, in its highly readable translation, now provides the best single-volume treatment in English of the broad (and yes, revolutionary) ideology of the Haskalah.' - Jonathan Karp, Studies in Contemporary JewryTable of ContentsNote on transliteration and conventions used in the textIntroduction: ‘Haskalah’ and ‘History’1. From Traditional History to Maskilic History in Late Eighteenth-Century GermanyAn Enlightened Avant-Garde • The Legitimization of Traditional History • The ‘Judgement of Reason’: Legitimizations for a New History • Rationalistic, Realistic, and Moralistic History • The Modern Period in the Maskilic Picture of the Past • The Pantheon of Historical Heroes • The Dissemination of Maskilic History in the Early Nineteenth Century2. The Manipulation of History in Nineteenth-Century GaliciaThe Galician Maskilim • The Unfolding of Maskilic History • A Natural History of Hasidism • Nahman Krochmal: The Middle-f-the-Road Maskil • Wissenschaft des Judentums in Galicia • The Struggle for Freedom of Thought • Iconoclasm: Attitudes to Religious Reform3. Optimism under Oppression: Maskilic History in Russia, 1825–1855The Idea Yearned to be Realized • A universal History for a Modern Era • The Maskilic Chain of Tradition • The Use of History in Maskilic Propaganda • Political History and Moral History4. Reaching the Masses: The Dissemination of Maskilic HistoryThe Channels of Distribution • Optimistic and Patriotic History • Scientifc Knowledge of the Past • The Autobiography of the Haskalah Movement • Abraham Mapu and the Popularization of Maskilic History • Heroics and Sacred memories in Popular Historical Fiction • Improvement of the Masses: History in Yiddish • Kalman Schulman: The First Professional Popularizer5. Maskilic History in CrisisThe Radical Haskalah: A Loss of Optimism • The Anticlerical Struggle • The Historical Vindication of Hasidism • From ‘Maskilic History” to ‘National History’Conclusion: New DirectionsGlossaryBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisWhen The Hope of Israel was translated into English in 1652, its argument from Scripture that messianic redemption would not come to the Jewish people until they were scattered in all the corners of the Earth aroused great interest and played an instrumental part in the discussions in the Commonwealth under Cromwell which eventually led to the readmission of the Jews in 1656. This edition of that English text includes an introduction and notes which place the work in the intellectual context of its time.Trade Review'The editors are to be commended not merely for their editions of the text, but more specifically for their most informative and detailed introduction. Its ninety-five pages provide a scholarly but immensely readable background to Menasseh's life and times.' Jewish Chronicle 'Doubly welcome. The editors' introduction is admirable in its elucidation of Menasseh's life and times, the Marrano background and the messianic atmosphere of the mid-seventeenth century.'L. K., PolinTable of ContentsForewordAbbreviationsEditions and translationsIntroductionAmsterdam: From the Marranos to a Portuguese Jewish Community Menasseh ben Israel: A New Look at his Life and Work, 1604-1657 Esperanca de Israel, 1650Wall's English Translation of the Latin TextA Note on the English TranslationFacsimile of the Title PageThe Epistle DedicatoryMenasseh ben Israel to the Courteous ReaderThe Authors of Other Nations, which are Quoted in this TreatiseThe Hebrew Books, and Authors The Relation of Antonio MontezinosThe Hope of Israel A Note on Moses Wall by Richard H. PopkinBibliographyIndex of Place and Proper Names

