This book is the culmination of a lifetime of studying and teaching Jewish philosophy and theology at the Jewish Theological Seminary. It is Rabbi Gillman's gift to his students (aren't we all his students?), and to serious Jews who think about issues like God, revelation, evil and death. It is a remarkable summary of his life’s work, and an inspiring, enlightening, refreshing presentation.

For over five decades, Rabbi Neil Gillman has helped people think through the most challenging questions at the heart of being a believing religious person. In this intimate rethinking of his own theological journey he explores the changing nature of belief and the complexities of reconciling the intellectual, emotional and moral questions of his own searching mind and soul.

If what we have in recognizing, speaking of and experiencing God is a wide-ranging treasury of humanly crafted metaphors, what, then, is the ultimate reality, the ultimate nature of God? What lies beyond the metaphors?

If humanity was an active partner in revelation—if the human community participated in what was revealed and gave it meaning—what then should be the authority of Jewish law?

How do we cope—intellectually, emotionally and morally—with suffering, the greatest challenge to our faith commitment, relationship with God and sense of a fundamentally ordered world?

Death is inevitable but why is it built in as part of the total life experience?

Rabbi Gillman confesses that he cannot answer many of these profound questions – they are simply unanswerable –in tension. But the in depth exploration of his important themes gives the thinking reader much to chew on, and for those of us who agree with most of what he has written, it is a reaffirming and confirming statement of being a Jew and a human being. Everyone who wants to understand the Bible, Judaism, and their place in one’s life should read this book.

Preface

Chapter 1: God 1

Chapter 2: Torah 43

Chapter 3: Suffering 65

Chapter 4: Death 89

Notes 109

Suggestions for Further Reading 111