Best of
Judaism

1994

Jewish Wisdom


Joseph Telushkin - 1994
    In Jewish Wisdom, Rabbi Telushkin, the author of the highly acclaimed Jewish Literacy, weaves together a tapestry of stories from the Bible and Talmud, and the insights of Jewish commentators and writers from Maimonides, Rashi, and Hillel to Einstein, Isaac Bashevis Singer, and Elie Wiesel. A richer source of crucial life lessons would be hard to imagine.Accompanying this extraordinary compilation is Teluslikins compelling commentary, which reveals how these texts continue to instruct and challenge Jewsand all people concerned with leading ethical livestoday As he discusses these texts, Rabbi Telushkin addresses issues of fundamental interest to modern readers: how to live with honesty and integrity in an often dishonest world; how to care for the sick and dying; how to teach children to respect both themselvesand others, how to understand and confront such great tragedies as antisemitism. and the Holocaust; what God wants from humankind. Within Jewish Wisdom's ninety chapters the reader will find extended sections illuminating Jewish perspectives on sex, romance, and marriage, what kind of belief in God a Jew can have after the Holocaust, how to use language ethically, the conflicting views of the Bible and Talmud on the death penalty, and much, much more.Jewish Wisdom adds a new dimension to the many widely read contemporary books that retell the stones and reveal the essence of classic religious and secular literature. Possibly the most far-ranging volume of stories and quotations from Jewish texts, Jewish Wisdom will itself become a classic, a book that not only has the capacity to transform how you view the world, but one that well might change how you choose to live your life.

All Rivers Run to the Sea


Elie Wiesel - 1994
    In this first volume of his two-volume autobiography, Wiesel takes us from his childhood memories of a traditional and loving Jewish family in the Romanian village of Sighet through the horrors of Auschwitz and Buchenwald and the years of spiritual struggle, to his emergence as a witness for the Holocaust's martyrs and survivors and for the State of Israel, and as a spokesman for humanity.  With 16 pages of black-and-white photographs."From the abyss of the death camps Wiesel has come as a messenger to mankind--not with a message of hate and revenge, but with one of brotherhood and atonement."--From the citation for the 1986 Nobel Peace Prize

Jewish Cooking in America


Joan Nathan - 1994
    They come from both Sephardic and Ashkenazic Jews who settled all over America, bringing with them a wide variety of regional flavors, changing and adapting their traditional dishes according to what was available in the new country.What makes Jewish cooking unique is the ancient dietary laws that govern the selection, preparation, and consumption of observant Jews. Food plays a major part in rituals past and present, binding family and community. It is this theme that informs every part of Joan Nathan’s warm and lively text. Every dish has a story–from the cholents (the long-cooked rich meat stews) and kugels (vegetable and noodle puddings) prepared in advance for the Sabbath, to the potato latkes (served with maple syrup in Vermont and goat cheese in California) and gefilte fish (made with white fish in the Midwest, salmon in the Northwest, haddock in New England, and shad in Maryland). Joan Nathan tells us how lox and bagels and Lindy’s cheesecake became household words, and how American products like Crisco, cream cheese, and Jell-O changed forever Jewish home cooking.The recipes and stories come from every part of the U.S.A. They are seasoned with Syrian, Moroccan, Greek, German, Polish, Georgian, and Alsatian flavors, and they represent traditional foods tailored for today’s tastes as well as some of the nouvelle creations of Jewish chefs from New York to Tuscon. When Jewish Cooking in America was first published in 1994, it won both the IACP / Julia Child Cookbook Award for Best Cookbook of the Year and the James Beard Award for Best Food of the Americas Cookbook. Now, more than ever, it stands firmly established as an American culinary classic.

Torah Commentary: Genesis (JPS Torah Commentary)


Nahum M. Sarna - 1994
    Each volume is the work of a scholar who stands at the pinnacle of his field. Every page contains the complete traditional Hebrew text, with cantillation notes, the JPS translation of the Holy Scriptures, aliyot breaks, Masoretic notes, and commentary by a distinguished Hebrew Bible scholar, integrating classical and modern sources. Each volume also contains supplementary essays that elaborate upon key words and themes, a glossary of commentators and sources, extensive bibliographic notes, and maps.

A Book of Psalms: Selected and Adapted from the Hebrew


Stephen Mitchell - 1994
    From the author of The Gospel According to Jesus comes a new adaptation of the psalms Leading biblical scholar and translator Stephen Mitchell translates fifty of the most powerful and popular bible psalms to create poems that recreate the music of the original Hebrew verse.

