Social groups: religious groups and communities Books

Book Synopsis What if we could prove that love heals mental illness and is vital to successful therapeutic outcomes in all areas of health care? What if we could prove that people who live more for others than for self have greater psychological well-being? In Unlimited Love, Post examines the question of what we mean by "unlimited love"; his focus is not on "falling" into love, which is "altogether natural, easy, and delusional." Rather, he focuses on the difficult learned ascent that "begins with insight into the need for tolerance of ubiquitous imperfection, and matures into unselfish concern, gratitude, and compassion." He considers social scientific and evolutionary perspectives on human altruistic motivations, and he analyzes these perspectives in a wide interdisciplinary context at the interface of science, ethics, and religion. In Unlimited Love, Stephen Post presents an argument for the creation of a new interdisciplinary field for the study of love and unlimited love, "engaging great minds and hoping to shape the human future away from endless acrimony, hatred, and violence."

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Book SynopsisSeventy-five years after the Holocaust, 100,000 Jews live in Germany. Their community is diverse and vibrant, and their mere presence in Germany is symbolically important. In Rebuilding Jewish Life in Germany, scholars of German-Jewish history, literature, film, television, and sociology illuminate important aspects of Jewish life in Germany from 1949 to the present day. In West Germany, the development of representative bodies and research institutions reflected a desire to set down roots, despite criticism from Jewish leaders in Israel and the Diaspora. In communist East Germany, some leftist Jewish intellectuals played a prominent role in society, and their experience reflected the regime’s fraught relationship with Jewry. Since 1990, the growth of the Jewish community through immigration from the former Soviet Union and Israel have both brought heightened visibility in society and challenged preexisting notions of Jewish identity in the former “land of the perpetrators.” Trade Review"An original and important book." -- Guy Miron"A most welcome addition to the field, Rebuilding Jewish Life in Germany expands on the existing literature in crucial ways, allowing us to understand better the communal affairs, ideological proclivities, and identity politics of Jews in both Germanies after 1945." -- Anthony D. Kauders * author of Democratization and the Jews: Munich 1945-1965 *"If Jews are the canaries in the coalmine of German democracy, then this book chronicles the strength of their song. Seventy-five years after the Holocaust, these essays lay bare the trauma, conflicts, and remarkable resilience of Germany’s Jews. They are a must-read for anyone interested in the health of German democracy and its Jewish community." -- Jonathan R. Zatlin * author of The Currency of Socialism: Money and Political Culture in East Germany *"The academic prose is readable in this well-edited collection, and authors work to clarify the sometimes confusing cultural and political aspects of the communities and literary productions they study. This makes several chapters particularly suitable for undergraduate reading, inviting junior scholars to investigate the field further. Recommended." * Choice *"Provides important contributions to studies of post-1949 German Jewry in two key arenas: its chronological focus, which incorporates the 1990s and 2000s within the scope of postwar history, and its embrace of multiple academic disciplines, including literature studies, film and television studies, sociology, and history." * Central European History *"The editors rightly advocate to overcome the national perspective in the presentation of European-Jewish history and to replace it with a transnational comparative approach." * Zeitschrift für Geschichtswissenschaft *Table of ContentsContents Introduction Jay Howard Geller and Michael Meng Chapter 1: The Politics of Jewish Representation in Early West Germany Jay Howard Geller Chapter 2: We have the right to exist here: Jewish Politics and the Challenges of Wiedergutmachung in Post-Holocaust Germany Andrea A. Sinn Chapter 3: Bernhard Brilling and the Reconstruction of Jewish Archives in Postwar Germany Jason Lustig Chapter 4: Whose Heritage?: Early Postwar German-Jewish History as Remigrants’ History—The Case of Hamburg Miriam Rürup Chapter 5: Migration, Memory and New Beginnings: The Postwar Jewish Community in Frankfurt am Main Tobias Freimüller Chapter 6: Helmut Eschwege and Jewish Life in the German Democratic Republic Alexander Walther Chapter 7: Learning Years on the Path to Dissidence: Stefan Heym’s Friendship with Robert Havemann and Wolf Biermann Cathy S. Gelbin Chapter 8: Ernst Bloch’s Eschatological Marxism Michael Meng Chapter 9: Diasporic Place-Making in Barbara Honigmann Katja Garloff Chapter 10: Tur Tur’s Lantern on a Tiny Island: New Historiographical Perspectives on East German Jewish History Constantin Goschler Chapter 11: Community Responses to the Immigration of Russian-Speaking Jews to Germany, 1990–2006 Joseph Cronin Chapter 12: Policing the East: The New Jewish Hero in Dominik Graf’s Crime Drama Im Angesicht des Verbrechens Jill Suzanne Smith Chapter 13: “You are my liberty:” On the Negotiation of Holocaust and Other Memories for Israelis in Berlin Irit Dekel Epilogue Jay Howard Geller and Michael Meng

