David R. Blumenthal: Living with God and Humanity

David R. Blumenthal: Living with God and Humanity PDF Author: Hava Tirosh-Samuelson
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 900427975X
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 179

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Book Description
David R. Blumenthal is Jay and Leslie Cohen Professor of Judaic Studies at Emory University. He has contributed greatly to the growth of Jewish Studies, the place of Judaism in Religious Studies, interreligious dialogue, and the reframing of Judaism in light of the Holocaust, postmodernism, and poststructuralism. For Blumenthal, theology is an ongoing reflection about everything we believe and do in the context of the living tradition.

David R. Blumenthal: Living with God and Humanity

David R. Blumenthal: Living with God and Humanity PDF Author: Hava Tirosh-Samuelson
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 900427975X
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 179

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Book Description
David R. Blumenthal is Jay and Leslie Cohen Professor of Judaic Studies at Emory University. He has contributed greatly to the growth of Jewish Studies, the place of Judaism in Religious Studies, interreligious dialogue, and the reframing of Judaism in light of the Holocaust, postmodernism, and poststructuralism. For Blumenthal, theology is an ongoing reflection about everything we believe and do in the context of the living tradition.

Facing the Abusing God

Facing the Abusing God PDF Author: David R. Blumenthal
Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press
ISBN: 9780664254643
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 352

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Book Description
Looking at the experience of Holocaust survivors and of survivors of child abuse, this work asks disturbing questions why God permits victimization of the innocent.

The Banality of Good and Evil

The Banality of Good and Evil PDF Author: David R. Blumenthal
Publisher: Georgetown University Press
ISBN: 9781589014251
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 340

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Book Description
People who helped exterminate Jews during the shoah (Hebrew for "holocaust") often claimed that they only did what was expected of them. Intrigued by hearing the same response from individuals who rescued Jews, David R. Blumenthal proposes that the notion of ordinariness used to characterize Nazi evil is equally applicable to goodness. In this provocative book, Blumenthal develops a new theory of human behavior that identifies the social and psychological factors that foster both good and evil behavior. Drawing on lessons primarily from the shoah but also from well-known obedience and altruism experiments, My Lai, and the civil rights movement, Blumenthal deftly interweaves insights from psychology, history, and social theory to create a new way of looking at human behavior. Blumenthal identifies the factors — social hierarchy, education, and childhood discipline — that shape both good and evil attitudes and actions. Considering how our religious and educational institutions might do a better job of encouraging goodness and discouraging evil, he then makes specific recommendations for cultivating goodness in people, stressing the importance of the social context of education. He reinforces his ideas through stories, teachings, and case histories from the Jewish tradition that convey important lessons in resistance and goodness. Appendices include the ethical code of the Israel Defense Forces, material on non-violence from the Martin Luther King, Jr., Center, a suggested syllabus for a Jewish elementary school, and a list of prosocial sources on the Web, as well as a complete bibliography. If people can commit acts of evil without thinking, why can’t even more commit acts of kindness? Writing with power and insight, Blumenthal shows readers of all faiths how we might replace patterns of evil with empathy, justice, and caring, and through a renewed attention to moral education, perhaps prevent future shoahs.

The Future of Jewish Philosophy

The Future of Jewish Philosophy PDF Author: Hava Tirosh-Samuelson
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 900438121X
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 356

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Book Description
This anthology of original essays reflects on the future of Jewish philosophy in light of the Library of Contemporary Jewish Philosophers (Brill, 2013-2018). The volume assesses the strengths of Jewish philosophy, explores the place of Jewish philosophy within the Western academy as a critique of and contribution to the discipline of philosophy, and showcases the relevance of Jewish philosophy to contemporary Jewish culture. The volume argues that Jewish philosophy is more vibrant, diverse, and culturally significant than its public image implies. Special attention is paid to the interdisciplinary nature of Jewish philosophy, the institutional settings for generating Jewish philosophy, and the contribution of philosophizing to contemporary Jewish self-understanding.

Images of Torah: From the Second-Temple Period to the Middle Ages

Images of Torah: From the Second-Temple Period to the Middle Ages PDF Author: Jeong Mun. Heo
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9004543228
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 462

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Book Description
This book explores the way that the Torah was appreciated and interpreted as a text and symbol in Christian and Jewish sources from the Second Temple period through the Middle Ages. It tracks the development and complex interactions of three images of Torah— “God-like,” “Angelic,” and “Messianic”— which are found in late-antique Jewish and Christian materials as well as in medieval kabbalistic and Jewish philosophic sources. It provides a unique template for tracing the development of theological ideas related to the images of Torah and offers a sophisticated and innovative analysis of the relationship between mystical experience, theology, and phenomenology.