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Book SynopsisThe medieval Crown of Aragon reached the peak of its power and influence in the thirteenth century, and Jews took an active part in this expansion. In this detailed and meticulously researched study Yom Tov Assis deals with many important aspects of this period, which was truly a 'Golden Age' in the history of Aragonese and Catalan Jewry, both in terms of their relationship with the Crown and of their own cultural achievements. Professor Assis provides the most extensive treatment yet of Jewish self-government in the Hispanic kingdoms and the mutual interdependence of the Jewish and Christian communities. He describes institutions in very great detail, and examines the acute social problems that arose in the Jewish community and the dissent, polemics, and controversies that divided it. He shows how the proximity of the country to France and Provence on the one hand, and to Castile and Andalusia on the other, made Catalan Jewry a point of contact between Ashkenazi and Sephardi Jewry, demonstrating the effect this had on religious and cultural life, and in particular the consequences of the growing influence in Spain of Franco-German Jewry. The book is based on a very wide variety of primary sources-Jewish and non-Jewish, archival and halakhic material, notarial and royal records-in Latin, Catalan, Aragonese, and Hebrew. By drawing on these extensive sources, the author has been able to create a comprehensive description of the social, religious, and administrative aspects of Jewish life that throws much light on the wider society and economy of that period under the Crown of Aragon. The abundant detailed source notes make this an indispensable work of reference for all scholars of medieval Spanish history.Trade Review‘General readers, as well as specialists, cannot fail to learn from the wide sweep of [the book's] erudition.’ - David Nirenberg, AJS Review‘Significant contribution to medieval Jewish history . . . absorbing and enlightening reading . . . One finishes the book with a satisfying impression of Jewish life in medieval Catalonia and Aragon. In addition to the superb text, bibliography and index, the book's appendices are of great value: maps, a glossary of relevant Hebrew Castilian, Catalan, Aragonese, and Arabic terms, a genealogical chart of sovereigns, and an explanation of the currency with monetary equivalents.’ - Leila Arvin, Jewish Book World‘It is solidly based on both Jewish and non-Jewish sources . . . The picture that emerges from this monumental work (for the two books must be regarded as one for this purpose and together they constitute a worthy and much more complete successor to the pioneering efforts of Jean Régné) does indeed contain many of the elements of a ‘Golden Age’ . . . they contribute significantly to our understanding of some vibrant Jewish communities which have often been neglected . . . the achievement of these books is to be lauded . . . excellent and valuable work.’ - John Edwards, Journal of Jewish Studies‘A much needed distillation of the fruits of scholarship on the Jews in the Crown of Aragon . . . conveys a sense of the variety and creativity of the Jewish experience in the Middle Ages, and of Jewish history as viewed from the inside. When all is said and done, this is an essential book for anyone interested in Jewish life in medieval Spain, or in medieval Europe.’ - Elka Klein, Medieval Review‘A most welcome book, solidly based on vast documentation. It crowns several decades of work by the author in these sources . . . it offers the reader a richly textured understanding of the real context of Jewish life in Iberia during this period.’ - David J. Wasserstein, Mediterranean Historical Review‘The thematic coverage is so broad that no survey can do it justice . . . Assis offers scholars a starting point (and much more) from which they can take up specific areas of interest . . . the fact that he clarifies the terminological confusion that frequently characterizes Hebrew sources is of great importance . . . a wealth of information and commentary that will serve researchers for many years.’- Marc D. Meirson, ZionTable of ContentsThe SourcesAbbreviationsMapsIntroductionThe ‘Golden Age’ The Crown of Aragon The Jews of Catalonia and Aragon before 1213Part 1 The Legal and Political ConditionsThe Status of the Jews in the Crown of Aragon Royal Privileges The Crown, the Church, and the JewsPart 2 Jewish Self-GovernmentThe Jewish Community in the Crown of Aragon The System of Communal Government Elections and Appointments Leaders and Leadership Communal Functionaries and Synagogue Officials The Law and the JudiciaryPart 3 Inter-Communal RelationsRelations between Communities Regional Communal Organization The Catalan Collectas The Collecta in Roussillon Inter-Communal Relations and Organization in Aragon Inter-Communal Organization in ValenciaPart 4 The Jewish QuarterThe Call or Judería The Synagogue and House of Study The Miqve and Public Baths The Slaughterhouse The Bakery The CemeteryPart 5 Jewish SocietySocial Classes Social Welfare and Mutual Aid Family Life Daily Life and Moral Conduct Crime and Violence in the JuderíaPart 6 Religious LifeJewish Religious Trends in the Crown of Aragon: Between Sepharad and Ashkenaz Scholars and Scholarship Religious Supervision Religious Practice, Divine Worship, and the Crown Pious and Synagogal Fraternities Jewish Education in the Crown of AragonConclusionAppendix 1: The monetary system in the medieval Crown of AragonAppendix 2: The sovereigns of the House of Aragon in the Crown of Aragon, Majorca—Roussillon, and Sicily, 1213–1336GlossaryBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisThis volume of essays is the first collection of scholarly studies on the Yiddish theatre to appear in English. Drawing on a variety of academic disciplines, it considers the dramatic and musical repertoire of Yiddish theatre and their historical development, popular and critical reception of productions, and the practice and consequences of state censorship. The time-span covered is broad—from the Middle Ages to the twentieth century—as is the geographical range: Cracow, London, Moscow, New York, St Petersburg, Vienna, and Warsaw. Yiddish Theatre not only presents a comprehensive study of the field but also helps illustrate the significance of the Yiddish theatre as a vital form of expression in the Jewish world. Yiddish drama and theatre has had an enormous capacity to entertain audiences on six continents, while at the same time highlighting social, political, religious, and economic concerns of vital interest to the Jewish people. Yiddish Theatre is a valuable resource for scholars, university students, and general readers interested both in Yiddish theatre specifically and related fields such as Jewish literature and culture, east European history and culture, and European and American theatre. The book contains the most comprehensive bibliography to date of sources relating to the Yiddish theatre.CONTRIBUTORS: Ahuva Belkin, Joel Berkowitz Paola Bertolone, Miroslawa M. Bulat, Brigitte Dalinger, Barbara Henry, John Klier, David Mazower, Leonard Prager, Nahma Sandrow, Nina Warnke, Seth L. Wolitz.Trade Review‘A comprehensive study of the field . . . a wonderful read . . . A valuable resource for any person interested in the history of the Yiddish theatre, or anyone interested in Jewish literature and culture, or anyone interested in the history of theatre in general in eastern Europe and America.’ Sara Marcus, AJL Newsletter'There is nothing comparable in English . . . it is a pioneering volume that necessarily lays a foundation and implies an agenda for Yiddish theatre scholarship in the English-speaking world. Because it is the first and as yet only such publication in English, it will repay careful scrutiny in its parts and as a whole.' Michael C. Steinlauf, All about Jewish Theatre‘One the book’s best attributes is the ability of its contributors to place their subjects within larger European contexts . . . the calibre of the contributions is high, demonstrating the degree to which Yiddish theatre is attracting the attention of serious scholars . . . [the book] succeeds not only in its goal of presenting some of the most important new scholarship on Yiddish theatre, but more importantly in helping to bring the study of this integral component of Jewish culture into wider academic circles and into a more complex scholarly discourse.’ Jeffrey Veidlinger, Shofar‘Aside of the high level of papers there are many extra advantages of the book: selection of interesting plates and tables, many interesting texts (written in transcription for the sake of those not knowing Hebrew . . .), and above all detailed bibliography (34 pages) and thorough index.’ Przemyslaw Piekarski, Scripta Judaica Cracoviensia‘A stimulating and encouraging book that I am happy to recommend to the specialist and the curious reader alike . . . It is not only a politically opportune moment to investigate the history of Yiddish theatre . . . but also a time to create a comprehensive study of Jewish theatre, comparable to what has been done in publications on the history and traditions of Jewish film. It is a pleasure to acknowledge that Yiddish Theatre: New Approaches constitutes a very effective step in this direction.’ Yana Meerzon, Modern Language Review'A pioneering volume that necessarily lays a foundation and implies an agenda, for Yiddish theatre scholarship in the English-speaking world. Because it is the first and as yet the only such publication in English, it will repay careful scrutiny, both in its parts and as a whole.' Michael Steinlauf, Modern Jewish Studies‘The volume contains eleven excellent articles and has been produced by a publisher of repute: the Littman Library . . . All in all, Yiddish Theatre: New Approaches is a landmark in the field of Yiddish cultural history. It is a thought-provoking book, which will hopefully inspire new collective volumes and monographs.’ Gennady Estraikh, East European Jewish Affairs‘Carefully and lovingly edited . . . represents a genuinely heroic effort at elevating a genre . . . The scholarship is impeccable, and the contributors all serious scholars.’ S. Gittleman, ChoiceTable of ContentsNote on Transliteration and OrthographyList of PlatesList of TablesIntroduction: Writing the History of the Yiddish Theatre JOEL BERKOWITZI Purimshpil1. The ‘Low’ Culture of the Purimshpil AHUVA BELKINII Repertoire2. Romanticism and the Yiddish Theatre NAHMA SANDROW3. Jewish Plays on the Russian Stage: Moscow and St Petersburg, 1905–1917 BARBARA HENRY4. The Text of Goldfaden’s Di kishefmakherin and the Operetta Tradition PAOLA BERTOLONE5. Shulamis and Bar kokhba: Renewed Jewish Role Models in Goldfaden and Halkin SETH L. WOLITZIII Regional Centres6. Yiddish Theatre in Vienna, 1880–1938 BRIGITTE DALINGER7. Stories in Song: The Melo-deklamatsyes of Joseph Markovitsh DAVID MAZOWER8. From Goldfaden to Goldfaden in Cracow’s Jewish Theatres MIROSLAWA M. BUWATIV Censorship9. ‘Exit, Pursued by a Bear’: Russian Administrators and the Ban on Yiddish Theatre in Imperial Russia JOHN KLIER10. The Censorship of Sholem Asch’s Got fun nekome, London, 1946 LEONARD PRAGERV. Criticism11. The Child Who Wouldn’t Grow Up: Yiddish Theatre and its Critics NINA WARNKENotes on ContributorsBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisKabbalah, an esoteric lore whose study was traditionally restricted, played a surprisingly prominent and far-reaching role in eighteenth-century Prague. In this book Sharon Flatto uncovers the centrality of this mystical tradition for Prague’s influential Jewish community and its pre-eminent rabbinic authority, Ezekiel Landau, chief rabbi from 1754 to 1793. A towering eighteenth-century rabbinic leader who is best known for his halakhic responsa collection the Noda biyehudah, Landau is generally considered a staunch opponent of esoteric practices and public kabbalistic discourse. Flatto challenges this portrayal, exposing the importance of kabbalah in his work and thought and demonstrating his novel use of teachings from diverse kabbalistic schools. She also identifies the historical events and cultural forces underlying his reluctance to discuss kabbalah publicly, including the rise of the hasidic movement and the acculturation spurred by the 1781 Habsburg Toleranzpatent. In telling this story, the study offers the first systematic overview of the eighteenth-century Jewish community of Prague, and the first critical account of Landau’s life and writings, which continue to shape Jewish law and rabbinic thought to this day. Extensively examining Landau's rabbinic corpus, as well as a variety of archival and published German, Yiddish, and Hebrew sources, it provides a unique glimpse into the spiritual and psychological world of eighteenth-century Prague Jewry. Reconstructing the intellectual world and traditional society in which Landau lived, this study reveals the dominance of rabbinic culture in Prague during this transitional period, the ongoing significance of kabbalistic ideas and practices, and the city’s numerous distinguished figures and institutions. Its analysis of the spiritual trends that animated this culture demonstrates that Prague’s late eighteenth-century rabbinate was more influential, more conservative, and less open to modernization than has been recognized. Debunking the widespread scholarly portrayal of Prague as primarily under the influence of the modernizing West, Flatto shows that this key central European city was shaped more by traditional east European Jewish culture than by Western Enlightenment thought. By unravelling and exploring the many diverse threads that were woven into the fabric of Prague's eighteenth-century Jewish life, the book offers a comprehensive portrayal of rabbinic culture at its height in one of the largest and most important centres of European Jewry.Trade ReviewReviews 'Remarkable intellectual biography . . . a major contribution to the understanding of the diffusion and the role of Kabbalah in Europe in the eighteenth century. The book renews our knowledge of the cultural history of Ashkenazi society and, especially, of the Jewish community of Prague during the premodern period . . . An innovative aspect of Flatto's book is the study of Landau's relationship to mysticism, which was not without some ambivalence . . . an important contribution to the study of the cultural history of Jewish communities in Europe in the eighteenth century. [The book] leads us to reconsider the transformation of Jewish culture, viewed as a complex whole made up of a plurality of influences, of cultural and religious components, and full of contradictions and tensions. This remarkable research demonstrates that the transformation of Jewish society was far from linear.' Jean Baumgart, H-Judaic‛Constructs a map of Landau’s views on kabbalistic matters . . . that changes how we look at eighteenth-century Judaism . . . Flatto’s book is crucial for any attempt to understand eighteenth-century Jews.’ Joseph Davis, Jewish History'A very good book. The scholarship is first rate, with every claim backed up by evidence. The presentation is also excellent, being well organized, clear and above all interesting . . . the author is to be congratulated and the book firmly recommended.' A.H. Lesser, Journal of Modern Jewish Studies'Offers a fascinating picture of Jewish culture in eighteenth-century Prague . . . based on rigorous analyses of texts and a wide-ranging collection of sources. This volume gives the English reader a fine introduction to central European rabbinic culture and sheds new light on hasidism and on modernization in Jewish religion. It does so in a very readable and clear manner.' Shaul Stampfer, Religious Studies Review'Challenges the conventional portrait of Landau as a staunch opponent of esoteric practices and reveals the centrality of kabbalistic thought in this key central European city.' ShofarTable of ContentsNote on Transliteration and Conventions Used in the Text Introduction Part I Jewish Culture in Eighteenth-Century Prague 1 Prague’s Jewish Community 2 Prague’s Rabbinic Culture: Halakhah and Kabbalah 3 Mystical and Modernizing Trends: Prague’s Rabbinic Culture Threatened Part II The Centrality of Kabbalah in Landau’s Thought and Writings Introduction 4 Historiography, Personal History, and Folk Tales 5 The Promotion of Kabbalistic Study, Books, and Customs 6 Tension Part III Kabbalistic Schools in Landau’s Works Introduction 7 The Zohar and Early Mystical Sources 8 The Path to Devekut: Ecstatic and Cordoverian Teachings 9 Lurianic Kabbalah Part IV Key Kabbalistic Doctrines for Landau and Prague Jews Introduction 10 Demons, the Divine Soul, and the Afterlife 11 The Banished Consort: Theurgy and the Exiled Shekhinah Conclusion Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisThis book provides an overview of the research on spirituality, religiousness and health, including the most important studies, conceptualization, instruments for measurement, types of studies, challenges, and criticisms. It covers essential information on the influence of spirituality and religiousness (S/R) in mental and physical health, and provides guidance for its use in clinical practice. The book discusses the clinical implications of the research findings, including ethical issues, medical/health education, how to take a spiritual history, and challenges in addressing these issues, all based on studies showing the results of incorporating S/R in clinical practice. It contains case reports to facilitate learning, and suggests educational strategies to facilitate teaching S/R to health professionals and students. Table of Contents1. Conceptualizing Spirituality and Religiousness.- 2. Measuring Spirituality and Religiousness in Health Research.- 3. Challenges and Criticisms in the Field of Spirituality, Religiousness and Health.- 4. The Scientific Study of Belief and Pain Modulation: Conceptual Problems.- 5. Spirituality, Religiousness and Mental Health: Scientific Evidence.- 6. Spirituality, Religiousness and Physical Health: Scientific Evidence.- 7. Religious and Spiritual Interventions in Health: Scientific Evidence.- 8. Impact of Religion and Spirituality in Older Persons.- Part II. Clinical Implications of Spirituality, Religiousness and Health.- 9. Religiousness, Spirituality and Health in Secular Society: Need for Spiritual Care in Health care?.- 10. Fostering Well-being: Spirituality and Creativity in Clinical Practice.- 11. Spirituality in Psychiatric Care: an Example of Spirituality Integrated Psychotherapy.- 12. Spiritual Care: the Role of Health Care Chaplaincy.- 13. Understanding Clinical Chaplaincy Approach to Biomedical Ethics: an Imminent Need and a Challenge.- 14. Spiritual Care at the End of Life.- 15. Incorporating and Teaching Spirituality into Medical Education: an Overview of the Field and Possible Educational Strategies.