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Book SynopsisThe Amish and ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities have typically been associated with strict religious observance, a renunciation of worldly things, and an obedience of women to men. Women’s relationship to media in these communities, however, betrays a more nuanced picture of the boundaries at play and women’s roles in negotiating them. Strictly Observant presents a compelling ethnographic study of the complex dynamic between women in both the Pennsylvanian Old Order Amish and Israeli ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities and contemporary media technologies. These women regularly establish valuable social, cultural, and religious capital through the countless decisions for use and nonuse of media that they make in their daily lives, and in ways that challenge the gender hierarchies of each community. By exhibiting a deep awareness of how media can be managed to increase their social and religious reputations, these women prompt us to reconsider our outmoded understanding of the Amish and ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities, the role that women play in these communities as agents of change, and our own relationship to media today. Table of ContentsList of Tables Introduction: The Miracle, Case Studies, and Methods 1 Under the Eyes of God: One Day in the Life of an Old Order Amish Woman 2 From the Holy House and Community to the Secular Workplace and Back: One Day in the Life of an Ultra-Orthodox Woman 3 “Only Occasionally, When I Happen to Be around One”: Self-Justifications of Media Consumption as Boundary Management 4 “My Husband Just Told Me . . .”: The Women’s Relationships with News 5 “Satan’s Tool to Draw Our Focus away from God”: The Women’s Perceptions about Media Technologies and Content 6 “We’d Rather Talk about Babies”: Sharing Behaviors among Amish and Ultra-Orthodox Women 7 “I Made It as a Boundary for Myself”: Concluding Discussion on the Women’s Boundary Management Appendix: The Specific Data and Statistics on the Amish and Ultra-Orthodox Women’s Media Consumption Acknowledgments Notes References Index

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Book SynopsisThis volume gathers an array of voices to tell the stories of Cleveland’s twentieth century Jewish community. Strong and stable after an often turbulent century, the Jews of Cleveland had both deep ties in the region and an evolving and dynamic commitment to Jewish life. The authors present the views and actions of community leaders and everyday Jews who embodied that commitment in their religious participation, educational efforts, philanthropic endeavors, and in their simple desire to live next to each other in the city’s eastern suburbs. The twentieth century saw the move of Cleveland’s Jews out of the center of the city, a move that only served to increase the density of Jewish life. The essays collected here draw heavily on local archival materials and present the area’s Jewish past within the context of American and American Jewish studies.Trade ReviewCleveland has played an out-sized role in American Jewish history. The essays in this book help to explain why. Many of the themes taken up in this volume illuminate the American Jewish experience as a whole. -- Jonathan D. Sarna * author of American Judaism: A History *""All those essays are informative, and if any of these areas coincide with your own interests, I will not hesitate to recommend these essays along with their voluminous footnotes. Their scholarship is undeniable." * San Diego Jewish World *"Taken together, these essays speak to the religious diversity of Cleveland Jews and to the ongoing significance of migration across national and municipal borders....One hopes that these essays will help lay the groundwork for more extensive studies of Cleveland Jewish life beyond the alphabet soup of Jewish organizations in the twentieth century." * Journal of Jewish Identities *"This book complements previous research on Midwestern Jewish communities well. It will be a useful read for scholars of urban Jewish history between the coasts, those in the local Cleveland community, and students of post-World War II Jewish history more broadly... I was wowed by the impressive collections of the WRHS and will refer back to the volume’s wonderfully rich and unique contributions to post-World War II Jewish history." -- Wendy F. Soltz * H-Net *Table of ContentsContents Foreword Stephen H. Hoffman Introduction: Cleveland and its Jews: New Perspectives on Communal History Eli Lederhendler Chapter 1: “A Link in the Great American Chain”: The Evolution of Jewish Orthodoxy in Cleveland to 1940 Ira Robinson Chapter 2: Jewish Philanthropy in Cleveland to 1990 David C. Hammack Chapter 3: Abraham Hayyim Friedland and the Context, Structures, and Content of Jewish Education Sylvia Abrams and Lifsa Schachter Chapter 4: Everyman vs. Superman: Harvey Pekar, Comics, and Cleveland Samantha Baskind Chapter 5: Ethnic Identity and Local Politics: Abba Hillel Silver as Community Leader and International Politician in Cleveland, 1940-1950 Zohar Segev Chapter 6: “She Will Be the Mary Poppins We Have Been Searching For”: The Rise of Feminism and Organizational Change in the Cleveland Section of the National Council of Jewish Women Mary McCune Chapter 7: Trepidation, Tolerance, and Turnover: Jewish-Black Relations in Cleveland Neighborhoods, 1920-1960 Todd Michney Chapter 8: Jewish Suburbanization and Jewish Presence in the “City without Jews” Mark Souther Chapter 9: Suburban Temple and the Creation of Postwar American Judaism Rachel Gordan Chapter 10: People-to-People: Cleveland’s Jewish Community and the Exodus of Soviet Jews Shaul Kelner Afterword Sean Martin Acknowledgments Notes on Contributors Index

