Book Recomendations I
*ahem* A confession here....I....uh....I don't have a TV. Really. The only way I watch anything is when it becomes available on DVD at the library, and then I can watch it on my computer. Needless to say this allows me some mad amount of reading time, and since other people do movie/tv reviews and I can't necessarily do that, I thought I would give some recomendations and reviews on books that I have been reading lately. Today's topic Jewish understanding of the Hebrew Bible. So viola:
Understanding Genesis & Exploring Exodus
by Nahum M. Sarna
I loved both of these books and his other popular book On the Book of Psalms. These two however explain in detail the cosmology of the ancient world, ancient texts of the Middle East that influenced many of the stories in these books and examines them in light of what we have received in the Bible. The most enlightening part is the differences between the Biblical stories and the other various texts and Sarna is quick to point them out, and expound on them. One warning, he was an ordained Rabbi but he was also a keen academic, teaching at the Jewish Theological Seminary and eventually retiring from Brandies University where his son now teaches. All that means is that sometimes, this book gets real heavy, and you have to read and re-read sections just to understand what he's saying. But they are definately worth the effort.
The Prophets
by Abraham Joshua Heschel
If you can slog your way through the first portion, go for it. Heschel goes through each of the literary prophets and gives a sort of commentary on what makes them and the prophets in general tick. Very interesting, but the best section is the second half. And you don't need to read the first part to understand it, so skip it if you want! In the second half Heschel deals with the idea of an emotional god. That is one who creates, cares for His creation and is concerned with what goes on. He calls this characteristic Pathos (ala Greek) and shows how God can only be truly perfect with this trait and the more popular "Stoic" God (unchanging, unconcerned, kinda like a bully at best) is certainly less. It will seriously challenge your perception of God in the prophetic writings. He also is an academic and Rabbi, but easier to read than Sarna. Anything by Heschel is usually worth the effort, I also highly recomend The Sabbath, Man's Quest for God and God in Search of Man.
by Nahum M. Sarna
I loved both of these books and his other popular book On the Book of Psalms. These two however explain in detail the cosmology of the ancient world, ancient texts of the Middle East that influenced many of the stories in these books and examines them in light of what we have received in the Bible. The most enlightening part is the differences between the Biblical stories and the other various texts and Sarna is quick to point them out, and expound on them. One warning, he was an ordained Rabbi but he was also a keen academic, teaching at the Jewish Theological Seminary and eventually retiring from Brandies University where his son now teaches. All that means is that sometimes, this book gets real heavy, and you have to read and re-read sections just to understand what he's saying. But they are definately worth the effort.
The Prophets
by Abraham Joshua Heschel
If you can slog your way through the first portion, go for it. Heschel goes through each of the literary prophets and gives a sort of commentary on what makes them and the prophets in general tick. Very interesting, but the best section is the second half. And you don't need to read the first part to understand it, so skip it if you want! In the second half Heschel deals with the idea of an emotional god. That is one who creates, cares for His creation and is concerned with what goes on. He calls this characteristic Pathos (ala Greek) and shows how God can only be truly perfect with this trait and the more popular "Stoic" God (unchanging, unconcerned, kinda like a bully at best) is certainly less. It will seriously challenge your perception of God in the prophetic writings. He also is an academic and Rabbi, but easier to read than Sarna. Anything by Heschel is usually worth the effort, I also highly recomend The Sabbath, Man's Quest for God and God in Search of Man.
2 comments:
Great recommends...I'm intrigued by this kind of writing.
My broblem is that I do have a TV and I use it far too much.
*that would be "problem"
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