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Book SynopsisThis volume is designed to assist university faculty and students studying and teaching about antisemitism, racism, and other forms of prejudice. In contrast with similar volumes, it is organized around specific concepts instead of chronology or geography. It promotes conversation about antisemitism across disciplinary, geographic, and thematic lines rather than privileging a single methodological paradigm, a specific academic field, or an overarching narrative. Its twenty-one chapters by leading scholars in diverse fields address the relationship to antisemitism of concepts ranging from Anti-Judaism to Zionism. Each chapter not only traces the history and major scholarly debates around a key concept; it also presents an original argument, points to avenues for further research, and exemplifies a method of investigation.Trade Review“The Green/ Sullam volume leads us almost naturally to the last collection under review— in fact a small encyclopedia— edited by Sol Goldberg, Scott Ury, and Kalman Weiser. As befits such a volume, the list of contributors to Key Concepts in the Study of Antisemitism includes not only historians but also philosophers, psychologists, literary scholars, political scientists, jurists, and an anthropologist.” (Shulamit Volkov, Studies in Contemporary Jewry, Vol. 33, 2023)“Key Concepts in the Study of Antisemitism is meant to be a resource and a tool for instructors and researchers around the world who face this very dilemma. Its greatest innovation is in its design. Instead of producing a more usual historical survey of antisemitism through the ages, the editors have solicited a rich and diverse collection of short essays from leading scholars in the field about various concepts associated with the study of antisemitism.” (Paul Hanebrink, Shofar - An Interdisciplinary Journal of Jewish Studies, Vol. 40 (3), 2022)“Rigorous and wholly engaging, Key Concepts in the Study of Antisemitism is the volume I was missing during my postgraduate degree in Jewish studies. … From a student’s perspective too, the work will certainly be a welcome addition to university reading lists … . Key Concepts also makes a compelling intervention in the field. The twenty-one accessible and original chapters encourage curiosity and innovation over rigidity and prescription.” (Emilie Wiedemann, Shofar - An Interdisciplinary Journal of Jewish Studies, Vol. 40 (3), 2022)“The great gain of the volume is that it has brought Antisemitism research out of the epistemic black hole into which the idea of eternal Antisemitism or of the longest hatred has pushed it and threatens to push it again and again. By placing Antisemitic thought and action in their respective contexts, illuminating the constellations in the occurrence of Antisemitism and determining its ambiguities and ruptures, the volume can sharpen the historical judgment of Antisemitism research, make Antisemitism more clearly comprehensible and thus also better combatable.” (Ulrich Wyrwa, Quest. Issues in Contemporary Jewish History, Issue 21, October, 2022)“Key Concepts in the Study of Antisemitism … stands out as such a profound contribution: it sees inquiry as the key to unpacking antisemitism rather than narrow interpretations of potential solutions. … Key Concepts in the Study of Antisemitism is better poised for experts and scholars in the field looking for a field guide to help in study … .” (Shane Burley, Journal of Social Justice, Vol. 10, 2022)“The volume is … directed towards schol­ars of all disciplines studying antisemitism. This is a strength that makes the anthology an important contribution which promotes cross-disciplinary scholarship. For schol­ars of both the past and of the present, this work presents insightful historical overviews as well as well-grounded explanations of concepts that yield a solid foundation for fur­ther research. … will be used by researchers and students alike to ori­entate the many concepts that circulate in the study of antisemitism(s).” (Jens Carlesson Magalhães, Nordisk Judaistik, Vol. 33 (1), 2022)“None of its twenty-two contributions runs more than fifteen pages, making each readily digestible. Moreover, there is no redundancy among them. Even someone long engaged in the study of antisemitism could certainly learn from it. … I can also think of numerous times in the past when I wish this book had been available. Admittedly, before opening Key Concepts one may wonder what is left to be said about anti‐ semitism. Quite a lot, it turns out.” (Robert E. Blobaum, H-Net Reviews, h-net.org, September, 2021)Table of Contents1. Introduction- Kalman Weiser 2. Anti-Judaism- Jonathan Elukin3. Anti-Semitism (Historiography)- Jonathan Judaken4. Anti-Zionism- James Loeffler 5. Blood Libel- Hillel J. Kieval6. The Catholic Church- Magda Teter7. Conspiracy Theory- Jovan Byford 8. Emancipation- Frederick C. Beiser 9. Gender- Sara R. Horowitz 10. Ghetto- Daniel B. Schwartz 11. The Holocaust- Richard S. Levy12. Jewish Self-hatred- Sol Goldberg 13. Nationalism- Brian Porter-Szűcs14. Nazism- Doris L. Bergen15. Orientalism- Ivan Kalmar16. Philosemitism- Maurice Samuels 17. Pogrom- Jeffrey Kopstein18. Post-colonialism- Bryan Cheyette19. Racism- Robert Bernasconi20. Secularism- Lena Salaymeh & Shai Lavi21. Sinat Yisrael- Martin Lockshin22. Zionism- Scott Ury

