Customer Reviews

The Jewish Way: Living the Holidays

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4 star:		(1)
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"An excellent practical introduction to the festivals...succeeds brilliantly in bringing fresh life to our thoughts about the Jewish year." -- Jewish Chronicle In thoughtful and engaging prose, Rabbi Irving Greenberg explains and interprets the origin, background, interconnections, ceremonial rituals, and religious significance of all the Jewish holidays, including Passover, Yom Kippur, Purim, Hanukkah, Holocaust Remembrance Day and Israeli Independence Day. Giving detailed instructions for observance - the rituals, prayers, foods, and songs - he shows how celebrating the holy days of the Jewish calendar not only relives Jewish history but puts one in touch with the basic ideals of Judaism and the fundamental experience of life. Insightful, original, and engrossing, The Jewish Way is an essential volume that should be in every Jewish home, library, and synagogue. "An important book, one that should be read, discussed, critiqued, and then read over again." -- The Jewish Review

I am a Christian, and I read this book years ago. Since then it has become a standard on my shelf. If I want inspiration, especially the Jewish view of Sabbath, I pick up this book and read the parts I have highlighted. My heart continues to be stirred by its contents.

A wonderful overview of Shabbat and the Jewish holidays. I use it as a refresher before every holiday and recommend it as a resource for friends wanting to learn more.

This is more than the usual guide to the holidays. It is written by one of the pre-eminent Jewish thinkers of our time, and therefore rich in insight and wisdom. Rabbi Greenberg's great love of the Jewish tradition and the Jewish people pervades the work.
To read it is to learn and to be inspired to higher prayer and holier service of G-d on the holidays.

This is a lovely, beautifully written introduction to Judaism that this Catholic found absolutely fascinating. I grew up in an overwhelmingly Jewish neighborhood and was well aware of the vastly different culture that was expressed around me. Rabbi Greenberg's explication of his faith is insightful, passionate, and, in places, just plain fun. He grounds the book in the weekly and yearly liturgical cycle. The book reads like a series of sermons on the meaning of the Sabbath, and the meaning of the greater and lesser feasts of the Jewish liturgical year. I was repeatedly struck by how similar to my own Catholic faith is the stance of the believer before God, even as to the changing nuances of the various feasts throughout the year. Highly recommended.

A sometimes eloquent, sometimes dry introduction to the Jewish holidays and how they fit in with broader Jewish theology. I especially liked Greenberg's chapter on Shabbos (in which he suggests that Shabbos is intended to be a play-acting of an utopian future, just as Passover is a play-acting of the Exodus from Egypt). A minor quibble: Greenberg's discussion of differing streams of Judaism is inconsistent. Sometimes, he is punctilious in comparing Conservative and Reform views to traditional Judaism; other times, he doesn't bother -- not a problem for the more knowledgeable reader, but perhaps a trap for the unwary. Also, his apparent view that Zionism has triumphed and that anti-Semitism is not a huge problem is a bit dated -- but one could reasonably say the same about most books written by Jewish intellectuals after 1948 and before Sept. 11.

Rabbi Yitz Greenberg's book on the Jewish Holidays is a must reading for anyone who wants to acquire an appreciation of the meaning, rhythm and interconnectedness of the Jewish holidays. Prior to all the major holidays, I pull out this wonderful book, and carefully read the relevant chapter. I usually find myself smiling as I read each word so carefully, dazzled, yes, by the depth of analysis and turn of phrase, but mainly delighted to experience, again, the joys and wonders of Jewish wisdom. Each year, I learn something new and am inspired again. Thanks and I look forward to the next books.

Not only does this book explain the Jewish Holy Days, it goes into the detailed history of each. Well written and easy to read. Highly recommended by me and my rabbi professor.