Description
Book SynopsisYou are invited to spend a year with the inspirational words, ideas, and counsel of the great twentieth-century thinker Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan, through his meditations on the fifty-four weekly Torah portions and eleven Jewish holidays.
Trade Review"The author . . . [hopes that his work] 'will stimulate reader contemplation, elicit personal reflections that further illustrate or develop the ideas in this book, and motivate readers to make our tradition's profound teachings ever more meaningful and impactful in their own lives.'
A Year with Mordechai Kaplan does just that, while at the same time sharing the wisdom, passion, and insights that Kaplan can continue to offer us into the next phase of Jewish life."—Jonathan Fass,
Jewish Book Council"Mordecai Kaplan's illuminating commentary based on Jewish tradition and his own life experiences give us new wisdom. Rabbi Reuben explores Kaplan's wide-ranging thought, Jewish religious experience, and human experience in a way that is clear and emotionally sensitive."—
Reviews by Amos Lassen"Rabbi Reuben’s commentary makes for wonderful Shabbat reading—inviting us to engage with Torah, Kaplan and contemporary human experience in ways that are nourishing, optimistic and inspire us with hope."—Elsie Stern,
Reconstructing Judaism“There is no greater sage than Mordecai Kaplan to walk us into an appreciation of how religion can add depth and insight to the experience of modernity, and no rabbi with greater sensitivity to guide us along the way than Steven Carr Reuben. Newcomers to Kaplan and longtime aficionados alike will revel in spending a year with Mordecai Kaplan. Relying on the spirit and smarts of these two rabbis not only enlightens us but elevates us.”—Rabbi Bradley Shavit Artson, dean of the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies, American Jewish University
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A Year with Mordecai Kaplan is inspirational. It reminds me of a less mystical Larry Kushner and a more anecdotal Harold Kushner.”—Rabbi Arnold Rachlis, University Synagogue, Irvine, California
“Rabbi Steven Carr Reuben’s selection of insightful passages from the writings of Mordecai Kaplan and illuminating commentary from Jewish tradition and his own life experiences generate a treasure trove of wisdom to delight the mind and move the heart.
A Year With Mordecai Kaplan is a spiritual gift!”—Rabbi David Ellenson, chancellor of Hebrew Union College–Jewish Institute of Religion
“As Steven Reuben probes Torah, Kaplan’s wide-ranging thought, Jewish religious experience, and human experience in wonderfully clear and often penetrating reflections, Reuben and Kaplan together awaken our desire to be ‘champions of holiness.’”—Ellen Davis, Amos Ragan Kearns Professor of Bible and Practical Theology, Duke Divinity School
Table of ContentsForeword, by Rabbi David A. Teutsch
Acknowledgments
Introduction
1. Genesis (Bere’shit)
Bere’shit: Fulfillment
Noaḥ: Good Enough
Lekh Lekha: Purpose
Va-yera’: Interconnectedness
Ḥayyei Sarah: Lovingkindness
Toledot: Family
Va-yetse’: Seeking
Va-yishlaḥ: God-Wrestling
Va-yeshev: Thoughtlessness
Mikkets: Dreams
Va-yiggash: Destiny
Va-yeḥi: Appreciation
2. Exodus (Shemot)
Shemot: Revelation
Va-’era’: Mercy
Bo’: Hardened Heart
Be-shallaḥ: Action
Yitro: Self-Interest
Mishpatim: Human Dignity
Terumah: Indwelling
Tetsavveh: Light
Ki Tissa’: Giving
Va-yak’hel: Community
Pekudei: Building
3. Leviticus (Va-yikra’)
Va-yikra’: Prayer
Tsav: Firelight
Shemini: Godliness
Tazriaʿ: Witness
Metsoraʿ: Defilement
’Aḥarei Mot: Scapegoat
Kedoshim: Holiness
’Emor: Hunger
Be-har: Oppression
Be-ḥukkotai: Free Will
4. Numbers (Be-midbar)
Be-midbar: Wilderness
Naso’: Blessings
Be-haʿalotekha: Humility
Shelaḥ-Lekha: Perception
Koraḥ: Rebellion
Ḥukkat: Anger
Balak: Dwellings
Pinḥas: Women
Mattot: Vows
Maseʿei: Vengeance
5. Deuteronomy (Devarim)
Devarim: Discovery
Va-’etḥannan: Oneness
ʿEkev: Gratitude
Re’eh: Choice
Shofetim: Justice
Ki Tetse’: Indifference
Ki Tavo’: Experiencing God
Nitsavim: Generations
Va-yelekh: Teaching
Ha’azinu: Rock
Ve-zo’t ha-berakhah: Divine Kiss
6. Holidays
Rosh Hashanah: Sovereignty of God
Yom Kippur: Transformation
Sukkot: Gratitude
Shemini Atzeret: Sharing the Divine Presence
Simḥat Torah: Celebration
Hanukkah: Rededication
Purim: Resilience
Pesach: Freedom
Yom ha-Shoah: Living in the Shadow
Yom ha-Atzmaut: Building a Just Nation
Shavuot: Torah
Epigraph Source Acknowledgments
Notes
Bibliography