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Book SynopsisThis book highlights the expansion of the influential Pentecostal Hillsong Church global megachurch network from Australia across global cities. Ethnographic research in Amsterdam and New York City shows that global cities harbor nodes in transnational religious networks in which media play a crucial role. By taking a lived religion approach, media is regarded as integral part of everyday practices of interaction, expression and consumption of religion. Key question raised is how processes of mediatization shape, alter and challenge this thriving cosmopolitan expression of Pentecostalism. Current debates in the study of religion are addressed: religious belonging and community in global cities; the interrelation between media technology, religious practices and beliefs; religion, media and social engagement in global cities; media and emerging modes of religious leadership and authority. In this empirical study, pressing societal issues like institutional responses to sexual abuse of children, views on gender roles, misogyny and mediated constructions of femininity are discussed.Trade Review“This book uncovers the penetration of the media-saturated sociocultural environment into the everyday life of Hillsong Church through the religious perspectives and practices of Hillsong Church actors and then explores the intertwining of the media with the Hillsong Church. This book is a catalyst for research in Pentecostal Christianity, globalization and religious mobility, and media–religion relations.” (Wei Xiong, Religious Studies Review, Vol. 48 (4), December, 2022)Table of ContentsIntroduction.- Community Formation in Global Cities.- Time and Presence.- Social Engagement.- Authenticity and Transparency.- Media Protest.- Pentecostal Popular Feminism.- Mediatized Christianity.- Conclusion.

