These Are the Words: A Vocabulary of Jewish Spiritual Life [Hardcover]

Arthur Green (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1999

What are the most essential ideas, concepts and terms that an educated person needs to know about Judaism? What is the basic vocabulary of Jewish spiritual life? Let one of the great teachers of our time take you on a historical and spiritual journey through Judaism.

Judaism itself is a language, a group's way of expressing beliefs, longings, aspirations and dreams. The vocabulary of Jewish life is the framework that we use to hand our past on to our children. It is also the vocabulary that people of other faiths need to know to understand Judaism and Jewish life.

In this highly readable, enlightening and entertaining book, Jews and non-Jews alike can learn more about the meaning, history and origin of 149 core Hebrew words that are shared and understood throughout the Jewish world and why it is important for people to know and use these words in Hebrew. From Adonai ("My Lord") to zekhut ("merit"), these are the words that constitute the basic vocabulary of Jewish communal and religious identity.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Arthur Green, who is among the foremost scholars of Jewish spirituality, considers Judaism to be a kind of language--a "way of expressing our beliefs, longings, aspirations, dreams.... The vocabulary of Jewish life is the framework through which we hand on the past. It also provides the pegs on which we hang our hopes and dreams for the future." These Are The Words gathers Green's explanations of the basic terms of this language, from Adonai ("My Lord") to zekhut ("merit"). These 149 essays constitute a brief encyclopedia of Judaism--a helpful reminder of what the key Jewish terms mean (in a definitional sense), and of how these words shape the lives of those who speak them.

From Publishers Weekly

While writing this book, Green (Your Word Is Fire) asked himself: "What are the most essential terms that an educated Jewish seeker needs to know? What is the basic vocabulary of the Jewish spiritual life?" As he began his vocabulary list, he tried to limit it to 100 terms to correspond to the Jewish tradition of reciting 100 blessings each day. But the list grew, and he eventually included 148 Hebrew words fundamental to Jewish spirituality. Green contends that for Judaism, language constitutes the basic vocabulary of "religious/communal identity" and provides a "rootedness in the many centuries of cultural life that have come before us." The book is divided into seven sections: "God and Worlds Above," "Torah: Text and Process," "Religious Practice," "Spiritual Life," "Community," "Holy Things" and "Holy Times, Holy Seasons." In each section, Green offers brief meditations on various Hebrew terms that are central to the understanding and practice of Jewish life in that specific area. Each meditation uses the Torah as well as rabbinic and other historical sources to trace the ways in which the use of the chosen words have developed in Judaism. In the Religious Practice section, for example, in his reflection on "Bar Mitzvah/Bat Mitzvah," Green first discusses the original meaning of the phrase. He then shows how the practice developed in the 1920s to include lavish parties, and finally he discusses the way that Mordechai Kaplan, the founder of Reconstructionist Judaism, instituted the bat mitzvah, a kind of bar mitzvah for girls. Green's lively prose introduces readers to the living character of these foundational Hebrew terms. (June)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Jewish Lights Publishing (September 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1580230245
• ISBN-13: 978-1580230247
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,120,104 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Much more than a lexicon, May 2, 2000

By 

Rabbi Yonassan Gershom (Minnesota, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: These Are the Words: A Vocabulary of Jewish Spiritual Life (Hardcover)

This book is so much more than a mere lexicon of "must know" Jewish words. What Rabbi Green has done is to create a series of creative lessons about basic Jewish concepts. In the process, he clearly demonstrates how common words (and some not so common ones!) have very specific meanings within Judaism, meanings that express the inner dimensions of the religion, but are often lost in translation.

Judaism has never worked well in translation, and there was a time when all Jews learned these words in their original Hebrew contexts. Nowadays, that is no longer true, and Jews who are marginal in their Jewish identities often tend (wrongly) to use the dominant culture's translations of Jewish texts as the lens through which to read their own religion -- with the disastrous result of thinking that Judaism has no spirituality.

Rabbi Green's book helps to correct that misperception. He explains, for example, that learning Torah is not just studying the law as an intellectual exercise. It's an ongoing process of interacting with the sacred texts on a very personal level. In that sense, this book, too, is "Torah," and when you are done reading it, you will have the necessary vocabulary for grokking Judaism on both the outer and the inner levels. I highly recommend this book to anyone -- Jewish or not -- who wants to get a firm grasp on the basic vocabulary of Judaism.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A very good reference book, the language of spirituality, March 31, 2000

By 

Larry Mark "editor of MyJewishBooks.com" (nyc) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: These Are the Words: A Vocabulary of Jewish Spiritual Life (Hardcover)

Arthur Green's new book explores 149 (not 148) fundamental Hebrew words at the heart of Judaism, giving each word life and purpose for modern lives. It is a spiritual vocabulary list that can be used as a reference work. He welcomes the reader to write comments in the margins, agree and or disagree with his definitions. As he says, Judaism doesn't work in English translation, and serious study and commitment to Judaism requires a basic Hebrew vocabulary. Green, a non Kabbalistic, neo-mystic; distinguished professor, teacher, and former head of Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, began keeping a list of words while working on another book, and the list kept growing. The words are divided into eight sections. Some of the sections are: "Holy Times/Holy Seasons"; "Holy Names"; "Holy Things"; "God and The Worlds Above"; "Community"; "Religious Practice"; "Spiritual Life"; and "Torah: Text and Process." Words that are explained include the basics that are infused with greater meaning, such as Atah (You), Bar/Bat Mitzvah, Elohim (God), Emet (Truth), Ein Sof, Halacha, Emunah (Faith), Kaddish, Shekhinah, and Ber'iah (Creation).

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Converting Is Difficult -- This Book Makes It Easier, November 11, 2005

By 

Michelle Rizzo "reciprocally minded" (Yardley, PA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: These Are the Words: A Vocabulary of Jewish Spiritual Life (Paperback)

I am in the process of converting to Judaism. While deep and meaningful and fulfilling, I have found the extent of reading and learning to be complex and daunting at times. This book helps. Rather than giving mere definitions of the words, it explains the history of them and gives a background on some of the cultural, sociological, and spiritual connotations. Green's explanations help one to "feel" the words rather than just recognize them on a cognitive level. He also explains the words in terms of their Hebrew spellings, which has been enormously helpful to my understanding of the language structure, itself.