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"This work is not addressed only to scholars of Judaism or theologians, but also, and primarily, to all Jews and non-Jews who would like to share the thoughts and struggles of a person who loves Torah and Halakhah, who is committed to helping make room for and celebrate the religious and cultural diversity present in the modern world, and who believes that a commitment to Israel and to Jewish particularity must be organically connected to the rabbinic teaching, 'Beloved are all human beings created in the image of God.'"
—from the Introduction
With clarity, passion and outstanding scholarship, David Hartman addresses the spiritual and theological questions that face all Jews and all people today. From the perspective of traditional Judaism, he helps us understand the varieties of twentieth-century Jewish practice and shows that commitment to both Jewish tradition and to pluralism can create bridges of understanding between people of different religious convictions.
"This is a book that ought to be read by everyone who is seriously interested in Judaism, or, for that matter, in what it means to be a religious person in a pluralistic age."
—Hilary Putnam, Cogan University professor, Harvard University
“This is not just a book for Jews.... Hartman stands in the tradition of Abraham Joshua Heschel as a Jew who can speak to both his own people and to others with equal clarity.”
—Harvey Cox, professor of divinity, Harvard University; author, Fire from Heaven
“An extraordinary book, steeped in tradition, devoid of stereotypic thinking; lucid and pertinent, a modern classic.”
—Rabbi Harold M. Schulweis, author, For Those Who Can't Believe
“In A Heart of Many Rooms David Hartman has given us that rarest of phenomena, an internal Jewish dialogue between the voices of tradition and modernity, Orthodoxy and Reform, religion and secularity, skepticism and faith. Thoughtful, provocative, imaginative in its reach, generous in its embrace, this is a work to challenge and enlarge us all.”
—Professor Jonathan Sacks, chief rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of Britain and the Commonwealth
Acknowledgments
Preface
Introduction
Part I
Family And Mitzvah Within An Interpretive Tradition
1. Judaism As An Interpretive Tradition
2. The Joy Of Torah
3. Memory And Values: A Traditional Response To The Crisis Of The Modern Family
4. Torah And Secularism: Reflections On The Active And Passive Dimensions (Din And Rahamim) Of Jewish Spirituality
Part II
Educating Toward Inclusiveness
5. Creating A Shared Spiritual Language For Israeli And Diaspora Education
6. In Search Of A Guiding Vision For Jewish Education
Part III
Celebrating Religious Diversity
7. Celebrating Religious Diversity
8. Revelation And Creation: The Particular And The Universal In Judaism
9. Abraham Joshua Heschel: A Heroic Witness To Religious Pluralism
10. An Open Letter To A Reform Rabbi
11. Israel's Responsibility For World Jewry: Reflections On Debate About The Conversion Law
Part IV
Religious Perspectives On The Future Of Israel
12. Zionism And The Continuity Of Judaism
13. Widening The Scope Of Covenantal Consciousness
14. Aliyah: The Transformation And Renewal Of An Ideal
15. Auschwitz Or Sinai? In The Aftermath Of The Israeli-Lebanese War
16. Yeshayahu Leibowitz’s Vision Of Israel, Zionism, And Judaism
Index