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Book SynopsisContemporary mass media descriptions of Muslims often suggest that Islam and Muslims are fundamentally undemocratic. Policy-makers in the West have weaponized these descriptions in attempts to legitimize anti-Muslim right-wing policy developments across the West and in the United States in particular, from surveillance in the aftermath of 9/11 to the anti-Islamic travel ban of 2017. But are Muslims undemocratic? Ahmed Khanani argues that this is not the case. In All Politics are God's Politics, Khanani shows that in fact, the opposite holds true: for socially conservative, politically active Muslims (Islamists), democracy or dimuqrāṭiyya reflects and extends their religious values. By drawing on conversations with over 100 Islamists in Morocco, this book enables readers to understand and appreciate the significance of dimuqrāṭiyya as a concept alongside new prospects for Islam and democracy in the Arab Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Khanani's in-depth analysis of the Moroccan case brings these Islamists and their attending political views to the forefront. Trade Review"Scholars, journalists, and politicians routinely speak of 'democracy' around the world as if the meaning of this term were universally shared. Khanani shows with great flair and sensitivity how blinding this assumption is. Highly illuminating and methodologically exemplary." -- Frederic Schaffer * author of Elucidating Social Science Concepts: An Interpretivist Guide *"What if to act democratically is to follow the Prophet’s sunna? This book turns the literature on 'Islam and democracy' on its head. Drawing on ordinary language philosophy Khanani explores the political-religious thought of Moroccan Muslim activists to appreciate contemporary democratic political thought and practice in an Islamic register. An extraordinary listener and innovative thinker, Khanani charts new terrain in decolonial studies, religion and politics, Islamic studies, and the study of Moroccan and MENA politics." -- Elizabeth Shakman Hurd * author of Beyond Religious Freedom: The New Global Politics of Religion *"Ahmed Khanani’s book is a most welcome contribution to the debate on religion and politics." * Perspectives on Politics *Table of ContentsContents Note on Names Introduction 1. Ordinary Language Philosophy and the Study of Democracy 2. islāmiyūn, Islam, Democracy 3. Institutions as Bridges 4. On Democracy and Substantive Goods 5. Democracy at Work Epilogue Appendix 1 Appendix 2 Glossary Bibliography Acknowledgments Index

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Book SynopsisContemporary mass media descriptions of Muslims often suggest that Islam and Muslims are fundamentally undemocratic. Policy-makers in the West have weaponized these descriptions in attempts to legitimize anti-Muslim right-wing policy developments across the West and in the United States in particular, from surveillance in the aftermath of 9/11 to the anti-Islamic travel ban of 2017. But are Muslims undemocratic? Ahmed Khanani argues that this is not the case. In All Politics are God's Politics, Khanani shows that in fact, the opposite holds true: for socially conservative, politically active Muslims (Islamists), democracy or dimuqrāṭiyya reflects and extends their religious values. By drawing on conversations with over 100 Islamists in Morocco, this book enables readers to understand and appreciate the significance of dimuqrāṭiyya as a concept alongside new prospects for Islam and democracy in the Arab Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Khanani's in-depth analysis of the Moroccan case brings these Islamists and their attending political views to the forefront. Trade Review"Scholars, journalists, and politicians routinely speak of 'democracy' around the world as if the meaning of this term were universally shared. Khanani shows with great flair and sensitivity how blinding this assumption is. Highly illuminating and methodologically exemplary." -- Frederic Schaffer * author of Elucidating Social Science Concepts: An Interpretivist Guide *"What if to act democratically is to follow the Prophet’s sunna? This book turns the literature on 'Islam and democracy' on its head. Drawing on ordinary language philosophy Khanani explores the political-religious thought of Moroccan Muslim activists to appreciate contemporary democratic political thought and practice in an Islamic register. An extraordinary listener and innovative thinker, Khanani charts new terrain in decolonial studies, religion and politics, Islamic studies, and the study of Moroccan and MENA politics." -- Elizabeth Shakman Hurd * author of Beyond Religious Freedom: The New Global Politics of Religion *"Ahmed Khanani’s book is a most welcome contribution to the debate on religion and politics." * Perspectives on Politics *"Scholars, journalists, and politicians routinely speak of 'democracy' around the world as if the meaning of this term were universally shared. Khanani shows with great flair and sensitivity how blinding this assumption is. Highly illuminating and methodologically exemplary." -- Frederic Schaffer * author of Elucidating Social Science Concepts: An Interpretivist Guide *"What if to act democratically is to follow the Prophet’s sunna? This book turns the literature on 'Islam and democracy' on its head. Drawing on ordinary language philosophy Khanani explores the political-religious thought of Moroccan Muslim activists to appreciate contemporary democratic political thought and practice in an Islamic register. An extraordinary listener and innovative thinker, Khanani charts new terrain in decolonial studies, religion and politics, Islamic studies, and the study of Moroccan and MENA politics." -- Elizabeth Shakman Hurd * author of Beyond Religious Freedom: The New Global Politics of Religion *"Ahmed Khanani’s book is a most welcome contribution to the debate on religion and politics." * Perspectives on Politics *Table of ContentsContents Note on Names Introduction 1. Ordinary Language Philosophy and the Study of Democracy 2. islāmiyūn, Islam, Democracy 3. Institutions as Bridges 4. On Democracy and Substantive Goods 5. Democracy at Work Epilogue Appendix 1 Appendix 2 Glossary Bibliography Acknowledgments Index

