Judaism and Justice

Sidney Schwarz

Description

The first state-of-the-art, comprehensive resource to encompass the wide breadth of the rapidly growing field of Judaism and health.

“For Jews, religion and medicine (and science) are not inherently in conflict, even within the Torah-observant community, but rather can be friendly partners in the pursuit of wholesome ends, such as truth, healing and the advancement of humankind.”
—from the Introduction

This authoritative volume—part professional handbook, part scholarly resource and part source of practical information for laypeople—melds the seemingly disparate elements of Judaism and health into a truly multidisciplinary collective, enhancing the work within each area and creating new possibilities for synergy across disciplines. It is ideal for medical and healthcare providers, rabbis, educators, academic scholars, healthcare researchers and caregivers, congregational leaders and laypeople with an interest in the most recent and most exciting developments in this new, important field.

Sujets

• justice
• Philosophie et théologie
• Jewish ethics
• Jewish philosophy
• Judaism
• Jewish leadership
• Religion

Informations

• Publié par: Turner Publishing Company
• Date de parution: 02 mai 2011
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781580235990
• Langue: English

Extrait

Judaism and Justice:
The Jewish Passion to Repair the World
2008 First Quality Paperback Edition
2006 First Hardcover Printing
2006 by Sidney Schwarz
Foreword 2006 by Ruth Messinger
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
For information regarding permission to reprint material from this book, please mail or fax your request in writing to Jewish Lights Publishing, Permissions Department, at the address / fax number listed below, or e-mail your request to [e-mail] .
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Schwarz, Sid.
Judaism and justice: the Jewish passion to repair the world / Sidney Schwarz; foreword by Ruth Messinger.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN-13: 978-1-58023-312-5 (hardcover)
ISBN-10: 1-58023-312-0 (hardcover)
1. Justice (Jewish theology) 2. Justice-Biblical teaching. 3. Social justice-Religious aspects-Judaism. 4. Jewish ethics. I. Title.
BM645.J8S35 2006
296.3 8-dc22
2006021180
ISBN-13: 978-1-58023-353-8 (quality pbk.)
ISBN-10: 1-58023-353-8 (quality pbk.)
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Cover design: Tim Holtz
Manufactured in the United States of America
Published by Jewish Lights Publishing
A Division of LongHill Partners, Inc.
Sunset Farm Offices, Route 4, P.O. Box 237
Woodstock, VT 05091
Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone]
www.jewishlights.com
Praise for Judaism and Justice
An important book written at a moment in which the future character of American Jewish life is being determined. With eloquence and wisdom he demonstrates that the pursuit of justice is not simply one more strategy to engage Jews but the very heart and soul of Judaism. In an age when Jewish life is turning inward Schwarz s insights will inspire readers to remember the dream of why we are here to repair our world. And that changes everything.
-Rabbi Irwin Kula, president, CLAL-National Center for Learning and Leadership
Comprehensive and dynamic teachings on Judaism s passion for social justice. A work that touches and teaches, even as it constantly reminds us that ethics is at the heart of Judaism s concerns.
-Rabbi Joseph Telushkin, author, A Code of Jewish Ethics and Jewish Literacy
Offers a valuable framework for understanding the internal tension so many Jews deal with-survival vs. social justice. The book makes clear that this is not an either/or proposition but an and imperative. The Jewish community cannot afford to ignore its survival needs nor can the community justify its existence without a deep commitment to social justice. Sid Schwarz s well researched, compelling and insightful book has an important message for our generation.
-Edith Everett, philanthropist and community activist
A thoughtful, sophisticated, and ultimately deeply spiritual account of the connection between Jews, Judaism and social justice. A work that every Jewish communal leader, rabbi, educator, and individual seeking to understand what Judaism has to say in and to the contemporary world must read. As he did in his masterful first book, Finding a Spiritual Home , Rabbi Schwarz opens a window into some of the most creative activity taking place in American Jewish life today and shows how the Jewish community can again be a source of moral inspiration, fellowship, and profound meaning for contemporary Jews. In Judaism and Justice Rabbi Schwarz brings to bear his own decades of experience as both a leader in the Jewish community relations field and a Jewish educator par excellence to demonstrate why a passion for social justice is critical to ensure the very continuity that the community so ardently seeks.
-Dr. Jonathan Woocher, CEO, Jewish Education Service of North America; author, Sacred Survival: The Civil Religion of American Jews
Sid Schwarz s book is long overdue. By providing a social justice interpretation of the classical texts, an analysis of the organized Jewish community s views on public policy, and an exploration of the emergent Jewish social justice movement, Schwarz covers the depth and breadth of the Jewish social justice story. From his decades of experience as a social change leader in the Jewish community, Schwarz has a profound understanding of the ties that bind Jews to this vital work. A must read for anyone seeking to understand this phenomenon and what Jews might contribute to social change in the years to come.
