Recommendation, Please?

[Teallaura]

I'm looking for a good, general, informative text on Judaism. Something that deals with the basics and doesn't get carried away with the scholarship (beginner, please!). Any suggestions?

[lee_merrill]

Hi TL, you might try "Souls on Fire" (http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?z=y&isbn=067144171X&itm=1) by Elie Wiesel, it explains by stories and tales of people and events, the rise of Hassidic Judaism, which book (though not desribing all of Judaism) I found most insightful and enjoyable reading, and Hassidic Judaism seems from what little I may know to be the main form of religious Judaism today.

Blessings,
Lee

P.S. I also have to mention "1001 Yiddish Proverbs" (http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?z=y&isbn=0806504552&itm=1), a real prize! Some samples from memory:

"For dying, you always have time."

"A fool needs a lot of shoes."

"If you are rich, you are smart and good-looking and you sing good too."

[themuzicman]

I'm looking for a good, general, informative text on Judaism. Something that deals with the basics and doesn't get carried away with the scholarship (beginner, please!). Any suggestions?
"The God Who Risks" by Clark Pinnock. :wink:

[Lizard]

I'm looking for a good, general, informative text on Judaism. Something that deals with the basics and doesn't get carried away with the scholarship (beginner, please!). Any suggestions?

If you are looking for the Jewish Roots of Christianity, I would recommend

"Our Father Abraham: Jewish Roots of the Christian Faith" by Marvin Wilson.

If you are interested in current Judaism. :shrug:

[Teallaura]

Thanks, Far!

Not what I was looking for, but I'll put it on the list anyway. I'm writing a story in which a character is Jewish - and I'm trying to make sure I get certain details right. I think I found what I need in Wiki - but I wouldn't mind reading up some more.

Thanks!

[Teallaura]

Thanks, Lee and Muz - I'll check those out!

[themuzicman]

Thanks, Lee and Muz - I'll check those out!
Teal, take Lee's suggestion, not mine.

[kawaika]

Thanks, Far!

Not what I was looking for, but I'll put it on the list anyway. I'm writing a story in which a character is Jewish - and I'm trying to make sure I get certain details right. I think I found what I need in Wiki - but I wouldn't mind reading up some more.

Thanks!

You may be interested in reading a book called "The Chosen" by Chaim Potok. It's a novel about a Jew. You may find some interesting details in there. Or maybe not.

"In 1940s Brooklyn, New York, an accident throws Reuven Malther and Danny Saunders together. Despite their differences (Reuven is a Modern Orthodox Jew with an intellectual, Zionist father; Danny is the brilliant son and rightful heir to a Hasidic rebbe), the young men form a deep, if unlikely, friendship. Together they negotiate adolescence, family conflicts, the crisis of faith engendered when Holocaust stories begin to emerge in the U.S., loss, love, and the journey to adulthood. The intellectual and spiritual clashes between fathers, between each son and his own father, and between the two young men, provide a unique backdrop for this exploration of fathers, sons, faith, loyalty, and, ultimately, the power of love."

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0449213447/sr=8-1/qid=1153226657/ref=pd_bbs_1/104-6456421-8611131?ie=UTF8

[David Ragland]

"The God Who Risks" by Clark Pinnock. :wink:

I could not find this one on Amazon.com. I found many books by Clark Pinnock, but not by that title. He seems a little liberal for my taste at first blush. I will have to give him a closer look. :-)

In Christ,
David Ragland

[Abykale]

I'm looking for a good, general, informative text on Judaism. Something that deals with the basics and doesn't get carried away with the scholarship (beginner, please!). Any suggestions?

Check out Judaism 101 (http://www.jewfaq.org/).

[Teallaura]

No, I wanted something with some depth - not what's available here (Tweb isn't designed for the kind of thing Im looking for).

I think I got it anyway. Thanks, everyone!