The Empty Chair: Finding Hope and Joy Timeless Wisdom from a Hasidic Master, Rebbe Nachman of Breslov


Nachman of Breslov - 1994
    To others, his teachings shed light on some of the deepest mysteries. Here, is timeless wisdom, adapted by disciplines living in Jerusalem today, reaches out to us all: Never lose hope. Find joy and cause for happiness in everything that happens to you.

The Nakedness of the Fathers: Biblical Visions and Revisions


Alicia Suskin Ostriker - 1994
    Biblical interpretation combines with fantasy, autobiography, and poetry. Politics joins with eroticism. Irreverence coexists with a yearning for the sacred. Scholarship contends with heresy. Most excitingly, the author continues and extends the tradition of arguing with God that commences in the Bible itself and continues now, as it has for centuries, to animate Jewish writing. The difference here is that the voice that debates with God is a woman's. In her introduction, "Entering the Tents, " Ostriker defines the need to struggle against a tradition in which women have been silenced and disempowered - and to recover the female power buried beneath the surface of the biblical texts. In "The Garden, " she reinterprets the mythically complex stories of Creation. Then she considers the stories of "The Fathers, " from Abraham and Isaac to Moses, David, and Solomon - and their wives, mothers, and sisters. In "The Return of the Mothers, " she begins with a radical new interpretation of the book of Esther, includes a meditation on the silenced wife of Job and the idea of justice, and concludes with a fable on the death of God and a prayer to the Shekhinah, the feminine aspect of God. Ostriker refuses to dismiss the Bible as meaningless to women. Instead, in this angry, eloquent, visionary book, she attempts to recover what is genuinely sacred in these sacred texts.

Found Treasures: Stories by Yiddish Women Writers


Frieda Forman - 1994
    A book of voices from an almost forgotten female heritage, it features eighteen writers who speak powerfully of the events that shaped their lives; the daily fabric of life in Europe, the struggle from which new lives in North America, Palestine and then Israel were forged, the terror and challenge of survival during the Holocaust and its aftermath.

Ways of the Tzaddikim: Orchos Tzaddikim (Torah Classics Library)


Moshe Chayim Luzzatto - 1994
    This is a newly researched, corrected, annotated and vowelized Hebrew edition with a contemporary English translation. Discusses refining character traits and maintaining a balance in all matters.

The Dead Sea Scrolls Translated: The Qumran Texts in English


Florentino García Martínez - 1994
    One of the world's foremost experts on the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Qumran community that produced them provides an authoritative new English translation of the two hundred longest and most important nonbiblical Dead Sea Scrolls found at Qumran, along with an introduction to the history of the discovery and publication of each manuscript and the background necessary for placing each manuscript in its actual historical context.

The Legends of the Jews - Volume 4


Louis Ginzberg - 1994
    He is considered to be a leading Talmudists in the 20th century. Ginsberg believed in Halakha. Halakha is a body of Jewish law including biblical law, Talmudic law, and rabbinic law. Judaism does not distinguish between religious and non-religious law. Legends of the Jews is a multi volume set encompassing hundreds of legends and parables from the Hebrew Bible. Midrash is the retelling of Bible stories where moralistic stories are alongside mythical tales of magic and demons. This reference work is a good source for unanswered Biblical questions and the source of post Biblical stories not contained in the Bible.

The Jew in the Lotus


Rodger Kamenetz - 1994
    Along the way he encounters Ram Dass and Richard Gere, and dialogues with leading rabbis and Jewish thinkers, including Zalman Schacter, Yitz and Blue Greenberg, and a host of religious and disaffected Jews and Jewish Buddhists. This amazing journey through Tibetan Buddhism and Judaism leads Kamenetz to a renewed appreciation of his living Jewish roots.

The Legends Of The Jews - Vol. 3: Bible Times And Characters From The Exodus To The Death Of Moses (The Legends of the Jews)


Louis Ginzberg - 1994
    It is an indispensable reference on that body of literature known as Midrash, the imaginative retelling and elaboration on Bible stories in which mythological tales about demons and magic coexist with moralistic stories about the piety of the patriarchs. Legends is the first book to which one turns to learn about the postbiblical understanding of the biblical episode, or to discover the source for biblical legends that cannot be traced directly to the Bible. It is also the place to find answers to such questions as the date of Abraham's birth; what was Moses physical appearance; and what was the name of Potiphar's wife.

Pirkei Avot - Shemoneh Perakim of the Rambam/The Thirteen Principles of Faith


Maimonides - 1994
    

Shlomo's Stories: Selected Tales


Shlomo Carlebach - 1994
    A collection of stories by the late, world-renowned rabbi and folk singer Shlomo Carlebach.

