Best Orthodox Judaism

Named one of "forty-three books to read before you die" by the Independent (UK). 2015 National Jewish Book Award Winner. 2016 Winner of the GLCA New Writers Award in Nonfiction. One of Star Magazine's "Fab 5 Can't-Miss Entertainment Picks". A moving and revealing exploration of Hasidic life, and one man's struggles with faith, family, and community. “With this book Deen has laid to rest the idea that a Hasid from New Square could never become a great writer in English, or an articulate chronicler of his own experiences.” ― The New Republic. “In this moving book, Deen lays bare his difficult, muddled wrestling with his faith, the challenges it posed to everything he thought he knew about himself, and the hard-won redemption he eventually found.” ― Library Journal. “I understand that even if I did visit New Square I would have no greater access to Hasidic life than my occasional walk through Williamsburg, where I can see but can't penetrate its appeal, or its secrets. It is the book's ticket to mass appeal as well as the seat of his disquiet in its writing.Though he writes because he has a story to tell, Deen's work, especially in his memoir, is clearly crafted to benefit others dealing with a wavering faith.” ― Tablet Magazine. All Who Go Do Not Return gives us not only an insider's glimpse into a shrouded world few outsiders get to see, but also a movingly told narrative of one man's struggle toward intellectual integrity. The setting may be the world of Hasidic Judaism, but the drama and the insights are universal.” ―Rebecca Newberger Goldstein, 36 Arguments for the Existence of God: A Work of Fiction. “ All Who Go Do Not Return is a deeply honest and moving story about a man's decision to do something both so simple and so radical - to live in accordance with his own beliefs.

In My Grandfather's Blessings , Rachel Naomi Remen , a cancer physician and master storyteller, uses her luminous stories to remind us of the power of our kindness and the joy of being alive. When doctor and author Rachel Naomi Remen ( Kitchen Table Wisdom ) was young, she was caught between two different views of life: that of her rabbi grandfather and that of her highly academic, research-oriented parents, who believed religion was the opiate of the masses. Through a series of unpretentious, affecting vignettes, the author of the bestseller Kitchen Table Wisdom encourages readers to recognize and celebrate the unexpected blessings in their own lives. Many of her recollections are linked to her experiences as a medical student and a physician working with cancer patients, but the most memorable ones relate to Remen's deep engagement with her grandfather, who died when she was seven.

This indispensable volume has long been acknowledged as the classic guide to the traditional Jewish laws and customs as they apply to daily life in the contemporary world. The book begins with an overview of Judaism's basic credo (including chapters on Israel's people, land, God, and Torah), moves on to describe the laws governing Jews' daily lives, the Jewish calendar, and "The Special Occasions of Life" from birth to death and mourning.

In My Grandfather's Blessings , Rachel Naomi Remen , a cancer physician and master storyteller, uses her luminous stories to remind us of the power of our kindness and the joy of being alive. When doctor and author Rachel Naomi Remen ( Kitchen Table Wisdom ) was young, she was caught between two different views of life: that of her rabbi grandfather and that of her highly academic, research-oriented parents, who believed religion was the opiate of the masses. Through a series of unpretentious, affecting vignettes, the author of the bestseller Kitchen Table Wisdom encourages readers to recognize and celebrate the unexpected blessings in their own lives. Many of her recollections are linked to her experiences as a medical student and a physician working with cancer patients, but the most memorable ones relate to Remen's deep engagement with her grandfather, who died when she was seven.