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Book SynopsisThis book explores storytelling as an innovative means of improving understanding of Indigenous people and their histories and struggles including with the law. It uses the Critical Race Theory (‘CRT’) tool of ‘outsider’ or ‘counter’ storytelling to illuminate the practices that have been used by generations of Aboriginal women to create an outlaw culture and to resist their invisibility to law. Legal scholars are yet to use storytelling to bring the experiential knowledge of Aboriginal women to the centre of legal scholarship and yet this book demonstrates how this can be done by way of a new methodology that combines elements of CRT with speculative biography. In one chapter, the author tells the imagined story of Eliza Woree who featured prominently in the backdrop to the decision of the Supreme Court of Queensland in Dempsey v Rigg (1914) but whose voice was erased from the judgements. This accessible book adds a new and innovative dimension to the use of CRT to examine the nexus between race and settler colonialism. It speaks to those interested in Indigenous peoples and the law, Indigenous studies, Indigenous policy, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander history, feminist studies, race and the law, and cultural studies.Table of ContentsChapter One: Introduction.- Chapter Two: CRT and Settler Colonial Societies.- Chapter Three: Aboriginal Women’s Outlaw Culture.- Chapter Four: The Story of Eliza Woree.- Chapter Five: Conclusion.

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Book SynopsisThe seemingly vitalizing impact of religiosity on civil society is a research topic that has been extensively looked into, not only in the USA, but increasingly also in a European context. What is missing is an evaluation of the role of institutionalized religious communities, and of circumstances that facilitate or impede their status as civil society organisations. This anthology in two volumes aims at closing this gap by providing case studies regarding political, legal and historical aspects in various European countries. Vol. I provides an introduction and looks at cases in Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as chapters on legal issues and data, and comprehensive bibliography.