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Book SynopsisStained Glass Ceilings speaks to the intersection of gender and power within American evangelicalism by examining the formation of evangelical leaders in two seminary communities.Southern Baptist Theological Seminary inspires a vision of human flourishing through gender differentiation and male headship. Men practice “Godly Manhood," and are taught to act as the "head" of a family, while their wives are socialized into codes of “Godly Womanhood" that prioritize prescribed gender roles. This power structure privileges men yet offers agency to their wives in women-centered spaces and through marital relationships. Meanwhile, Asbury Theological Seminary promises freedom from gendered hierarchies. Appealing to a story of gender-blind equality, Asbury welcomes women into classrooms, administrative offices, and pulpits. But the institution’s construction of egalitarianism obscures the fact that women are rewarded for adapting to an existing male-centered status quo rather than for developing their own voices as women. Featuring high-profile evangelicals such as Al Mohler and Owen Strachan, along with young seminarians poised to lead the movement in the coming decades, Stained Glass Ceilings illustrates the liabilities of white evangelical toolkits and argues that evangelical culture upholds male-centered structures of power even as it facilitates meaning and identity.Trade ReviewIn this remarkably perceptive study, Lisa Weaver Swartz shows us precisely how male power is perpetuated and embodied in white evangelical institutions. She describes this process in captivating detail, both at the complementarian stronghold of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and at egalitarian Asbury Seminary, and the result is an altogether fresh, sometimes surprising, and always deeply illuminating examination of gender, power, and American evangelicalism. -- Kristin Kobes Du Mez * author of Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation *"Meticulously researched and beautifully written, this book takes readers into the hallways and classrooms of places that shape – through what is said and what is practiced – the lives of evangelical pastors. Both the differences between the seminaries and their similarities may surprise you. How they create gendered religious worlds is worth knowing about." -- Nancy Ammerman * author of Baptist Battles: Social Change and Religious Conflict in the Southern Baptist Convention *"In a brilliant and compelling narrative, Lisa Weaver-Swartz shows how patriarchy persists and adapts even in spaces supportive of women in ministry. Her research explains why women defend complementarianism as well as why the gender-blindness of egalitarianism fails. Regardless of your theology, you should read this book. I promise it will help you better understand the plight of evangelical women." -- Beth Allison Barr * author of The Making of Biblical Womanhood: How the Subjugation of Women Became Gospel Truth *In this remarkably perceptive study, Lisa Weaver Swartz shows us precisely how male power is perpetuated and embodied in white evangelical institutions. She describes this process in captivating detail, both at the complementarian stronghold of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and at egalitarian Asbury Seminary, and the result is an altogether fresh, sometimes surprising, and always deeply illuminating examination of gender, power, and American evangelicalism. -- Kristin Kobes Du Mez * author of Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation *"Meticulously researched and beautifully written, this book takes readers into the hallways and classrooms of places that shape – through what is said and what is practiced – the lives of evangelical pastors. Both the differences between the seminaries and their similarities may surprise you. How they create gendered religious worlds is worth knowing about." -- Nancy Ammerman * author of Baptist Battles: Social Change and Religious Conflict in the Southern Baptist Convention *"In a brilliant and compelling narrative, Lisa Weaver-Swartz shows how patriarchy persists and adapts even in spaces supportive of women in ministry. Her research explains why women defend complementarianism as well as why the gender-blindness of egalitarianism fails. Regardless of your theology, you should read this book. I promise it will help you better understand the plight of evangelical women." -- Beth Allison Barr * author of The Making of Biblical Womanhood: How the Subjugation of Women Became Gospel Truth *Table of ContentsIntroduction 1 Male and Female: Gendered Discourse at Southern Seminary 2 Beard Oil and Fine China: Embodied Practice at Southern Seminary3 All One in Christ: Gender-Blind Discourse at Asbury Seminary 4 Men, Churchwomen, and Wives: Embodied Practice at Asbury Seminary 5 Conclusion IndexAbout the Author

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Book SynopsisWhen Cowboys Come Home: Veterans, Authenticity, and Manhood in Post–World War II America is a cultural and intellectual history of the 1950s that argues that World War II led to a breakdown of traditional markers of manhood and opened space for veterans to reimagine what masculinity could mean. One particularly important strand of thought, which influenced later anxieties over “other-direction” and “conformity,” argued that masculinity was not defined by traits like bravery, stoicism, and competitiveness but instead by authenticity, shared camaraderie, and emotional honesty. To elucidate this challenge to traditional “frontiersman” masculinity, Aaron George presents three intellectual biographies of important veterans who became writers after the war: James Jones, the writer of the monumentally important war novel From Here to Eternity; Stewart Stern, one of the most important screenwriters of the fifties and sixties, including for Rebel without a Cause; and Edward Field, a bohemian poet who used poetry to explore his love for other men. Through their lives, George shows how wartime disabused men of the notion that war was inherently a brave or heroic enterprise and how the alienation they felt upon their return led them to value the authentic connections they made with other men during the war. Trade Review"A fascinating story of three writers—veterans of World War II in search of authenticity." -- James B. Gilbert * author of Men in the Middle: Searching for Masculinity in the 1950s *"Beautifully written and sensitively wrought, When Cowboys Come Home rejects the images of WWII veterans as pugilists or Organization Men. Through neglected figures, including James Jones and Edward Fields, Aaron George audaciously insists that vets took from their war experience a thirst for male bonding, camaraderie, and intense relationships." -- David Steigerwald * author of The Sixties and the End of Modern America *Table of ContentsPreface: What We Bring Home Introduction: Hemingway's Shadow Part I Cowboys on the Wartime Frontier 1 Never a Secondhand Man: James Jones and the Perils of Homecoming 2 The Big Noise: Stewart Stern's Long March to Gar Naruah 3 The "Age of Heroes": Edward Field and Gay Authenticity in the Midst of War Part II Coming Home 4 The Hipster, the Prophet, and the Angel: Writers on the Edge of Eternity 5 The Men Who Came Running: James Jones and the Handy Writers' Colony 6 Waiting for Peter Pan: Adulthood and How to Attain It 7 The Continuing Adventures of Icarus: Edward Field's Life in the Postwar Closet Conclusion: A Nation of Gray Flannel Men Acknowledgments Notes Index

