Seeking the Path to Life: Theological Meditations on God and the Nature of People, Love, Life and Death [Hardcover]

Ira F. Stone (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1992

The imperative to choose life is a central aspect of the Jewish approach to the world. Teacher, poet, and practical philosopher Rabbi Ira Stone takes readers on explorations of the most basic human struggles: life and death, love and anger, peace and war, covenant and exile. "For those who seek spirituality in their lives, this book is a treasure."--Rabbi Irving (Yitz) Greenberg.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In 45 intense meditations, each a page or two in length, Stone, a Philadelphia rabbi, brings a humanistic perspective to such topics as marriage, divorce, holiness, atonement, prophecy, miracles, Israel, the Holocaust and God's healing power. Stone defines evil as an accumulation of "moments-of-death in life," which fosters sin and separateness. Choosing life over death-in-life is a daily task demanding awareness and faith, he asserts. Drawing on his experience in overcoming the deaths of his two infant sons, Stone outlines an inspiring path of renewal that includes love, prayer, study, constructive anger, communal energy and helping others. A liberal thinker, he maintains that same-sex relationships are natural and acceptable if arising out of love and a desire for psychological balance. In a postscript he interprets the Torah as revelation and as a signpost to redemption.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

This wonderful collection of brief, lyrical, personal meditations by a Jewish conservative rabbi gives words to the human struggle to find God in the midst of the chaos of modern life. Although directed primarily to Jews, the book can easily be read and appreciated by others who will find either echoes of their own belief or enlightening differences. Stone demonstrates how life--especially redemptive and salvific life--is an option, a continuous daily task of choosing "life or death--God's presence or God's absence." Stone calls the reader to live in two worlds, this life and beyond this life (through repentance, suffering, and miracles). Recommended for large public libraries.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 132 pages
• Publisher: Jewish Lights Pub; 1st edition (October 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1879045176
• ISBN-13: 978-1879045170
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,090,866 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars If you like reading about death, you'll love this book., December 4, 2010

By 

Jeffrey Cohan - See all my reviews

This review is from: Seeking the Path to Life: Theological Meditations on God and the Nature of People, Love, Life and Death (Paperback)

There are good reasons why Rabbi Ira Stone's "Seeking the Path to Life: Theological Meditations on God and the Nature of People Love, Life and Death" was not one of the better selling Jewish Lights books.

It is a very difficult book to read for two reasons.

One, Stone views almost everything through the prism of death. He can be forgiven this, as he lost two young sons. And his theology is not without merit. His point that death is a slow process, not a one-time event that happens at the end point of our lives, rings true. We do have moments of death during our lives, moments, even long stretches, when we're not truly fully alive.

But any book of theology that dwells on death is not going to make it onto the best-seller list.

Less forgivable and less acceptable is the opacity of much of Stone's prose. It's hard work getting through some of his tangled sentences, and it's not always worth the reward.