Showing posts with label Book Reviews. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Book Reviews. Show all posts

The New Rabbi

Mar 21, 2011 at 2:31 PM | Posted by Rabbi Joshua

The New Rabbi by Stephen Fried is an absolute MUST READ! I recently finished the book and have been recommending it to a number of other rabbis and leaders. I originally came across the book a few years ago. However, a recent leadership decision prompted me to pick-up the book and read it.

Written by an award-winning investigative journalist, the book chronicles the politics of community, the power of inspirational leaders, the retail business of religion, the yearning for spirituality, and the wonderfully complicated world of American Jews.

Although a work of non-fiction, the book reads like a novel - full of excitement, intrigue, and emotion. Stephen Fried is able to write a book that pulls you into the story and gives you a glimpse into the search process of finding a new rabbi.

The center of this compelling chronicle is Har Zion Temple in Philadelphia, which for the last eighty years has been one of the largest and most influential congregations in America. For thirty years Rabbi Gerald Wolpe was its spiritual leader - a brilliant sermonizer of wide renown. But with the announcement of his retirement, a remarkable nationwide search process is begun. The story of how such a congregation searches for a new leader is largely unknown to the lay world. During this dramatic moment, Wolpe agreed to give extraordinary access to Fried, inviting him - and the reader - into the intense personal and professional life of the clergy and the complex behind-the-scenes life of a major Conservative congregation. The result is a front-row seat at the usually clandestine process of choosing a new rabbi - as what was expected to be a simple search for a successor nearly tears a venerable congregation apart.

If you are part of a search committee looking for a new congregational leader, if you are currently a congregational leader looking to retire, or if you are a newly hired young leader - this book is for you. And even if you are none-of-the-above, but are intrigued at the inner workings of the clergy and the politics of congregational life, you too will enjoy this quick, easy to read, and well-written book.

And make sure to read the paperback which has a new afterward which gives an update on the congregation, the rabbi, and many of the other individuals in the book.

I cannot recommend this book enough. Pick it up and let me know what you think!


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New Books to Check Out

Feb 13, 2011 at 1:26 PM | Posted by Rabbi Joshua

Two new books have just been released - hot off the press and worth checking out!

Israel's Messiah and the People of God
By Mark S. Kinzer, Edited by Jennifer M. Rosner

Dr. Mark Kinzer's newest title is an excellent follow-up to his book Postmissionary Messianic Judaism, published in 2005. It is a collection of essays, including several pieces never before published, edited by Jennifer M. Rosner, a doctoral candidate at Fuller Theological Seminary. The book gives an an even deeper understanding into the thinking of one of Messianic Judaism's most ground-breaking theologians. The collection of essays spans a period of nearly 30 years of work and demonstrates both the continuity within Kinzer's thinking over time, as well as how his thoughts have evolved and developed.

Jennifer Rosner's introduction is an excellent addition to the text, and gives greater clarity into the thought and work of Mark Kinzer, and ties it all together. I just recently picked-up the book at the Hashivenu forum in Los Angeles and am excited to delve further into it. This is a book that every serious student of Messianic Judaism should have on their book-shelves.

The book is available through Wipf & Stock publishers, or through Amazon (it is cheaper through Wipf & Stock).


Son of David
By Stuart Dauermann

Dr. Stuart Dauermann's most recent release is also a must for every serious student of Messianic Judaism. A quick read (only 49 pages), he delves into healing the vision of Messianic Judaism through the role of Yeshua as the Son of David. A visionary work from another one of Messianic Judaism's great thinkers and visionaries. I also just picked this up at the Hashivenu forum.

The book is published by Wipf & Stock, and is not yet released (but will be soon!). I'll keep you updated.


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The Promise and the Talmud

Aug 26, 2010 at 11:19 AM | Posted by Rabbi Joshua

A couple weeks ago I blogged about having just finished reading The Chosen, by Chaim Potok. I so thoroughly enjoyed reading the book that I could not wait to begin the sequel, The Promise. Well last weekend I finished reading that book as well (I know, I'm behind on the J-Bom reading).

The difficulty with reading any good book, and especially a series of books, is the disappointment at finishing the book. The disappointment was not with the books (chas v'shalom), it is being bummed that the story is over. Maybe it's just me ... but you grow acquainted with the characters, the setting, and the story. So when a good book is over, you have to say goodbye.

Well, that is how I felt finishing The Promise. I just spent the last month or so getting to know the intimate details of the lives of Reuven Malter, Danny Saunders, and all the other characters. I was brought back to Brooklyn in an earlier decade. While I was reading these two books (The Chosen and The Promise) they were guests in my home, we rode the metro together, and they fell asleep next to the lamp on my bedside table. A good book pulls you into it, and brings you into the world of the characters' lives.