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Book SynopsisMovie-Made Jews focuses on a rich, usable American Jewish cinematic tradition. This tradition includes fiction and documentary films that make Jews through antisemitism, Holocaust indirection, and discontent with assimilation. It prominently features the unapologetic assertion of Jewishness, queerness, and alliances across race and religion. Author Helene Meyers shows that as we go to our local theater, attend a Jewish film festival, play a DVD, watch streaming videos, Jewishness becomes part of the multicultural mosaic rather than collapsing into a generic whiteness or being represented as a life apart. This engagingly-written book demonstrates that a Jewish movie is neither just a movie nor for Jews only. With incisive analysis, Movie-Made Jews challenges the assumption that American Jewish cinema is a cinema of impoverishment and assimilation. While it’s a truism that Jews make movies, this book brings into focus the diverse ways movies make Jews. Trade Review"Southwestern English Professor Publishes Book on American Jewish Cinematic Tradition: McManis University Chair Helene Meyers is the author of Movie-Made Jews"— Southwestern.edu New Books: Movie-Made Jews: An American Tradition by Helene Meyers— Jewish Book World "An engaging, lively, and important contribution to Jewish film studies."— Elyce Rae Helford, author of What Price Hollywood?: Gender and Sex in the Films of George Cukor "Meyer’s research shows that accurate cultural representation is diverse representation, which challenges stereotypes, while providing viewers insight into Jewish lives or allowing viewers to identify with the Jewish characters they see on their television screens." — The Phi Beta Kappa Society "Behind this eminently readable survey of American Jewish film is a very smart intervention. Meyers broadens the well-worn examination of Jews in film to include not just Jewish representations or Jews in the production process. She makes a solid case for adding the Jewish audience as part of the equation for what makes Jewish film Jewish."— Steven Carr, author of Hollywood and Anti-Semitism: A Cultural History up to World War II "Romeo Juliet in Yiddish" an excerpt of Movie-Made Jews by Helene Meyers— Lilith "Forthcoming Jewish Books for Fall 2021"— ErikaDreifus.com "Well-researched and presents some intriguing ideas for thought and discussion." — The American Israelite "Those with a serious interest in film will definitely want to add this book to their shelves. Other readers may also find themselves intrigued to learn more about their favorite films, or enjoy reading about films with which they are not familiar."— The Reporter Episode 21: Hollywood, Movies, and American Jews: interview with Helene Meyers— The Revealer "Too Jewish for Hollywood? An excerpt from the book Movie-Made Jews: An American Tradition"— The Revealer "Jewish Literary Links" June 3 round-up— ErikaDreifus.com What Makes a Movie Jewish? Alma chats with author and professor Helene Meyers about the profound impact Jewish movies can have on our identities— Hey Alma New Books Network: New Books in Jewish Studies interview with Helene Meyers— New Books Network: New Books in Jewish Studies "By focusing on very clear, specific, and discrete thematic groupings, Meyers has written a book that speaks volumes in a small package. Through the choices she made, the way she arranged them, and the fascinating analysis and commentary she layers on top, Meyers has produced a book that is a must-have for scholars of film, Jewish studies, cultural studies, and a range of other disciplines. She has created a roadmap text that anyone could use to construct a new course on Jewish American film or revamp an existing course. Jews may make films and films may make Jews, but Meyers has made both into something special." — Jenny Caplan, Journal of Religion and Film "A must-read for any Jewish cinephiles." — Hey Alma "A significant and lively testament to the vitality of American Jewish cinema and its relationship to Jewish life in America."— David Desser, co-author of American Jewish Filmmakers "Meyers makes the important observation that Jewish film festivals represent and make communities of Jews."— Jewish Herald-VoiceTable of Contents1 Introduction: Making Jews Onscreen and Off 2 Looking at Antisemites and Jews Gentleman’s Agreement (1947) School Ties (1992) The Believer (2001) Protocols of Zion (2005) 3 Looking at the Shoah from a Distance The Pawnbroker (1964) Enemies, A Love Story (1989) Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989) Barton Fink (1991) and A Serious Man (2009) 4 Focusing on Assimilation and Its Discontents The Way We Were (1973) Next Stop, Greenwich Village (1976) Crossing Delancey (1988) Avalon (1990) and Liberty Heights (1999) 5 Assertively Jewish Onscreen Whatever Works (2009) Fading Gigolo (2013) Romeo and Juliet in Yiddish (2010) Keeping Up with the Steins (2006) Wish I Was Here (2014) 6 Queering the Jewish Gaze I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry (2007) and Kissing Jessica Stein (2001) The Times of Harvey Milk (1984) and Milk (2008) Treyf (1998) Trembling Before G-d (2001) Hineini: Coming Out in a Jewish High School (2005) 7 