Considers Jewish studies as an academic discipline from its origins to the present. The relationship between Jewish studies and religious studies is a long and complicated one, full of tensions and possibilities. Whereas the majority of scholars working within Jewish studies contend that the discipline is in a very healthy state, many who work in theory and method in religious studies disagree. For them, Jewish studies represents all that is wrong...

DELL MAN centres on third-generation deli owner Ziggy Gruber and places his story alongside those of iconic delis like Katz’s, 2nd Avenue Deli, Nate ‘n Al, Carnegie and the Stage. It tells the tale of how this savoury nostalgia-filled food arose from rich traditions and a vibrant history to become a beloved part of American cuisine.

Vitality floods its pages. Philosophers and kings, warriors and merchants, poets and financiers come alive as the story ranges across time and the globe. From ancient Palestine through Europe and the Orient, to America and modern Israel, Max Dimont shows how the saga of the Jews is interwoven with the history of virtually every nation on earth. Brilliantly narrated in a thousand and one episodes, this newly revised and updated edition tells the story...

Robert Gibbs radically revises standard interpretations of the two key figures of modern Jewish philosophy-Franz Rosenzweig, author of the monumental Star of Redemption, and Emmanuel Levinas, a major voice in contemporary intellectual life, who has inspired such thinkers as Derrida, Lyotard, Irigaray, and Blanchot. Rosenzweig and Levinas thought in relation to different philosophical schools and wrote in disparate styles. Their personal relations...

An exploration of Judaism's most sacred statement and world-changing idea. "Hear O Israel, the Eternal is Our God, the Eternal is One!" There is arguably no more important statement in Judaism than the Sh'ma. It’s words-calling us to hear, to listen, to pay attention-defy direct translation and have meant different things throughout history. In a deeply personal exploration of this sacred proclamation, command, and prayer, Rabbi Joseph B. Meszler...

When visionary Jewish immigrant Jacques Bolsey invents the Bolex in the 1920's, he puts the first home movie camera in the hands of everyday folks, fomenting a film revolution that still inspires artists to this day. Nearly a century later, Alyssa Bolsey uncovers his long lost archive and journeys to discover the man behind the machine through his personal and professional struggles.

Kutsher's Country Club was the last surviving Jewish resort in the Catskills. One of the legendary Borscht Belt hotels during its heyday, Kutsher's was family owned and operated for over 100 years. Exploring the full Dirty Dancing-era Catskills experience— and how it changed American pop culture in the comedy, sports and vacation industries—this award-winning documentary captures a last glimpse of a lost world as it disappears before our eyes....

Uncovers a fundamental change that took place in Western thinking, especially its departure from the Sephardic philosophy found in the Iberian Peninsula during the 13th century. A Vigilant Society presents a provocative hypothesis that argues that Western society as we know it emerged from the soil of Jewish intellectual advances in the thirteenth century, especially those formulated on the Iberian Peninsula. A paradigmatic shift began to occur,...

An urgent and deeply necessary work, Dear Zealots offers three powerful essays that speak directly to our present age, on the rise of zealotry in Israel and around the world. From the incomparable Amos Oz comes a series of three essays: on the universal nature of fanaticism and its possible cures, on the Jewish roots of humanism and the need for a secular pride in Israel, and on the geopolitical standing of Israel in the wider Middle East and internationally....

This magisterial work chronicles the 350-year history of the Jewish religion in America. Tracing American Judaism from its origins in the colonial era through the present day, Jonathan Sarna explores the ways in which Judaism adapted in this new context. How did American culture - predominantly Protestant and overwhelmingly capitalist - affect Jewish religion and culture? And how did American Jews shape their own communities and faith in the new world?...