Customer Reviews

The Gifts of the Jews: How a Tribe of Desert Nomads Changed the Way Everyone Thinks and Feels (Hinges of History, Vol. 2)

5 star:		(43)
4 star:		(44)
3 star:		(21)
2 star:		(17)
1 star:		(30)

 

 

Normally, I only include books on this page that I recommended highly and unequivocally. In the case of The Gifts of the Jews, I do recommend it, but with a bit of equivocating.

There's no sense rehashing all the critiquing that has already been done on this short and fascinating volume -- it is truly a quite thought-provoking attempt at some historical paradigm shifting. My question is whether such shifting is warranted in light of the evidence Cahill brings to bear on his thesis.

Like most bible-based historical analyses, Gifts suffers from assumptive leaps often grounded on precious little substance. For example, to claim that our very concept of time evolved from one of cyclical and unbreakable repetition with no end and no beginning to our current "processive" notions of past and future because of the Jews begs more questions than Cahill tackles. Among them are how the Egyptians managed to spend decades building monuments that were intended to last forever if they were convinced it would all be for naught when the next cycle began anew. For that matter, how did the Sumerians ever get around to building cities?

The author also provides mountains of detail regarding the emotional states of biblical figures whose words and behaviors were described in the barest of minimalist proportions, attributing broad and profound meanings to mere handfuls of words. To his credit, Cahill chose for his basis an unconventional translation that hews much closer to the meaning of the original language, and in fact his presentation of that novel interpretation is the best part of this book, but some of those interpretations strain credulity to such an extent that his underlying thesis is too often undermined. As an example, jumping directly from the Burning Bush to the conclusion that "God...can burn in us without consuming" is poetic and clever but did this actually occur to the early Israelites?

Overall, there is far too much speculation upon which to hang a serious thesis, and it put me in mind of the classic skit in which one syllable uttered by a diplomat becomes three paragraphs from the translator. However, the book is so full of wonderful nuggets that it is still a delight to read, at least once you get past the overlong and overly-discursive discussion of the Sumerian "Epic of Gilgamesh," and that's why I am recommending it. Cahill's reading of the Abraham and Isaac story is tremendously moving, as is the story of the exodus from Egypt, particularly as concerns the ongoing frustrations of Moses. One of the most soul-stirring sections is the one dealing with the "minor" prophet Amos, who openly scorns the "elegant piety" of the people of Israel and exhorts them to put away the symbolic sacrifices and instead "let justice flow like water."

After reading all the negative reviews of this book, I couldn't help but state my piece. Sure, Cahill does try to justify the actions recorded in a literary tradition that he obviously respects a great deal. That makes his telling of the history of the Jewish people and the Hebrew bible INTERESTING. He does not write in a purely objective way and, as far as I am concerned, that is fine. History, despite what some may argue, is always written from someone's viewpoint- it is never totally objective. As for the book itself, I thoroughly enjoyed reading Cahill's writing. It was one of the most enjoyable histories I have read in a while. Furthermore, it is accepted scholarly fact that the Jewish people did invent (or where among the first to use) the linear model of time and among (if not the first) to have a universe in which there was one God. Cahill was also very careful to emphasize that these cultural changes were not instantaneous, but took place over many hundreds of years. So what if Cahill excuses Abraham's use of Sara to get what he wanted. Cahill is looking at history and when looking at history you have to look in the context of the culture at the time the particular history was recorded. In the ancient world, women didn't count for all that much and the original readers of the story of Abraham (and the listeners to the oral tradition before that) would not have exactly been outraged on Sara's account. Overall, though a bit slanted in its interpretations, this book is so full of great storytelling that I would consider it to be well worth a reader's time. (Although I do agree that perhaps the pagan fertility ceremony thing was a bit much.) END

I opened Thomas Cahill's The Gift of the Jews and immediately fell into a virtual journey throughout the history of the Jewish faith. Beginning with the origins of Biblical style from ancient civilizations, Cahill establishes the premise of the Bible itself and takes us on a tour of the triumphs and burdens of the Israelites. In explaining and interpreting each major action with commendable knowledge and depth, he builds towards the final, dazzling effect of proving the gifts of the Jews as characteristics we utilize daily but take for granted, including our perception of time, the emphasis on individual actions, and the reliance on God not just because we are told to but because we are His. In retrospect, Cahill did a remarkable job instilling a sense of enthusiasm about the Bible in his readers as he drove home specific points important to him. I found his explanation of the Jewish gift of time to be particularly well written and moving, emphasizing that "in this moment-and only in this moment-I am in control. This is the moment of choice..." (146). Cahill provides us with the inspiration to take control of what we are doing, to take a look at the bigger picture (the history of burdened people), and to thank our Jewish ancestors for handing down the "gifts" that have shaped who we are today.