Cinematic Alliances Heart of Stone (2009) Crime after Crime (2011) Zebrahead (1992) Arranged (2007) David (2011) 8 Epilogue: Cinematic Continuity and Change through a Feminist Lens 93Queen (2018) RBG (2018) Acknowledgments Filmography Notes Selected Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisMovie-Made Jews focuses on a rich, usable American Jewish cinematic tradition. This tradition includes fiction and documentary films that make Jews through antisemitism, Holocaust indirection, and discontent with assimilation. It prominently features the unapologetic assertion of Jewishness, queerness, and alliances across race and religion. Author Helene Meyers shows that as we go to our local theater, attend a Jewish film festival, play a DVD, watch streaming videos, Jewishness becomes part of the multicultural mosaic rather than collapsing into a generic whiteness or being represented as a life apart. This engagingly-written book demonstrates that a Jewish movie is neither just a movie nor for Jews only. With incisive analysis, Movie-Made Jews challenges the assumption that American Jewish cinema is a cinema of impoverishment and assimilation. While it’s a truism that Jews make movies, this book brings into focus the diverse ways movies make Jews. Trade Review"Behind this eminently readable survey of American Jewish film is a very smart intervention. Meyers broadens the well-worn examination of Jews in film to include not just Jewish representations or Jews in the production process. She makes a solid case for adding the Jewish audience as part of the equation for what makes Jewish film Jewish." -- Steven Carr * author of Hollywood and Anti-Semitism: A Cultural History up to World War II *"A significant and lively testament to the vitality of American Jewish cinema and its relationship to Jewish life in America." -- David Desser * co-author of American Jewish Filmmakers *"An engaging, lively, and important contribution to Jewish film studies." -- Elyce Rae Helford * author of What Price Hollywood?: Gender and Sex in the Films of George Cukor *"Jewish Literary Links" June 3 round-up * ErikaDreifus.com *"Forthcoming Jewish Books for Fall 2021" * ErikaDreifus.com *"Southwestern English Professor Publishes Book on American Jewish Cinematic Tradition: McManis University Chair Helene Meyers is the author of Movie-Made Jews" * Southwestern.edu *"Meyers makes the important observation that Jewish film festivals represent and make communities of Jews." * Jewish Herald-Voice *"A must-read for any Jewish cinephiles." * Hey Alma *What Makes a Movie Jewish? Alma chats with author and professor Helene Meyers about the profound impact Jewish movies can have on our identities * Hey Alma *"Those with a serious interest in film will definitely want to add this book to their shelves. Other readers may also find themselves intrigued to learn more about their favorite films, or enjoy reading about films with which they are not familiar." * The Reporter *New Books: Movie-Made Jews: An American Tradition by Helene Meyers * Jewish Book World *"Romeo & Juliet in Yiddish" an excerpt of Movie-Made Jews by Helene Meyers * Lilith *"Well-researched and presents some intriguing ideas for thought and discussion." * The American Israelite *"Meyer’s research shows that accurate cultural representation is diverse representation, which challenges stereotypes, while providing viewers insight into Jewish lives or allowing viewers to identify with the Jewish characters they see on their television screens." * The Phi Beta Kappa Society *Episode 21: Hollywood, Movies, and American Jews: interview with Helene Meyers * The Revealer *"Too Jewish for Hollywood? ?An excerpt from the book Movie-Made Jews: An American Tradition" * The Revealer *New Books Network: New Books in Jewish Studies interview with Helene Meyers * New Books Network: New Books in Jewish Studies *"Behind this eminently readable survey of American Jewish film is a very smart intervention. Meyers broadens the well-worn examination of Jews in film to include not just Jewish representations or Jews in the production process. She makes a solid case for adding the Jewish audience as part of the equation for what makes Jewish film Jewish." -- Steven Carr * author of Hollywood and Anti-Semitism: A Cultural History up to World War II *"A significant and lively testament to the vitality of American Jewish cinema and its relationship to Jewish life in America." -- David Desser * co-author of American Jewish Filmmakers *"An engaging, lively, and important contribution to Jewish film studies." -- Elyce Rae Helford * author of What Price Hollywood?: Gender and Sex in the Films of George Cukor *"Jewish Literary Links" June 3 round-up * ErikaDreifus.com *"Forthcoming Jewish Books for Fall 2021" * ErikaDreifus.com *"Southwestern English Professor Publishes Book on American Jewish Cinematic Tradition: McManis University Chair Helene Meyers is the author of Movie-Made Jews" * Southwestern.edu *"Meyers makes the important observation that Jewish film festivals represent and make communities of Jews." * Jewish Herald-Voice *"A must-read for any Jewish cinephiles." * Hey Alma *What Makes a Movie Jewish? Alma chats with author and professor Helene Meyers about the profound impact Jewish movies can have on our identities * Hey Alma *"Those with a serious interest in film will definitely want to add this book to their shelves. Other readers may also find themselves intrigued to learn more about their favorite films, or enjoy reading about films with which they are not familiar." * The Reporter *New Books: Movie-Made Jews: An American Tradition by Helene Meyers * Jewish Book World *"Romeo Juliet in Yiddish" an excerpt of Movie-Made Jews by Helene Meyers * Lilith *"Well-researched and presents some intriguing ideas for thought and discussion." * The American Israelite *"Meyer’s research shows that accurate cultural representation is diverse representation, which challenges stereotypes, while providing viewers insight into Jewish lives or allowing viewers to identify with the Jewish characters they see on their