Jewish Views of the Afterlife


Simcha Paull Raphael - 1994
    Thru a compilation of ideas found in the Bible, Apocrypha, rabbinic literature, medieval philosophy, medieval Midrash, Kabbalah & Hasidism, readers learn how Judaism conceived of the fate of the individual after death throughout history. In the wake of the deaths of six million Jews in the Holocaust, many turned away from Judaism & shunned a God who had seemingly allowed this senseless act of cruelty to occur. Others turned toward the faith, desperately wanting to believe in the doctrine that those whose lives had ended prematurely had passed on to another a better life. But does an afterlife even exist? What role does it play in Jewish theology? While many affirm a belief in the afterlife, a scarce few are aware of where these teachings can be found in Jewish literature. Among the topics discussed in this fascinating volume are heaven & hell, Olam Ha-Ba (The World to Come), Gan Eden, resurrection of the dead, immortality of the soul & divine judgment prior to death.

Gates of Light: Sha'are Orah: Sha'are Orah (The Sacred Literature Trust Series)


Joseph Gikatilla - 1994
    Under the auspices of the Bronfman Library of Jewish classics, this historic publication of Gates of Light allows readers to enter the hidden world of the Kabbalah and its profound and beautiful Biblical interpretation. This central text of Jewish mysticism was written in thirteenth-century Spain, where Kabbalah flourished. Considered to be the most articulate work on the mystical Kabbalah, Gates of Light provides a systematic and comprehensive explanation of the Names of God and their mystical applications. The Kabbalah presents a unique strategy for intimacy with the Creator and new insights into the Hebrew Scriptures. In the Kabbalah, aspects of God emanate from a hierarchy of Ten Spheres interconnected by channels that may be disrupted or repaired through human activity.

Through a Speculum that Shines: Vision and Imagination in Medieval Jewish Mysticism


Elliot R. Wolfson - 1994
    Using phenomenological and critical historical tools, Wolfson examines Jewish mystical texts from late antiquity, pre-kabbalistic sources from the tenth to the twelfth centuries, and twelfth- and thirteenth-century kabbalistic literature. His work demonstrates that the sense of sight assumes an epistemic priority in these writings, reflecting and building upon those scriptural passages that affirm the visual nature of revelatory experience. Moreover, the author reveals an androcentric eroticism in the scopic mentality of Jewish mystics, which placed the externalized and representable form, the phallus, at the center of the visual encounter.In the visionary experience, as Wolfson describes it, imagination serves a primary function, transmuting sensory data and rational concepts into symbols of those things beyond sense and reason. In this view, the experience of a vision is inseparable from the process of interpretation. Fundamentally challenging the conventional distinction between experience and exegesis, revelation and interpretation, Wolfson argues that for the mystics themselves, the study of texts occasioned a visual experience of the divine located in the imagination of the mystical interpreter. Thus he shows how Jewish mystics preserved the invisible transcendence of God without doing away with the visual dimension of belief.

The Archaeology of Ancient Israel


Amnon Ben-Tor - 1994
    In this book some of Israel’s foremost archaeologists present a thorough and up-to-date survey of this research, providing an assessable introduction to early life in the land of the Bible. The authors discuss the history of ancient Israel from the Neolithic era (eighth millennium B.C.E.) to the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the First Temple in 586 B.C.E. Each chapter describes a different era as seen through relevant archaeological discoveries. The reader is introduced to the first permanent settlements in the land of Israel, the crystallization of the political system of city-states, the nature of Canaanite culture, the Israelite patterns of settlement, and the division of the country into the kingdoms of Judah and Israel. The lavishly illustrated text explores and demonstrates developments in religious practices, architecture, technology, customs, arts and crafts, warfare, writing, cult practices, and trade. The book will be a delightful and informative resource for anyone who has ever wanted to know more about the religious, scientific, or historical background to the events described in the Bible, or to current developments in the Middle East.

the Family Treasury of Jewish Holidays


Malka Drucker - 1994
    The Family Treasury of Jewish Holidays is a compendium of facts, activities, and stories from around the world suitable for use by the entire family.

The Vilna Gaon: The story of Rabbi Eliyahu Kramer


Yaacov Dovid Shulman - 1994
    

Greek in Jewish Palestine/Hellenism in Jewish Palestine


Saul Lieberman - 1994
    In Greek in Jewish Palestine, he demonstrates that "almost ever foreign word and phrase have their raison d'etre in rabbinic literature" and that "all Greek phrases in rabbinic literature are quotations." Hellenism in Jewish Palestine is "an inquiry into the spirit of many rabbinic observations and investigations of the facts, insicents, opinions, notions and beliefs to which the Rabbis allude in their statements."