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Book Synopsis Jews and Armenians are often perceived as peoples with similar tragic historical experiences. Not only were both groups forced into statelessness and a life outside their homelands for centuries, in the 20th century, in the shadow of war, they were threatened with collective annihilation. Thus far, academic approaches to these two "classical" diasporas have been quite different. Moreover, Armenian and Jewish questions posed during the 19th and 20th centuries have usually been treated separately. The conference “We Will Live After Babylon” that took place in Hanover in February 2019, addressed this gap in research and was one of the first initiatives to deal directly with Jewish and Armenian historical experiences, between expulsion, exile and annihilation, in a comparative framework. The contributions in this volume take on multidisciplinary approaches relating to the conference’s central themes: diaspora, minority issues and genocide.

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Book SynopsisStairway to Paradise reveals how American Jewish entrepreneurs, musicians, and performers influenced American popular music from the late nineteenth century till the mid-1960s. From blackface minstrelsy, ragtime, blues, jazz, and Broadway musicals, ending with folk and rock 'n' roll. The book follows the writers and artists' real and imaginative relationship with African-American culture's charisma. Stairway to Paradise discusses the artistic and occasionally ideological dialogue that these artists, writers, and entrepreneurs had with African-American artists and culture. Tracing Jewish immigration to the United States and the entry of Jews into the entertainment and cultural industry, the book allocates extensive space to the charged connection between music and politics as reflected in the Jewish-Black Alliance - both in the struggle for social justice and in the music field. It reveals Jewish success in the music industry and the unique and sometimes problematic relationships that characterized this process, as their dominance in this field became a source of blame for exploiting African-American artistic and human capital. Alongside this, the book shows how black-Jewish cooperation, and its fragile alliance, played a role in the hegemonic conflicts involving American culture during the 20th century. Unintentionally, it influenced the process of decline of the influence of the WASP elite during the 1960s. Stairway to Paradise fuses American history and musicology with cultural studies theories. This inter-disciplinary approach regarding race, class, and ethnicity offers an alternative view of more traditional notions regarding understanding American music's evolution.　

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Book SynopsisThe second volume of the series Yiddish Editions & Research, presents the poetry of Avrom Sutzkever (1913–2010), one of the greatest Yiddish writers of the 20th century. The themes of his work span his early childhood in Siberia, youth in Vilna, Lithuania, the catastrophe of the Holocaust, and a new life in Israel. Sutzkever is a modernist poet of great originality whose work is rooted in the cultural heritage of the Jewish communities of Eastern Europe.This ist the first bilingual edition of Sutzkever’s work to present a substantial selection of poetry from all periods of his creative life. A previously unpublished lecture by the poet sheds light on his poetic credo and an literary-biographical essay by the translator, Heather Valencia, together with notes on the poems, make this literary oeuvre accessible to a wide readership.