television screens." * The Phi Beta Kappa Society *Episode 21: Hollywood, Movies, and American Jews: interview with Helene Meyers * The Revealer *"Too Jewish for Hollywood? An excerpt from the book Movie-Made Jews: An American Tradition" * The Revealer *New Books Network: New Books in Jewish Studies interview with Helene Meyers * New Books Network: New Books in Jewish Studies *"By focusing on very clear, specific, and discrete thematic groupings, Meyers has written a book that speaks volumes in a small package. Through the choices she made, the way she arranged them, and the fascinating analysis and commentary she layers on top, Meyers has produced a book that is a must-have for scholars of film, Jewish studies, cultural studies, and a range of other disciplines. She has created a roadmap text that anyone could use to construct a new course on Jewish American film or revamp an existing course. Jews may make films and films may make Jews, but Meyers has made both into something special." -- Jenny Caplan * Journal of Religion and Film *Table of Contents1 Introduction: Making Jews Onscreen and Off 2 Looking at Antisemites and JewsGentleman’s Agreement (1947)School Ties (1992)The Believer (2001)Protocols of Zion (2005) 3 Looking at the Shoah from a DistanceThe Pawnbroker (1964)Enemies, A Love Story (1989)Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989)Barton Fink (1991) and A Serious Man (2009) 4 Focusing on Assimilation and Its DiscontentsThe Way We Were (1973)Next Stop, Greenwich Village (1976)Crossing Delancey (1988)Avalon (1990) and Liberty Heights (1999) 5 Assertively Jewish OnscreenWhatever Works (2009)Fading Gigolo (2013)Romeo and Juliet in Yiddish (2010)Keeping Up with the Steins (2006)Wish I Was Here (2014) 6 Queering the Jewish GazeI Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry (2007) and Kissing Jessica Stein (2001)The Times of Harvey Milk (1984) and Milk (2008) Treyf (1998) Trembling Before G-d (2001)Hineini: Coming Out in a Jewish High School (2005) 7 Cinematic AlliancesHeart of Stone (2009)Crime after Crime (2011)Zebrahead (1992)Arranged (2007)David (2011) 8 Epilogue: Cinematic Continuity and Change through a Feminist Lens93Queen (2018)RBG (2018) Acknowledgments Filmography Notes Selected Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisEvery year thousands of foreign-born Filipino and Indian nurses immigrate to the United States. Despite being well trained and desperately needed, they enter the country at a time, not unlike the past, when the American social and political climate is once again increasingly unwelcoming to them as immigrants. Drawing on rich ethnographic and survey data, collected over a four-year period, this study explores the role Catholicism plays in shaping the professional and community lives of foreign-born Filipino and Indian American nurses in the face of these challenges, while working at a Veterans hospital. Their stories provide unique insights into the often-unseen roles race, religion and gender play in the daily lives of new immigrants employed in American healthcare. In many ways, these nurses find themselves foreign in more ways than just their nativity. Seeing nursing as a religious calling, they care for their patients, both at the hospital and in the wider community, with a sense of divine purpose but must also confront the cultural tensions and disconnects between how they were raised and trained in another country and the legal separation of church and state. How they cope with and engage these tensions and disconnects plays an important role in not only shaping how they see themselves as Catholic nurses but their place in the new American story. Trade ReviewThis book is important for its examination of the role of Catholicism within the context of nursing in a U.S. government hospital. It will capture the attention of many audiences as we think about what it means to be Catholic and Asian American in the United States today. How Filipino and Indian American nurses have influenced nursing in America, and how they, in turn, have been challenged by American culture are vital issues of study. -- Barbra Mann Wall * author of American Catholic Hospitals: A Century of Changing Markets and Missions *"Cherry does an excellent job bringing us inside the experiences of nurses working at the Houston VA and putting their work there—and the VA itself—in broader historical contexts. The material gathered and shared is richly descriptive and informative. Every chapter made me think about something I had not before, and to consider the experiences of healthcare providers in new ways." -- Wendy Cadge * author of Religion on the Edge: De-centering and Re-centering the Sociology of Religion *This book is important for its examination of the role of Catholicism within the context of nursing in a U.S. government hospital. It will capture the attention of many audiences as we think about what it means to be Catholic and Asian American in the United States today. How Filipino and Indian American nurses have influenced nursing in America, and how they, in turn, have been challenged by American culture are vital issues of study. -- Barbra Mann Wall * author of American Catholic Hospitals: A Century of Changing Markets and Missions *"Cherry does an excellent job bringing us inside the experiences of nurses working at the Houston VA and putting their work there—and the VA itself—in broader historical contexts. The material gathered and shared is richly descriptive and informative. Every chapter made me think about something I had not before, and to consider the experiences of healthcare providers in new ways." -- Wendy Cadge * author of Religion on the Edge: De-centering and Re-centering the Sociology of Religion *Table of ContentsChapter One: Veterans and a Crisis of Care Chapter Two: Colonialism, Christian Culture and Nursing Care Chapter Three: New American Battlefields Chapter Four: Understanding and Coping with the Trauma of War Chapter Five: Faith and the Practice of Care Chapter Six: Extending Health and Care to Community Chapter Seven: Who Will Care for America?