-Simon Greer, president CEO, Jewish FundS for Justice
A comprehensive and sophisticated analysis of the role that social justice plays in defining the commitments of North American Jews. Drawing on the theological ideals of particularity and covenant embedded in the classical Jewish concepts of Exodus and Sinai, Schwarz illuminates the modern Jewish condition and argues how a passion for justice is necessary for a widespread renaissance of Judaism among contemporary American Jews. Judicious and intelligent throughout, it constitutes a valuable contribution to modern Jewish thought and history.
-Dr. David Ellenson, president, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion; author, After Emancipation: Jewish Religious Responses to Modernity
A powerful answer to the question of whether Judaism can make life worth living. The book is rich with classical Jewish sources as well as history and sociology. There is much to learn about Jewish life, especially the story of Jews in the United States. Yet, most compellingly, Sid Schwarz is a storyteller out to inspire us to live a meaningful life by rolling up our sleeves and grasping a world that needs healing.
-Dr. David Elcott, executive director, Israel Policy Forum; author, A Sacred Journey: The Jewish Quest for a Perfect World
Rabbi Sid Schwarz s passion and love for his people and all of humankind comes through powerfully in this volume. It speaks the message that the test of community is how it embraces the most vulnerable. In Judaism and Justice Rabbi Schwarz shows the way with mind, soul and heart. Bravo!
-Rabbi Avi Weiss, Hebrew Institute of Riverdale, founder and rosh yeshiva , Yeshivat Chovevei Torah Rabbinical School
Sidney Schwarz-rabbi, activist, and social justice educator-draws upon all these roles to provide the rationale and context for Jewish social justice engagement in twenty-first century America. Judaism and Justice makes the case for a socially conscious and Jewishly informed involvement on the part of all those who care about repairing the world.
-Dr. Steven M. Cohen, research professor of Jewish social policy, Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion
A must read for anyone concerned about Judaism, justice, or both. Schwarz, who has decades of experience in linking Judaism and justice in the lives of young Jews coming from all kinds of Jewish backgrounds, here describes how and why Judaism and justice have and should be linked. This is a reasoned but passionate call to tie our concerns for the Jewish future with our work for a better future for all. With his advice, we just might succeed in doing that.
-Rabbi Elliot N. Dorff, PhD, professor of philosophy, University of Judaism; author, To Do the Right and the Good and The Way Into Tikkun Olam (Repairing the World)
A powerful way to teach the history and meaning of the American Jewish commitment to tikkun olam . By framing the commitment in his innovative concept of the tension between Jewish Sinai and Exodus impulses, Schwarz has given the Jewish community a way to understand its social justice commitment and to measure it. With eloquence and without an iota of artifice or hyperbole Judaism and Justice will inspire Jews to make the world a better place in the years and decades to come.
-Rabbi Steven Gutow, executive vice president, Jewish Council for Public Affairs
Also by Rabbi Sidney Schwarz
Finding a Spiritual Home:
How a New Generation of Jews Can Transform the American Synagogue
(Jewish Lights)
To my wife and life partner, Sandy:
My heart has come to trust your intuition (v. 11).
The Torah of kindness that comes from your lips continues to guide me (v. 26).
My words of praise are not sufficient (v.28).
-I NSPIRED BY THE E ISHET C HAYIL , W OMAN OF V ALOR , P ROVERBS CHAPTER 31
Contents
Foreword by Ruth Messinger
Acknowledgments
Introduction
P ART I. The Jewish Condition
1. The Purpose of Judaism
2. The Exodus-Sinai Continuum of Jewish Life
P ART II. Sinai
3. Genesis: Abraham and the Call
4. Exodus: Embracing the Covenant
5. Leviticus: Roadmap to a More Perfect World
6. Numbers: From Wilderness to Prophecy
7. Deuteronomy: How Central Is God?
8. Sinai Applied: Seven Core Values of the Rabbinic Tradition
P ART III. Exodus and Sinai in America
9. The American Jewish Community and the Public Square
10. Jews and the Struggle for Civil Rights
11. Soviet Jewry: A Cause of Our Own
12. Protecting and Defending the State of Israel
P ART IV. A New Era
13. What Is a Jewish Issue?
14. Beyond Self-Interest
15. Social Justice Takes Root
16. Reconciling Exodus and Sinai
17. Conclusion: Responding to the Call
Resource List of Jewish Social Justice/Community Service Organizations
Interviews
Endnotes
Bibliography
Index

About Jewish Lights
Copyright
Foreword
Ruth Messinger
It is appropriate that in these early years of the twenty-first century Jews take a new look at who we are, where we have traveled, and how best to use our faith to address the challenges of our time. As Sid Schwarz makes clear in this timely, thoughtful, and perceptive book, a detailed examination of the role of social justice in Judaism is central to this inquiry and offers us valuable insights and new directions for our work. It turns out that working in various settings to help repair and improve the world offers en