I could not enjoy this book because I could not escape the nagging suspicion that Cahill was just parroting the people he studied with when researching this book. I thought he was doing this because of the few really interesting insights he makes. I don't trust what he tells me is true since he seems so intellectually sloppy. He mentions briefly that, and the dust jacket announces, that this book is a celebration of the innovation of change and free will by Abraham. Yet Cahill lets that famous event (God's saying "Go forth" to Abe) pass dull-y. I was reading it and suddenly realized, "Wait, when did God make that famous announcement?" For all its supposed importance as the heart of the "gift of the Jews", Cahill has absolutely no buildup to it. The book then plunges into a rather insipid and schoolboy synopsis of the Bible. I found myself distrusting everything he writes because I don't trust Cahill's intellectual credentials for this topic; he seems to meander so (about some poorly strung-together ancient myths that have NOTHING to do with his thesis, but which pad the page length of this waste of paper) and never to offer references and footnotes. He seems to be blithely repeating his professors remarks in lecture, hoping their profundity and brilliance will come across in his writing. They don't. As far as a synopsis of the change from pantheism to monotheism, read the bestselling A History of God by Karen? Armstrong, from 1992, I think. This book really is disappointing--a senior editor at a major publishing house thinks this is good? There is very little worthwhile content here, which is almost immediately recognizable from the enormous type and margins. At most Cahill's thesis, if done well, would be 30-50 pages for anyone with more interest in publishing something of substance. Do not buy this book. Stick to real scholars for your intellectual reading.

First off, understand that this book is largely speculative. If the reader has that perspective, they will enjoy this book very much. Having read other, less favorable reviews, I doubt this perspective is commonly shared by other readers. Cahill uses humor, and charming stories that lift historical figures, such as Ruth, Moses and Abraham, from the pages of common historical drudgery. Although he speculates about their personal character, so did I throughout the book. This didn't prevent me from disagreeing with Mr. Cahill. I found it interesting, for example, to hear the Hebrews refered to as the Hapiru during the course of my reading. Although Cahill does little to prove the valididty of this pronunciation, it does make the book fun and thought provoking. Who cares if Cahill lacks scholarly discipline. It is an interestly brief history, not a doctoral dissertation. Read it for fun. The broader view he attempts to convey will have you wondering what next spiritual step Judeo-Christians might take next.

In the past I have never been fond of historical interpretations such as this one. My motivation in reading The Gifts of the Jews was simply to perform another assignment needed to boost my grade in 10th grade religion class. However, I was pleasantly surprised. Thomas Cahill did a masterful job of making the reader, me at least, look at the whole Bible in a different perspective. Cahill presented the Bible not as a boring guidebook on how one should live but as an animated story of the evolution of the Jewish faith. It was interesting to look at faith from a historical perspective rather than a religious one. Though it might be offensive to some readers who interpret the Bible literally, I recommend it to anyone who is interested in the origins of many of our ways of thinking today. This is not just a book for Jews but for anyone, religious or not, who wants to understand the modern Judeo-Christian world we live in.

A small number of ideas at start and finish of book, but mostly a rehashing of Scripture. (I like the Cliff Notes comment above). Go out and buy yourself a good translation of the Torah instead.

I haven't read Cahill's Irish book but bought this because of the high regard for his treatment of that subject and my own interest in biblical history. This is now the second of a promised five volume series on "The Hinges of History", examining critical cultural contributions to Western civilization. If so, this book is the equivalent of a hurried second album of a long struggling rock group trying to follow a platinum success of its debut. It starts with an informative discussion of the Sumerian roots of the Hebrews but then quickly deteriorates into a Cliff's Notes to the Old Testament. After the initial pre-Abraham discussion the approach is uncomfortably flippant and dissapointedly unsupported by sources external to the Bible. It is certaintly an accessible and highly entertaintable read and worth while for readers whose familiarity with biblical tales has diminished since youth. As any kind of serious discussion of cultural history of the ancient Hebrews or of the Jewish people it does not meet expectations. As history, it's the equivalent of a Grisham novel - rushed out to satisfy a four volume contract. History needs writers of Cahill's incisiveness and writing skill, but this reads as if it were written against a weekend deadline.

Perhaps this book would have seemed less trifling and annoying if I had never read any of the Scriptures, and had no previous knowledge, however slight, of Middle Eastern history or mythology. But since that was not the case, I thought this book was a very poor introduction to this fascinating subject. It begins with a DeMille-like soft porn depiction of an imagined ancient pagan ritual which had me laughing out loud. To be fair, the author doesn't claim to have any historical documentation for the temple scenes he describes. It probably seemed like just the sort of thing that polytheistic goddess-worshipping simpletons were likely to get up to under the influence of hallucinogens and muddled thinking. Perhaps this is a good introduction after all, as muddled thinking plays a major role throughout this book. As long as the reader understands this, there is probably no harm in reading the rest for its entertainment value.

Maybe if you are interested in learning about the ancient world and its religious thought, and don't know where to begin, this is better than nothing. However, please don't let this lightweight feel-good fluff be the only thing you read. If you want to find out what people in the ancient Near East really wrote and thought, you might start by reading primary sources, such as the Bible, the Epic of Gilgamesh, and the many other ancient documents which have been translated by scholars who actually care about historical accuracy. Museum websites and publications are another great source of easily accessible information. If you persevere, you will soon know enough to understand why this book seems so silly.

I am a 15 year old sophomore in high school and I read this book as a project for my religion class. I must admit, I thought this book was going to be boring and just a repeat of all the Jewish history I have learned in my 11 years of attending Catholic schools. I was wrong- this book was informative and interesting; I enjoyed it and finished the book in about a week. Cahill does an excellent job of condensing all the Jewish history into a readable and interesting novel; he touched upon the important facts, sticking to the original translations of the names and places. The section concering the Epic of Gilgamesh was confusing but I managed to get through it. I had a dictionary next to me the entire time, he writes for an older and more verbal audience. I didn't feel he was being condescending, as some suggested. I definitely recommend this for anyone interested in Jewish history- it's a nice overview.