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Book SynopsisThis book analyzes the different conceptions of authenticity that are behind conflicts over who and what should be recognized as authentically Jewish. Although the concept of authenticity has been around for several centuries, it became a central focus for Jews since existentialist Jean-Paul Sartre raised the question in the 1940s. Building on the work of Sartre, later Jewish thinkers, philosophers, anthropologists, and cultural theorists, the book offers a model of Jewish authenticity that seeks to balance history and tradition, creative freedom and innovation, and the importance of recognition among different groups within an increasingly multicultural Jewish community. Author Stuart Z. Charmé explores how debates over authenticity and struggles for recognition are a key to understanding a wide range of controversies between Orthodox and liberal Jews, Zionist and diaspora Jews, white Jews and Jews of color, as well as the status of intermarried and messianic Jews, and the impact of Jewish genetics. In addition, it discusses how and when various cultural practices and traditions such as klezmer music, Israeli folk dance, Jewish yoga and meditation, and others are recognized as authentically Jewish, or not. Table of ContentsIntroduction Part 1: Theoretical Perspectives on Jewish Authenticity Chapter 1: The Changing Faces of Jewish Authenticity Chapter 2: Recognition and Authenticity: From Sartre to Multiculturalism Part 2: Authentically Jewish Religion Chapter 3: Orthodoxy and the Authentic Jew Chapter 4: Reforming Tradition and the Spiritual Quest Chapter 5: Authentic Experience and Spirituality: Meditation, Yoga, Kabbalah Chapter 6: The Messianic Heresy and the Struggle for Authenticity Part 3: Authentic Jewish Peoplehood Chapter 7: Creating Authentic Jewish Culture in Israel Chapter 8: Shtetl Authenticity: From “Fiddler” to the Revival of Klezmer Chapter 9: Becoming Jewish: Intermarriage and Conversion Chapter 10: Authentically Jewish Genes Part 4: Struggles for Recognition and Authentication Chapter 11: Lost Jewish Tribes in Ethiopia Chapter 12: Black Jews in the United States Chapter 13: Crypto-Jews of the Southwest Chapter 14: Newly-Found Jews and the Regimes of Recognition Conclusion Bibliography About the Author

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Book SynopsisPowerful Devices studies spiritual warfare performances as an apparatus for disestablishing structures of power and knowledge, and establishing righteousness in their stead. Drawing on performance studies’ emphasis on radicality and breaking of social norms as devices of social transformation, the book demonstrates how Christian groups with dominant cultural power but who perceive themselves as embattled wield the ideas of performance activism. Combining religious studies with ethnography, Powerful Devices explores Nigerian Pentecostals and US Evangelicals’ praxis of transnational spiritual warfare. By closely studying spiritual warfare prayers as a “device,” Powerful Devices shows how the rituals of prayer enable an apprehension of time, paradigms of self-enhancement, and the subversion of politics and authority. A critical intervention, Powerful Devices explores charismatic Christianity’s relationship to science and secular authority, technology and temporality, neoliberalism, and reactionary ideology.Trade Review"A dazzling portrait of the contemporary Nigerian Pentecostal spiritual warfare prayer “showdown” with 'the new demons that modernity has vomited.' Adelakun shows how the rise of Pentecostalism is imbricated with neoliberalism, giving rise to new subjectivities, identities, and imaginaries ready for apocalyptic battle." -- Elizabeth McAlister * author of Rara! Vodou, Power and Performance in Haiti and its Diaspora *"Powerful Devices provides an original, nuanced counterpoint to prevailing scholarship on Pentecostal Christianity in Nigeria. With deep insights into the performative nature of prayer, Abimbola Adelakun charts a new course for understanding Pentecostalism’s growth in Nigeria and beyond that will continue to shape the field for years to come." -- Jacob K. Olupona * author of City of 201 Gods: Ilé-Ifè in Time, Space, and the Imagination *Table of ContentsPrefaceIntroduction: Spiritual Warriors: Powerful Devices and the Devices of PowerChapter 1: Aborting Satanic Pregnancies: Prayer as Apocalyptic DevicesChapter 2: Rehearsing Authority: Spiritual Warriors as God’s Human WeaponsChapter 3: The Noisome Pestilence: COVID-19 Pandemic and Conspirituality of “Fake Science”Chapter 4: Churches Going Virtual: Empty Auditoriums and the Essential Services of PrayerConclusion: Jesus Has WonAcknowledgmentsBibliographyIndex

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Book Synopsis

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