Warmth, humor, and first-rate scholarship illuminate this elegant, thoughtful work, which should be of great interest to...
Christian theologian Cox reports on experiencing and embracing Judaism in his interfaith home.
When Cox (Divinity/Harvard; Fire From Heaven, 2001, etc.) wed Wellesley religion professor Nina Tumarkin, it marked the beginning of his life in a Jewish household. After 14 years of marriage and participating in each other’s rituals and traditions “as far as our consciences [would] allow,” Cox here takes on the daunting task of serving as guide to a religion that is not his own. He succeeds with remarkable grace. Loosely organizing his book around the progression of the Jewish year, Cox leads the reader through holidays both great and small, as well as marriage, death, and bar and bat mitzvahs. Common Jewish practices that may mystify gentiles (sukkah booths, Yom Kippur fasting) are explained, and personal experiences with his family and spiritual advisors are relayed. Though he finds common ground with some Christian practices, Cox is a careful guide, cautioning against a wholesale appropriation of Jewish tradition as a mere adjunct to Christianity. Nor does he shrink from the hard issues. “Anti-Judaism is not peripheral to Christianity,” he asserts, going on to discuss some grand old institutionalized traditions of anti-Semitism. This clear-eyed view is not reserved for Christianity; Cox examines some of the uglier points of Jewish history as well, including the violence of Purim and the myths of Chanukah. Serving as a broad introduction to Judaism, Cox’s study also offers guidance to interfaith couples searching for ways to embrace the religious traditions of both spouses; his chapter on “December Madness” and his position on the great Christmas tree debate are particularly useful.
Warmth, humor, and first-rate scholarship illuminate this elegant, thoughtful work, which should be of great interest to those considering intermarriage, and those (including Jews) who simply would like to learn more about Judaism.Pub Date: Sept. 20, 2001
ISBN: 0-618-06743-4
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2001
BOOK REVIEW
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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