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Book SynopsisToday, law is no longer homogenous or unquestioned. Different overlapping legal systems constantly interfere with one another, both on an international level, in complex transnational contexts such as the European Union or human rights law, but also in the context of cultural diversity or conflicts between religious norms and civil institutions, between minorities and the power of the state. On the other hand, the neutrality of law is also under growing pressure, be it from different global transnational players, or from within nation states where calls are made to adapt law to the will of "the people." The heated European debate on the "refugee crisis" has made it manifest that law is more necessary than ever and yet fundamentally contested, perhaps even caught in contradictions and self-limitations. At the same time, the current perspective on legal problems allows us to address issues of diversity and the role of Europe in the globalized world more clearly. The articles of this book take these recent developments and debates as a starting point to discuss from the perspective of different disciplines the pressing question of how to live together in the new millennium and how to figure the long history of law before, besides, and after the dominant paradigm of state law.

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Book SynopsisThe posthumous publication of Emmanuel Levinas’s wartime diaries, postwar lectures, and drafts for two novels afford new approaches to understanding the relationship between literature, philosophy, and religion. This volume gathers an international list of experts to examine new questions raised by Levinas’s deep and creative experiment in thinking at the intersection of literature, philosophy, and religion. Chapters address the role and significance of poetry, narrative, and metaphor in accessing the ethical sense of ordinary life; Levinas's critical engagement with authors such as Leon Bloy, Paul Celan, Vassily Grossman, Marcel Proust, and Maurice Blanchot; analyses of Levinas’s draft novels Eros ou Triple opulence and La Dame de chez Wepler; and the application of Levinas's thought in reading contemporary authors such as Ian McEwen and Cormac McCarthy. Contributors include Danielle Cohen-Levinas, Kevin Hart, Eric Hoppenot, Vivian Liska, Jean-Luc Nancy and François-David Sebbah, among others.

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Book SynopsisThis book retells the history of Israeli film in the 1960s and 1970s in sex scenes. Through close readings of the first sex scenes in mainstream Israeli movies from this period, it explores the cultural and social contexts in which these movies were made. More specifically, it discusses how notions of collective identity, individual agency, and the public and private spheres are inscribed into and negotiated in sex scenes, especially in light of the historical events that marked these decades. This study thus pushes away from the traditional academic perception of Israeli film and opens up new ways of understanding how it has developed in recent decades. It draws on a growing international body of academic literature on the cinematic representation of sex in order to illuminate the particularities of the Israeli context in the 1960s and 1970s. Apart from film scholars and scholars of Israeli film, this study also addresses readers interested in Israeli cultural history more broadly.

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Book SynopsisThe Yiddish Theater Stage as a Temporary Home takes us through the fascinating life and career of the most important comic duo in Yiddish Theater, Shimen Dzigan and Isroel Shumacher. Spanning over the course of half a century – from the beginning of their work at the Ararat avant-garde Yiddish theater in Łodz, Poland to their Warsaw theatre – they produced bold, groundbreaking political satire. The book further discusses their wanderings through the Soviet Union during the Second World War and their attempt to revive Jewish culture in Poland after the Holocaust. It finally describes their time in Israel, first as guest performers and later as permanent residents. Despite the restrictions on Yiddish actors in Israel, the duo insisted on performing in their language and succeeded in translating the new Israeli reality into unique and timely satire. In the 1950s, they voiced a unique – among the Hebrew stages – political and cultural critique. Dzigan continued to perform on his own and with other Israeli artists until his death in 1980.

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Book Synopsis This book provides in-depth investigation into the secret of Theodor Herzl’s success in changing the fate of the Jewish People. More than a biography, the book delves deep into Herzl’s personality and physique, which left a deep impression on his followers and opposers alike. The book traces Herzl’s transformation from a newspaper editor and playwright into a man of vision and action, the star in a drama he could never write for the stage.

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Book SynopsisIn this fascinating book, the planning and building of Yad Vashem, Israel's central and most important institution for commemorating the Holocaust, merits an outstanding in-depth account. Following the development of Yad Vashem since 1942, when the idea to commemorate the Holocaust in Eretz-Israel was raised for the first time, the narrative continues until the inauguration of Nathan Rapoport's Warsaw Ghetto Uprising memorial in 1976. The prolonged and complicated planning process of Yad Vashem's various monuments reveals the debates, failures and achievements involved in commemorating the Holocaust. In reading this thought-provoking description, one learns how Israel's leaders aspired both to fulfill a moral debt towards the victims of the Holocaust a well as to make Yad Vashem an exclusive center of Holocaust commemoration both in the Jewish world and beyond.

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