I have also blogged a couple times about the Talmud. I have always loved Jewish texts. For many years I have had a particular growing appreciation especially for the world of the Talmud. This has been especially true over the last two years or so. I have developed a true love and admiration for the intricate conversation of the Talmud, its details, and it development. It is a very difficult body of texts that requires a mastery of its nuances, language, and conversation before you can really begin to understand and appreciate it. One cannot just read a book about the Talmud. Yes ... that is how many of us were first introduced to it. But like with anything, one must truly become acquainted with its technicalities to really understand it.

I am not claiming to have arrived, nor do I claim to be some talmid chacham in regard to the Gemara. I am simply on a journey like many of you. The point is not agreeing on everything. The Talmud is a collection of complex conversations between individuals and generations that was eventually codified. So it is in a way, like listening in and participating in any other sort of conversation. There are things you will agree with, things you will not, and some that just challenge you! But the only way to understand it is to participate in the conversation! To add your own voice to the dialog.

This love and appreciation of the Talmud is really reflected in the works of Chaim Potok. (I have been on some sort of Potok kick lately, and have read three of his books, and just started a fourth). You especially experience this love of Talmud getting to know Reuven Malter and his father. As Reuven is in yeshiva, and studying for s'micha, you experience Gemara the way Reuven does, and see the pages in the way Reuven sees them.

Preparation for Orthodox s'micha is very intense. And as the time draws closer, Reuven spends most of his life enveloped in the Talmud in preparation for his s'micha exams. I found the way Reuven often vividly describes this relationship to the Talmud so very moving:

"I locked myself into the world of the Talmud, lived in it even during the hours when the texts were not open in front of me, saw the shapes of its printed pages everywhere ... I lived in a world two thousand years in the past, in a time when sages had been remarkably unafraid of new ideas, and I sat on the earthen floors of the ancient academies, listening to lectures on the Mishna, listening to the discussions that followed, and sometimes a sage would take my arm and we would go into a silent grove of trees, and walk and talk (The Promise, p. 310-311)."

These words reflect a deep admiration and love for this great body of literature, and as I read this I was challenged to go deeper in my own interaction and relationship with these texts. As I mentioned earlier, it is not about the Talmud always being "right," or agreeing with everything written on the page. In fact, I am often very bothered by some of the conversations in the Gemara. But that does not mean I do not appreciate the discussion. I am often just as irked in daily conversations. But the answer is to engage rather than disengage. To dig deeper and swim in the conversation. And as Messianic Jews, we have our own unique voice to add to the collection of voices of our people over the generations.

So my challenge to each of us is to learn to swim in the conversation. To dig deeper and learn to truly appreciate the voices of our people embodied in the pages of Jewish texts.

“L’Shanah tovah tikateivu – May you be inscribed for a sweet New Year!”


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The Chosen

Aug 12, 2010 at 8:15 AM | Posted by Rabbi Joshua

Earlier this week I finished reading Chaim Potok's classic, The Chosen. Although I have seen the movie numerous times, and have repeatedly heard how much better the book was, I only finally got around to reading it ... AND I'M GLAD I DID!

For those not already familiar with this classic, which has sold millions of copies, it is the story of a young Modern Orthodox kid from Brooklyn (Reuven Malter) who befriends a Chassidic kid (Danny Saunders), who is the son of a great Chassidic Rebbe. The book explores a number of themes, including Zionism, Chasidism, and life in Jewish Brooklyn in the 1940's. It really gives an excellent glimpse into the very different worlds of Reuven and Danny, and yet at the same time, the similarities between them.

The story describes the adolescent struggles of the two main characters to figure out their life-paths, the struggles of faith, and the realities of life. Chaim Potok not only creates a world that pulls you into it, but entangles your own heart and emotions with that of the characters. As I finished reading the book Sunday night, tears streamed down my face. The message of the story pulled at my heart strings, and left me yearning for more (which I just began the sequel, The Promise!).

If you're still looking for a light Summer read that will feed you emotionally, spiritually, and Jewishly, pick-up a copy of The Chosen. You'll be glad you did!


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My Jesus Year

Jul 6, 2010 at 10:33 AM | Posted by Rabbi Joshua

Last week I finished reading My Jesus Year, by Benyamin Cohen (Harper Collins, 2008). The book is a hilarious recounting of an Orthodox Rabbi's son who spends a year wandering the Bible Belt in search of his own faith.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking for some light and fun Summer reading, but especially for congregational leaders. Although Benyamin Cohen spends a year visiting churches, the book provides an excellent glimpse into what it is like to be a visitor, and forces introspection about the way we portray our communities to others. Throughout the book Cohen shares important insights and ideas from various types of communities that he thinks could actually benefit the Jewish Community, recognizing that each of our faiths have much we can learn from one another.

