Jewish Literacy Revised Ed: The Most Important Things to Know About the Jewish Religion, Its People, and Its History [Deckle Edge] [Hardcover]

Joseph Telushkin (Author)

Book Description

Release date: June 17, 2008

What does it mean to be a Jew? How does one begin to answer so extensive a question?

In this insightful and completely updated tome, esteemed rabbi and bestselling author Joseph Telushkin helps answer the question of what it means to be a Jew, in the largest sense. Widely recognized as one of the most respected and indispensable reference books on Jewish life, culture, tradition, and religion, Jewish Literacy covers every essential aspect of the Jewish people and Judaism. In 352 short and engaging chapters, Rabbi Telushkin discusses everything from the Jewish Bible and Talmud to Jewish notions of ethics to antisemitism and the Holocaust; from the history of Jews around the world to Zionism and the politics of a Jewish state; from the significance of religious traditions and holidays to how they are practiced in daily life. Whether you want to know more about Judaism in general or have specific questions you'd like answered, Jewish Literacy is sure to contain the information you need.

Rabbi Telushkin's expert knowledge of Judaism makes the updated and revised edition of Jewish Literacy an invaluable reference. A comprehensive yet thoroughly accessible resource for anyone interested in learning the fundamentals of Judaism, Jewish Literacy is a must for every Jewish home.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

A widely known spiritual leader and scholar, Rabbi Joseph Telushkin is the author of eleven influential Jewish books, including A Code of Jewish Ethics; Words That Hurt, Words That Heal; Biblical Literacy; and four novels. He lives in New York City and lectures throughout the United States.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 800 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow; Revised edition (June 17, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061374989
• ISBN-13: 978-0061374982
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 2.3 x 9.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #27,180 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #7 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Judaism > Jewish Life
  • #10 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Judaism > History of Religion
  • #14 in Books > History > World > Religious > Judaism

More About the Author

Rabbi Joseph Telushkin, spiritual leader and scholar, is the acclaimed author of nine other nonfiction books, including The Book of Jewish Values, The Golden Land: The Story of Jewish Immigration to America, and Jewish Literacy, the most widely read book on Judaism of the past two decades. He is a senior associate of CLAL, the National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership, serves on the board of the Jewish Book Council, and is the rabbi of the Los Angeles-based Synagogue for the Performing Arts. He lives with his family in New York City and lectures regularly throughout the United States.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 31 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A Worthwhile Survey of Judaism July 11, 2009

By Ronald W. Satz

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

This volume is commonly given to Jewish Confirmands, and with good reason. It covers, in a compact and well-written fashion, Jewish history, religion, and culture. There are 15 parts: 1) Bible, 2) The Second Commonwealth, the Mishna, and the Talmud, 3) Early Medieval Period: Under Islam and Christianity, 4) Late Medieval Period, 5) Modern Period--Western and Eastern Europe, 6) Zionism and Israel, 7) The Holocaust, 8) American-Jewish Life, 9) Soviet Jewry, 10) Antisemitism, 11) Jewish Texts, 12) Jewish Ethics and Basic Beliefs, 13) The Hebrew Calendar and Jewish Holidays, 14) Life Cycle, and 15) Synagogue and Prayers. This volume is much easier to read than an alphabetically-organized encyclopedia.

The author is a member of the Modern Orthodox movement (which combines traditional Talmud study with secular study). His work treats quite fairly the three largest denominations of Judaism (Orthodox, Conservative, Reform), but the section on Mordecai Kaplan and Reconstructionist Judaism is rather weak--a much better summation is given by Emanuel S. Goldsmith in the Preface to Dynamic Judaism (pp. 15-30). Humanistic Judaism isn't treated at all.

The typography is very good; I found just two typos (p. 345, "statue" instead of "statute"; p. 364, "Orthodox rabbits" instead of "Orthodox rabbis"). The index is fine, but there is no glossary of terms. One glaring omission in the history section is a table of famous, accomplished Jews in the areas of mathematics, science, engineering, business, philosophy, music, and sports. (The history section is really very gloomy and disturbing; it ignores the lives of many high-achieving and happy Jews.) Leon Trotsky is covered, but Ayn Rand isn't! The section on theodicy discusses supernaturalism and atheism, but not transnaturalism.... The section on afterlife fails to compare and contrast bodily resurrection versus reincarnation (held by many Jewish thinkers, beginning with Philo). There are sources and further reading at the end of each topic, but there is no bibliography at the end of the work. Other than these few minor issues, there isn't much to complain about--the book is recommended to both Jews and non-Jews. Read more ›

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A remarkable book that stands the test of time July 19, 2009

By therosen VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

This book brings Jewish education alive. The title and size of the tome are intimidating, the reading is not. The book is an easy read that can be the either the basis of a Jewish self-education program, or easy answers to random questions about Judaism. Rabbi Tehushkin successfully makes Judaism's essence come alive. This is no mean feat, as most readers come to the book trying to undo years of sleeping through religious school.

