A repetitive, somewhat tedious volume, with no imminently practical solutions for what appears to be the Jewish destiny.
Israeli Minister of Justice Beilin maintains that Judaism is in jeopardy on account of the assimilation of American and other Diaspora Jews, through attrition by intermarriage, and due to the fact that immigration to Israel is not the first choice—America is—for any but the most desperate.
It is Beilin's opinion that Israel is the "solution for Jewish life." Since American Jews, not surprisingly, consider themselves Americans and have no feeling that they have yet to find the promised land, it is not easy to get them to immigrate to Israel. The author maintains that the question of "who is a Jew" is now moot in Israel because the Orthodox have influenced the legal definition through the addition of one pernicious phrase. That definition used to include anyone "who was born to a Jewish mother or who converted, and is not a member of another religion." Now, it accepts only Orthodox conversions as valid. Beilin implies that the change of wording hasn't helped Israel's cause, and he proposes several solutions. One is an Israeli-sponsored program that would supply a free ticket to Israel for every teenaged Diaspora Jew in the world. The other is the creation of an organization (to be called House of Israel) that would focus on the maintenance of Jewish life regardless of the nation of origin or degree of orthodoxy of the participants. This organization would prospectively disband in 20 years, should its function overlap with the already numerous organizations that do essentially the same thing.
A repetitive, somewhat tedious volume, with no imminently practical solutions for what appears to be the Jewish destiny.Pub Date: Aug. 23, 2000
ISBN: 0-8052-4175-2
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Schocken
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2000
BOOK REVIEW
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.
A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.
This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is “How We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005
ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This a book of earlier, philosophical essays concerned with the essential "absurdity" of life and the concept that- to overcome the strong tendency to suicide in every thoughtful man-one must accept life on its own terms with its values of revolt, liberty and passion. A dreary thesis- derived from and distorting the beliefs of the founders of existentialism, Jaspers, Heldegger and Kierkegaard, etc., the point of view seems peculiarly outmoded. It is based on the experience of war and the resistance, liberally laced with Andre Gide's excessive intellectualism. The younger existentialists such as Sartre and Camus, with their gift for the terse novel or intense drama, seem to have omitted from their philosophy all the deep religiosity which permeates the work of the great existentialist thinkers. This contributes to a basic lack of vitality in themselves, in these essays, and ten years after the war Camus seems unaware that the life force has healed old wounds... Largely for avant garde aesthetes and his special coterie.
Pub Date: Sept. 26, 1955
ISBN: 0679733736
Page Count: 228
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Sept. 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1955
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