Customer Reviews

Jewish Living: A Guide to Contemporary Reform Practice, Revised Edition

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Dr. Washofsky outlines contemporary Reform Jewish practice within the context of Jewish tradition. His explanations are clear and informative, the topics covered nearly exhaustive. This work far exceeds any other attempts to define a Reform Jewish practice thus far. This is a "must have" for every Reform household.

This is the best reference available for Reform Halacha. Halacha refers traditionally to Jewish law, and it has been argued that the Reform movement is "non-Halachic" but Rabbi Washofsky counters this view, positing that there is such a thing as Reform Halacha, interpreted to be "practice." It covers the expected areas of prayer and synagogue life and holiday observance, as well as areas generally considered to be outside the concern of Reform -- such as the dietary laws. Other topics are: life cycle, conversion, medical ethics, between Jews and non-Jews, Reform Judaism in relation to the Jewish Community at large, Judaism and Society. Over all, it really is an excellent guide to Jewish practice as it affects all aspects of life, from the most significant of times to the seemingly everyday.

To be honest, I have only just begun to read this book. On first glance at the table of context you see that Washofsky intends to fit as much as possible into one volume, which was the reason for my purchase. Once I got it and looked through it a bit, I noticed a thing or two missing. For example, he speaks of homosexual relationships and premarital sex but completely ignores marriage between a Jew and a non-Jew (as far as I have found so far). That isn't too big of a deal, but it was something I wanted to read about and I was disappointed that it wasn't in this book.

I gave the book 3 stars because it is subtitled "a guide to contemporary reform practice" which leads the purchaser to believe that it is a good place to start, but Washofsky writes in an extremely academic manner. For the beginner to Judaism, I would recommend starting with Essential Judaism by George Robinson and moving to Jewish Living when you are further along in your studies.

Not a great book but well written. I think the author should speak to his audience in a clear and more concise fashion

good condition, got here when it said it would!