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “A lucid, intelligent page-turner” ( Los Angeles Times ) that challenges long-held assumptions about Jesus, from the host of Believer Two thousand years ago, an itinerant Jewish preacher walked across the Galilee, gathering followers to establish what he called the “Kingdom of God.” The revolutionary movement he launched was so threatening to the established order that he was executed as a state criminal. Sifting through centuries of mythmaking, Reza Aslan sheds new light on one of history’s most enigmatic figures by examining Jesus through the lens of the tumultuous era in which he lived. He explores the reasons the early Christian church preferred to promulgate an image of Jesus as a peaceful spiritual teacher rather than a politically conscious revolutionary. A vivid, persuasive portrait.” — Salon “This tough-minded, deeply political book does full justice to the real Jesus, and honors him in the process.” — San Francisco Chronicle “A special and revealing work, one that believer and skeptic alike will find surprising, engaging, and original.” —Jon Meacham, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power “Compulsively readable . Q. Yours is one of the few popular biographies of Jesus of Nazareth that does not rely on the gospels as your primary source of information for uncovering Jesus’ life. A. I certainly rely on the gospels to provide a narrative outline to my biography of Jesus of Nazareth, but my primary source in recreating Jesus’ life are historical writings about first century Palestine, like the Jewish historian Flavius Josephus, as well as Roman documents of the time. In other words, the gospels tell us about Jesus the Christ, not Jesus the man. To get to the bottom of that mystery, which is what I try to do in the book, one must sift through the gospel stories to analyze their claims about Jesus in light of the historical facts we know about the time and world in which Jesus lived. But the more I read the Bible – especially in college, where I began my formal study of the New Testament – the more I uncovered a wide chasm between the Jesus of history and the Jesus I learned about in church. But the irony is that once I detached my academic study of Jesus from my faith in Christ, I became an even more fervent follower of Jesus of Nazareth. So in a way, this book is my attempt to spread the good news of Jesus the man with the same passion that I once applied to spreading the good news of Jesus the Christ. The key to understanding who Jesus was and what Jesus meant lies in understanding the times in which he lived. Aslan, who authored the much acclaimed No god but God: The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam, offers a compelling argument for a fresh look at the Nazarene, focusing on how Jesus the man evolved into Jesus the Christ. Approaching the subject from a purely academic perspective, the author parts an important curtain that has long hidden from view the man Jesus, who is every bit as compelling, charismatic, and praiseworthy as Jesus the Christ. Carefully comparing extra-biblical historical records with the New Testament accounts, Aslan develops a convincing and coherent story of how the Christian church, and in particular Paul, reshaped Christianity's essence, obscuring the very real man who was Jesus of Nazareth.

Clever marketing has led us to believe in chasing happiness down a path that doesn't lead anywhere. No matter where you are in life, finding purpose is easier than you think. Rabbi Evan Moffic knows the power of prayer . You will discover those words in this book and the ten life-changing practices it reveals. "Rabbi Evan Moffic masterfully invokes ancient Jewish wisdom to help us find happiness in our modern world."". Rabbi Evan Moffic masterfully takes us on a powerful journey through the wisdom of our tradition and the complexities of the human heart. Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg, author of Nurture the Wow: Finding Spirituality in The Frustration, Boredom Tears, Poop, Desperation, Wonder and Radical Amazement of Parenting. "The longer I live, and the more I'm faced with the inescapable reality of pain in life, the more I search for and surround myself with people who exude joy. My husband, Aaron, and I have treasured the time we've spent around the table with them-they're wise and kind and funny, and the depth and richness of their faith bleeds into every conversation." "Dr. Tal Ben Shahar, author of New York Times bestseller Happier: Learn the Secrets to Daily Joy and Lasting Fulfillment ". "One of our truly thoughtful and charismatic young leaders, Evan Moffic provides in captivating prose the wisdom and comfort of Jewish teachings for Jews and Gentile alike." A graduate of Stanford University, he is known for his stories and scholarship, connecting ancient traditions with modern audiences of all ages and backgrounds. Rabbi Moffic also appears regularly on cable news stations as a commentator on Israel and political and social events in America.

Told in understated, crystalline prose, Lax begins her story as a young teen leaving her liberal, secular home to become a Hasidic Jew, then plumbs the nuances of her arranged marriage, fundamentalist faith, and Hasidic motherhood, as her creative, sexual, and spiritual longings shimmer beneath the surface. With memorable, passionate detail, Leah Lax recounts a unique search for wholeness and healing that paradoxically plunged her into the quicksand of shame. Written in poetic prose whose color and savor will linger long after you finish the book, this memoir makes the flickering appeal of a life of inflexible rules as seductively clear as it is claustrophobic―a remarkable achievement. Dramatic, revelatory, deeply moving, and ultimately inspiring, this is a truly one-of-a kind memoir about the universal longing to discover, nurture, and celebrate one’s authentic self.”. “In this courageous, important book, Leah Lax reveals a voice once doubly silenced by orthodox religion―as a woman and a lesbian―on a deeply moving journey to selfhood. “In Uncovered , Leah Lax remembers in rich detail how she moved from loneliness through what promised to be a new family and a new community, into a pure appreciation of the world―and how, instead, it suppressed her deepest needs. Her book is a profound and poignant story of innocence and experience, those ancient universals, and transforming joy at the end.”. “Dealing with abortion, LGBT identity, and Hasidic life, this story is too complex to fit neatly into the ‘ex-Hasidic memoir craze’—but that makes it all the richer.”. “Lax’s gifts―uncommon intelligence, a poetic sensibility, an eye skilled at discerning the telling detail―make her story lyrical, ruminative, and profound; she is able to impart the events of her life with a spiritual glow that shimmers long after the last page has been turned.”. Her work for stage has been reviewed in The New York Times , and Rolling Stone magazine, and has been broadcast on NPR.