Fellow blogger and friend, Yahnatan Lasko, his wife, and I recently heard Benyamin Cohen talk about his book at our local JCC. His quick wit, his shared insights gained from the experience, and his humor all led me to read the book. And I am glad I did!

As the son of an Orthodox Rabbi, and raised within the Jewish community of Atlanta, Benyamin Cohen spent a year trying to rediscover his own Jewish Spirituality. But what is interesting, is that he decided to pursue this search in what would seem to many Jews the most unlikely of places - Christian churches in the Bible Belt. However, as a practicing Jew, he had to get a special rabbinic dispensation for his quest. And although he did receive it from one particular rabbi, it was not without some certain parameters on his participation.

It is interesting that Benyamin was not visiting churches to necessarily "find Jesus." In his mind, with many American Churches being vibrant spiritual centers, attracting masses of people on a weekly basis, they had to be doing something right.

Cohen contrasts this to the state of much of the Jewish Community today, noting:

"Synagogue attendance is flagging; for that matter, Judaism as a whole is struggling just to keep its followers interested. Studies indicate that Jewish philanthropists in this country spend more money on what's called 'inreach' than on any other cause - including that catchall cause, support for Israel. Fueling all of this is an alarming fact: 50 percent of Jews in America are now intermarrying into other faiths. The Jewish community in America is hemorrhaging; we're a dying breed (Cohen, 28)."

So what is Cohen's personal answer?

"As crazy as it sounds, I'm looking to Jesus to make me a better Jew. I want to reconnect to my Judaism (Cohen, 28)."

With my own theological ideas on that comment aside for the moment, Cohen is on to something. Cohen is not the first individual within the Jewish community to recognize that there is much to learn from contemporary Christianity. Synagogue 3000 is just one example of a Jewish think-tank that has sought out figures such as mega-pastor Rick Warren for assistance in recreating vibrant Jewish communities. As Cohen puts it, "People are basically tired of sitting in synagogue and having no connection to G-d when everyone else is. People are waking up (Cohen, 169)."

Many churches do a great job at marketing their communities, empowering their members, and creating vibrant worshipful atmospheres that are spiritually moving for their congregants. For the most part - they are simply doing a much better job at reaching people.

I of course recognize that there is also much the Church can learn from the Jewish Community. But I believe, like Cohen and many others, that there is much to be learned on both sides. My Jesus Year is a helpful look into our communities and what newcomers experience when they visit. It should force us to think much more critically about our services, our visions for our communities, and how to make ourselves more welcoming to those who are searching.

My Jesus Year is a quick and light-hearted read - perfect for relaxing by the pool, sitting on an airplane, or on vacation. An ideal book for the Summer - and educational to boot!



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Empowered Judaism

May 4, 2010 at 1:13 PM | Posted by Rabbi Joshua

My wife and I are deeply committed to re-imagining congregational life, developing innovative and creative programming, and planting vibrant spiritual communities. As a skilled community builder, I am often sought as a consultant on congregational life and growth and travel regularly to assist communities going through change, reorganization, and those wanting to incorporate more vibrant and meaningful liturgical worship.

As a result, I am always seeking creative and innovative ideas, and visiting communities that are on the forefront of change. I often share on this blog a number of practical suggestions that can be helpful for your own spiritual community. This is especially true of books that I believe are 'must-reads' for congregational leaders who desire to remain relevant and continue to meet peoples deep-felt spiritual needs.

One such recent book I would consider required reading is, "Empowered Judaism: What Independent Minyanim Can Teach Us about Building Vibrant Jewish Communities" by Rabbi Elie Kaunfer.

The Jewish Theological Seminary recently hosted an excellent panel discussion on this book with Rabbi Kaunfer, along with other noted figures Professor Steven Cohen, Rabbi Ayelet Cohen, and moderated by JTS Chancellor Arnold Eisen.

The discussion is very important because it presents growing trends within the Jewish community toward a heightened experience of G-d, engaging participatory communities, and meaningful prayer. I highly recommend listening to the panel HERE.

In recent years the Jewish community (primarily younger generations) have been moving away from a Jewish experience dictated only by 'belonging.' For many young Jews, Jewishness is no longer perceived as a given, but rather a choice. You can agree or disagree with this, but one thing is for certain - those Jews who desire to remain involved are not looking for a Judaism that is a secular culture of bagels and lox -but rather Judaism as a Faith (something I raised in my recent paper at the Borough Park Symposium).

Yet, what many young Jews are beginning to realize is that they did not even know they were looking for faith. It turns out what we young Jews are looking to do is what we have always sought to do, to simultaneously connect with G-d and find our place within thirty centuries of Jewish history.

Seems we're still deeply spiritual after all!


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