Arguing with God

Arguing with God PDF Author: Anson Laytner
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 0765760258
Category : Covenants
Languages : en
Pages : 338

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Book Description
As an old proverb puts it, "Two Jews, three opinions." In the long, rich, tumultuous history of the Jewish people, this characteristic contentiousness has often been extended even unto Heaven. Arguing with God is a highly original and utterly absorbing study that skates along the edge of this theological thin ice--at times verging dangerously close to blasphemy--yet also a source of some of the most poignant and deeply soulful expressions of human anguish and yearning. The name Israel literally denotes one who "wrestles with God." And, from Jacob's battle with the angel to Elie Wiesel's haunting questions about the Holocaust that hang in the air like still smoke over our own age, Rabbi Laytner admirably details Judaism's rich and pervasive tradition of calling God to task over human suffering and experienced injustice. It is a tradition that originated in the biblical period itself. Abraham, Moses, Elijah, and others all petitioned for divine intervention in their lives, or appealed forcefully to God to alter His proposed decree. Other biblical arguments focused on personal or communal suffering and anger: Jeremiah, Job, and certain Psalms and Lamentations. Rabbi Laytner delves beneath the surface of these "blasphemies" and reveals how they implicitly helped to refute the claims of opponent religions and advance Jewish doctrines and teachings.

Understanding Jewish Mysticism

Understanding Jewish Mysticism PDF Author: David R. Blumenthal
Publisher: KTAV Publishing House, Inc.
ISBN: 9780870683343
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 224

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Book Description


Humanity in God's Image

Humanity in God's Image PDF Author: Claudia Welz
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0191087904
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 343

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Book Description
How can we, in our times, understand the biblical concept that human beings have been created in the image of an invisible God? This is a perennial but increasingly pressing question that lies at the heart of theological anthropology. Humanity in God's Image: An Interdisciplinary Exploration clarifies the meaning of this concept, traces different Jewish and Christian interpretations of being created in God's image, and reconsiders the significance of the imago Dei in a post-Holocaust context. As normative, counter-factual notions, human dignity and the imago Dei challenge us to see more. Claudia Welz offers an interdisciplinary exploration of theological and ethical 'visions' of the invisible. By analysing poetry and art, Welz exemplifies human self-understanding in the interface between the visual and the linguistic. The content of the imago Dei cannot be defined apart from the image carrier: an embodied creature. Compared to verbal, visual, and mental images, how does this creature as a 'living image' refer to God—like a metaphor, a mimetic mirror, or an elusive trace? Combining hermeneutical and phenomenological perspectives with philosophy of religion and philosophy of language, semiotics, art history, and literary studies, Welz regards the imago Dei as a complex sign that is at once iconic, indexical, and symbolical—pointing beyond itself.

Jewish Pastoral Care, 2nd Edition

Jewish Pastoral Care, 2nd Edition PDF Author: Rabbi Dayle A. Friedman, MSW, MA, BCC
Publisher: Jewish Lights Publishing
ISBN: 1580234275
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 530

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Book Description
The first comprehensive resource for pastoral care in the Jewish tradition--and a vital resource for counselors and caregivers of other faith traditions. The essential reference for rabbis, cantors and laypeople who are called to spiritually accompany those encountering joy, sorrow and change--now in paperback. This groundbreaking volume draws upon both Jewish tradition and the classical foundations of pastoral care to provide invaluable guidance. Offering insight on pastoral care technique, theory and theological implications, the contributors to Jewish Pastoral Care are innovators in their fields, and represent all four contemporary Jewish movements. This comprehensive resource provides you with the latest theological perspectives and tools, along with basic theory and skills for assisting the ill and those who care for them, the aging and dying, those with dementia and other mental disorders, engaged couples, and others, and for responding to issues such as domestic violence, substance abuse and disasters. Contributors: Barbara Eve Breitman, MSW, LSW * Anne Brener, MAJCS, MA, LCSW * Rabbi Amy Eilberg, MSW * Rabbi Nancy Flam, MA * Rabbi Dayle A. Friedman, MSW, MAJCS, BCC * Gus Kaufman, Jr., PhD * Rabbi Myriam Klotz, MA * Rabbi Yaacov Kravitz, EdD * Rabbi Ellen Jay Lewis, NCPsyA * Wendy Lipshutz, LMSW * Rabbi Sheldon Marder * Rabbi Joseph S. Ozarowski, DMin * Simcha Paull Raphael, PhD * Rabbi Stephen Roberts, BCC * Rabbi Rochelle Robins * Rabbi Drorah Setel, MTS * Rabbi Jeffery M. Silberman, DMin * Marcia Cohn Spiegel, MAJCS * Rabbi Karen Sussan * Rabbi Bonita E. Taylor, MA, BCC * Rabbi Simkha Y. Weintraub, CSW * Rabbi David J. Zucker, PhD, BCC

American Rabbi

American Rabbi PDF Author: Steven T. Katz
Publisher: NYU Press
ISBN: 0814748511
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 258

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Book Description
American Rabbi provides a comprehensive and insightful assessment of Rabbi Jacob Agus' standing as a notable Jewish thinker. The volume brings together original writings by a range of distinguished contributors to consider the main aspects of Agus' life and work in detail and to flesh out the broad and repercussive themes of his corpus. Taken as a whole, they present a broad and substantial picture of a remarkable American Rabbi and scholar, illuminating Agus' committment to Jewish people everywhere, his profound and unwavering spirituality, his continual reminders of the very real dangers of pseudo-messianism and misplaced romantic zeal, and his willingness to take politically and religiously unpopular stands. Formulated as a companion volume to The Essential Agus, which presents selections of Agus' own writings, the contributors' analyses are based on specific selections of Agus' work which appear in The Essential Agus. Though each volume stands on its own, they are closely interconnected and readers will benefit from consulting both works.