Torah And Zion

This book contains twelve essays, ten of which appeared in Mosaic magazine in 2015-2018. They introduce English readers to a number of major Hebrew authors of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries whose work forms an important part of the literary response to the modern Jewish experience. These essays also explore the reciprocal relationship in this period between Hebrew literature, the evolution of the modern Hebrew language, and the emergence of Zionism as a historic force in Jewish life.

The editor, one of the Jewish Theological Seminary's great teachers and foremost intellects, has assembled a classic anthology of essays on Zion from biblical, rabbinic, medieval, and modern Jewish writing. Originally published in 1961 by Herzl Press, this edition contains a new introduction by Jacob Neusner

Demonstrating that the supposed irreconcilability of modern, critical biblical scholarship and traditional Judaism has been overstated, this proposal argues that modern biblical scholarship is not as scientific as its proponents make it out to be, while traditional Jewish exegesis is more critical than is commonly appreciated. It is a synthesis of the two, author Ben Zion Katz sustains, that allows for the most nuanced and comprehensive understanding of the Torah.

American aliyah (immigration to Palestine) began in the mid-nineteenth century fueled by the desire of Americans Jews to study Torah and by their wish to live and be buried in the Holy Land. This movement of people -- men and women increased between World War I and II, in direct contrast to the European Jewry's desire to immigrate to the United States. Why would American Jews want to leave America, and what characterized their resettlement? From New Zion to Old Zion analyzes the migration of American Jews to Palestine between the two World Wars and explores the contribution of these settlers to the building of Palestine. Joseph B. Glass details the scope and scale of this migration, outlines the characteristics of the immigrants, and constructs profiles of four distinct immigrant groups -- orthodox, middle-class agriculturists, urban professionals, and halutzim (pioneers). Glass studies the motivational factors for emigration from the United States, sources of information and available resources required for settlement, and the political barriers to migration. He examines the activities of the American Zion Commonwealth and its purchase and development of land in Palestine, as well as the settlement initiatives of various American companies and ahuza societies. Glass explores the role of individual men and women in urban and rural settlement on privately purchased and Jewish National Fund land. From New Zion to Old Zion draws upon international archival correspondence, newspapers, maps, photographs, interviews, and fieldwork to provide students and scholars of immigration and settlement processes, the Yishuv (Jewish community in Palestine), and American-Holy Land studies awell-researched portrait of aliyah.

A treasury of religious thought and faith--places the symbolic world of the Bible in its original context.

For the Sake of Zion is a wonderful road map to one of the great journeys of human history the return of the Jewish people to Israel. Dr. Tuvia Book combines the head of a knowledgeable expert with the heart of a passionate educator to produce a volume rich in facts, ideas, and creative pedagogy.

"The son of a Jewish father and Baptist mother, Paul Wilbur grew up attending synagogue. In college he was transformed by a Baptist minister's teaching about a rabbi, Jesus, who fulfilled the promise of the Torah. As he grew in his relationship with Jesus, Wilbur was reintroduced to the God of the Old Testament and began exploring his Jewish heritage. Along the way, he discovered the power of Jewish worship traditions-the weekly Shabbat, with the power of Holy Communion and dedication to family, along with other high holy traditions and feast days. Observing those ancient rituals, now infused with the power of the Holy Spirit, Wilbur heard a sound that he describes as a "roar from Zion." As evangelicals came to understand and incorporate ancient Jewish worship practices in their home and church lives, miracles broke out, fathers assumed their roles as the head of their families, prodigal children returned home, and marriages were restored. What began with one man is now becoming a movement, with tens of thousands taking part"--

The promotion and vernacularization of Hebrew, traditionally a language of Jewish liturgy and study, was a central accomplishment of the Zionist movement in Palestine. Viewing twentieth-century history through the lens of language, author Liora Halperin questions the accepted scholarly narrative of a Zionist move away from multilingualism during the years following World War I, demonstrating how Jews in Palestine remained connected linguistically by both preference and necessity to a world outside the boundaries of the pro-Hebrew community even as it promoted Hebrew and achieved that language's dominance. The story of language encounters in Jewish Palestine is a fascinating tale of shifting power relationships, both locally and globally. Halperin's absorbing study explores how a young national community was compelled to modify the dictates of Hebrew exclusivity as it negotiated its relationships with its Jewish population, Palestinian Arabs, the British, and others outside the margins of the national project and ultimately came to terms with the limitations of its hegemony in an interconnected world.