Judea Trembles Under Rome: The Untold Details of the Greek and Roman Military Domination of Ancient Palestine During the Time of Jesus of Galilee.


Edwina Cwens - 1994
    

Jewish Law, 4-volume set: History, Sources, Principles


Menachem Elon - 1994
    The result is the most definitive record to date of a unique legal system that integrates criminal, civil, and religious law to form a unified whole of unprecedented range. This four-volume set is an essential resource for academic, legal, and personal libraries.

Berlitz Hebrew Phrase Book & Dictionary (Berlitz The Language Of Travel)


Berlitz Publishing Company - 1994
    Providing a wealth of essential information and practical tips, this popular series, redesigned and updated, is primed for a new generation of foreign country visitors. With over 1,200 useful phrases and expressions and over 2,300 words covering just about any situation a traveler is likely to encounter, Berlitz Phrase Books remain the unparalleled market leader.Completely redesigned for greater ease of use, Berlitz Phrase Books provide: -- A new "essentials" section, offering the most basic vocabulary for quick reference-- Expanded cultural tips, including sites to visit, places to dine, and faux pas to avoid-- Easier-to-read single columns-- Contemporary icons and illustrations-- Up-to-date language to reflect the changes in banking, entertainment, media, and technology-- Over 1,200 useful phrases and over 2,300 words-- A unique color-coding system-- An easy-to-read pronunciation guide-- A dictionary with more than 3,500 words to fit any situation-- A manageable, portable size

A History of Israelite Religion in the Old Testament Period, Volume I: From the Beginnings to the End of the Monarchy


Rainer Albertz - 1994
    It is a part of the Old Testament Library series.The Old Testament Library provides fresh and authoritative treatments of important aspects of Old Testament study through commentaries and general surveys. The contributors are scholars of international standing

Webster's New World Hebrew Dictionary


Hayim Baltsan - 1994
    It's easy to locate words quickly with the Webster's New World Hebrew-English Dictionary, because the Hebrew-to-English section is alphabetized according to the transliterated English spelling. The English version is marked for correct pronunciation and followed immediately by the Hebrew spelling of the word. This breakthrough work of linguistic scholarship is packed with useful features that guarantee rapid progress, even for those with no familiarity with the Hebrew language. It contains:* Extensive grammatical information including parts of speech, variant verb forms, and the formation of feminines and plurals* Listings of idioms and compounds and indications of colloquialisms and slang* Common variations in pronunciations* Geographical, historical and cultural entries

Grammar For Gemara: An Introduction To Babylonian Aramaic


Yitzhak Frank - 1994
    

The Rambam: The Story of Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon


Yaacov Dovid Shulman - 1994
    

A History of Israelite Religion in the Old Testament Period, Volume II: From the Exile to the Maccabees


Rainer Albertz - 1994
    It is a part of the Old Testament Library series.The Old Testament Library provides fresh and authoritative treatments of important aspects of Old Testament study through commentaries and general surveys. The contributors are scholars of international standing.

Mashiach: Who? What? Why? How? Where? and When?


Chaim Kramer - 1994
    Who is Mashiach? What leadership qualities will he possess? What will life be like after he comes? What is Mashiach's mission? What must he do to bring the world to perfection? How will he achieve it? Why hasn't he arrived yet? And when is he coming? Based on Rebbe Nachman's teachings, along with additional insights from the Bible, Talmud and the Kabbalah, we not only find out more about Mashiach; we also learn how we can participate in this crowning divine revelation -- by cultivating Mashiach-qualities in our daily lives and personalities.

How Do We Know This?: Midrash and the Fragmentation of Modern Judaism (Suny Series in Judaica : Hermeneutics, Mysticism and Religion)


Jay M. Harris - 1994
    It shows how the rise of Reform, Conservative, and Orthodox Judaism in the modern period is tied to distinct attitudes toward the classical Jewish heritage, and specifically, toward rabbinic midrash halakah. What has gone unnoticed until now is the extent to which the fragmentation of modern Judaism is related to the interpretative foundations of classical Judaism. As this book demonstrates, spokespersons for any form of Judaism that engaged modernity on any level had to explain the basis for the rejection or continued acceptance of the authority of rabbinically developed law. Inevitably and invariably, this need led them to address anew what were long-standing questions regarding the ancient interpretations of biblical law. Were they compelling? Were they reasonable? Were they still relevant? Each form of Judaism fashioned its own response to these challenges, and each argued forcefully against the responses of the other denominations. Jay M. Harris describes the fragmentation of modern Judaism in terms of each denomination's relationship to classical Judaism's system of interpretation in part two of this book.