It's a fantastic addition to the library of any Jew or student of religion.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars good revision of already excellent research book December 22, 2008

By Ronald Hulting

Format:Hardcover

The original version was a well-acclaimed research book, and the revision adds some updating material that was missing from the original. It is not as good as others regarding Jewish holidays, but its other aspects more than compensate. It is helpful for both Jews and non-Jews regarding Jewish life, Jewish history, and Jewish religion.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Literacy April 10, 2009

By Kenneth H. Smith

Format:Hardcover

This book goes deeper and broader than a "sampler". It is very well written and covers range is phenomenal. If you are looking to deepen your understanding of the Jewish religion and broaden your understanding of and capability to preach from the Old Testament, I recommend it.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An Excellent source for Jews and Non-Jews alike. November 12, 2011

By Brother Hamza

Format:Kindle Edition

I read this book to learn more about Jews and Judaism. Over the last two decades, I have read several books on Judaism, such as The Jewish Book of Why - 1 and 2, Everymany's Talmud, To Be A Jew, T o Pray as a Jew, and many others, as well as A Karaite Anthology by Leon Nemoy. I've also browsed through a book by Martin Buber on Hasidic Tales. It had been several years since I had read books on Judaism, so when I saw that a father watching his children at a playground where my children were playing, I enquired about the book. It turned out the man had been raised a Reformed Jews, but had stopped attending the synagogue. But now that he was married and had children, his wife (who was not Jewish, if I remember correctly) had wanted to start attending a conservative synagogue as a family. Since he needed not only to refresh his memory on Jewish teachings and rituals, but also to be able to explain those things to his children, this man had picked up this book and was reading a little bit each day. I could tell from our chat that he was now excited about Judaism, and so we had a wonderful discussion. A couple of days later, I picked up a copy. Once I started reading, I found I couldn't put the book down!

Rabbi Teluskin does a very good job at concisely explaining not only Jewish History and Ethics, but also gives tidbits about incidents that happened in the lives of Jews in various communities. There are multiple entries on topics such a Zionism, Hasidism, Karaites, Reformed Judaism in the USA, political parties in modern Israel, anti-Semitism, and Rabbi Teluskin's conclusions about historical figures like Jesus Christ, Muhammad, Martin Luther, and so on.... I didn't always agree with his conclusions: for instance, I don't believe Muhammad was a Jew-lover who became a Jew-Hater, but I still give Rabbi Telushkin the benefit of the doubt because he may not have read the Constitution of Medina, the first Constitution for any Islamic State, where Muslims were to treat Jews as brothers in faith. Some Jews from the 3 Jewish Tribes in Medina converted to Islam. Most did not convert, however, and they came to reject Muhammad as a Prophet. Once that happened, the various tribes at different times broke the constitution by siding with Polytheistic Arabs who were attempting to wipe-out early Islam and Muslims. Other Jews did not try to do this. The 2nd Caliph, Omar Ibn Khattab, who of course was an Imperialist, allowed the Jews to live in Jerusalem after the Muslim army defeated the Philippines. In light of the actions of my Christians and some Muslims in History towards the Jews, I think it might be easy for Jews to have the knee-jerk reaction that Muhammad was a Jew Hater, but I believe the study of both Sunni and Shia Muslim sources on early Islam would show that was not the case. The book deserves 5 stars despite my disagreement with Rabbi Telushkin on this particular issue.

The entries on historically important rabbis and their writings on law and ethics was quite eye-opening. I know of Rambam (Maimonides) because I've read excerpts from his book Guide to the Perplexed, but I never realized just how important he was in history. I'm even tempted to learn more about the Misnah Torah.

The good Rabbi wrote about Martin Buber, whom I had heard of previously. What I didn't know about before was Buber's approach to Zionism. Oh, how I wish that somehow Jews and Arabs could have sat down and talked and the two sides could have reached an agreement that was a win-win situation for both in the return of the Jews to the Holy Land. From what I have read in newspapers, I realize not all Jews and Arabs may have gotten on board with such an agreement. But, if a majority of Jews and Arabs came to an agreement, I believe the situation in the Middle East would be quite a lot better than it is now. Or, perhaps I could be wrong.
After I completed reading Jewish Literacy, I wanted to read more! I didn't want the book to end. Rabbi Telushkin has other books, so perhaps I'll read one of those. While sitting in a bookstore, I saw a copy of Herman Wouk's This Is My God, and read about 4 chapters. In the near future, I'll be picking that one up, also. I recommend both Jewish Literacy and This Is My God for Jews who want learn more about Judaism, and for non-Jews to learn about Judaism from accessible and authentic knowledgeable Jewish writers.

Lastly, to be fair, I should identify myself as a former Christian who became Muslim as a 12er Shia in 1999 at the age of 39. That may sour some readers on my review, but let it be known that I was influenced partly by Karaite Anti-Christian-Missionary writings and by Rabbi Hyam (Chaim) Maccoby's book on Paul and early Christianity. While I believe Paul was a probably a Jew of the Diaspora, if the Pauline Epistles were written by Paul, then Paul's Judaism was not the Judaism of the early disciples of Jesus Christ. Whether or not Jesus Christ was (or is) the Messiah, the early Apostles such as Simon Peter and James the Just fellowshipped with Jews in the temple who were NOT followers of Jesus (according to the Book of Acts). Thus, modern popular Christianity could not have been the original teachings of the Gospel Jesus taught. As far as the Abrahamic faith is concerned, I believe in the 12 Patriarch's of Jacob/Israel, the 12 Princes of Ishmael, the 12 Apostles of Jesus (Paul is not one of them) and the 12 Imams of Muhammad. I don't expect those who read this review to agree with that, at least one might see why I love Jews, Christians, and Muslims, whether Sunnis or Shias. Read more ›

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Memorable, a real page-turner November 21, 2009

By Michael M

Format:Hardcover

I first read this book five years ago, when I was first becoming religious, and now, five years later, after more than three years in yeshiva (Jewish seminary), I'm still quoting this book.

It's a real page-turner. I would open the book to a random page, read one of the short one-to-two page chapters, and let that be that. A few weeks later, every time I'd open the book, I'd find that I'd already read that random page. With hundreds of two-page-long chapters, it's a great book to read when you have five minutes and need something quick.