The Jewish Book Of Why

The Jewish Book of Why has sold more than three million copies to date and has been translated into several languages. In this bestseller turned Miniature Edition™, scholar Rabbi Alfred J. Kolatch explains the significance and origin of nearly every symbol and practice known to Jewish culture. It's an essential guide for both Jews and non-Jews alike, and will answer a wide spectrum of questions on every aspect of Jewish custom, tradition, and life.

Why have Jews been the object of the most enduring and universal hatred in history? Why is the Jewish state the most despised country in the world today? Dennis Prager and Joseph Telushkin, authors of the widely acclaimed The Nine Questions People Ask About Judaism, take on these momentous question. Why the Jews? discards conventional explanations of antisemitism to argue that its root causes are, paradoxically, the very convictions that have ensured Jewish survival: the Jewish conceptions of God, Law, and Peoplehood. Drawing on extensive historical research, the authors reveal how these distinctive Jewish values have precipitated universal antisemitism by making the Jew, and now the Jewish state, into outsiders-challengers-to other people's Gods, laws, or national allegiances.

Offering concise, straightforward answers to many questions surrounding Jewish life and practice, Rabbi Kolatch describes practically every symbol, custom, and convention relating to the public and personal life of the Jew, and attempts to dispell prevalent misunderstandings and misconceptions pertaining to Jewish observance.

"All beginnings require that you unlock new doors."--Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav In this short and inspiring text, Rabbi David J. Wolpe addresses all who seek to enlarge the spiritual side of their lives. For those considering a return to the faith of their forebears, for those drawn to conversion, Why Be Jewish? is a learned, graceful, and welcoming introduction beckoning readers into the heart of this venerable and enduring religion.