I’m not asking you to take requests as if this substack is a concert, though I’ll admit I would love a post one day on the use and abuse of Kabbalah. Is it a useful resource for serious Christian reflection and prayer? Submitted without expectation.
Thanks for sharing this. I very recently procured Man is Not Alone: A Philosophy of Religion. I've so far only read The Sabbath by Heschel, but it's splendid. Last year I started learning Biblical Hebrew and exploring more intensively the Zohar (in a study group with Daniel C Matt, translator of the Pritzker ed.). But there's a "third way" in reconciling various apparently contradictory commentaries on the Torah: finding a Bible verse that speaks to both themes, usually using a specific key word from both, and allowing both opinions to be true, albeit in a limited way. This is a rich tradition, and one that merits much more of my attention.
I see from complaints in some of the reviews of the Jewish Annotated New Testament that it’s either too secular or that’s it’s even not Jewish enough, which I can’t confirm as I haven’t read it. However, for one thoroughly Jewish approach to the NT, there is the work by Dr. Eli Lizorkin-Eyzenberg on one of the NT books, The Jewish Gospel of John. He’s a notable Jewish religious scholar, is president of the Israel Bible Center in Jerusalem, his work is respected by both Jews and Christians, and he fully accepts Jesus as the Messiah, so he has some skin in the game one might say. Since that particular gospel has been problematized as anti-Jewish, Dr. Eli is diligent in discerning between evidence and conjecture, as well as important distinctions as to whom Jesus was addressing in his condemnation of the political corruption of the Judean system. Lots of context. He sees Christianity as still being Jewish, but which can take its place alongside the “gentile” version. Worth a look, and the Amazon user reviews provide some good indicators. For what it’s worth, Dr. Daniel Boyarin (UC Berkeley) admired it.
I’m not asking you to take requests as if this substack is a concert, though I’ll admit I would love a post one day on the use and abuse of Kabbalah. Is it a useful resource for serious Christian reflection and prayer? Submitted without expectation.
I need to do more reflection on the Kabbalah before I commit my thoughts to writing, but I will.
Thanks for sharing this. I very recently procured Man is Not Alone: A Philosophy of Religion. I've so far only read The Sabbath by Heschel, but it's splendid. Last year I started learning Biblical Hebrew and exploring more intensively the Zohar (in a study group with Daniel C Matt, translator of the Pritzker ed.). But there's a "third way" in reconciling various apparently contradictory commentaries on the Torah: finding a Bible verse that speaks to both themes, usually using a specific key word from both, and allowing both opinions to be true, albeit in a limited way. This is a rich tradition, and one that merits much more of my attention.
I entirely agree.
What an inspiration. I’m reading the Prophets asap…. Thank you, again.
Thank you. I would appreciate further recommendations of books to better understand the Hebrew Scriptures.
If you are looking specifically for Jewish introductions and commentaries, any of the many books by Robert Alter are highly recommended (and especially his full translation with notes: https://www.amazon.com/Hebrew-Bible-Translation-Commentary-Three/dp/0393292495/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&dib_tag=se&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.VfXdnRVdDfiHzx4XYg5TBAcxapT_OS6QMgUGiNuuM4E6XJJVarRaIWP1mtSvhXcMn-w8XSpURaqI1Xms754frjVJMH9Y4L-Q20gts8BXvqPYZLdGDappO9QOFvC6iNR2VK6lDcWrZVyMU2F0UGWatpHJ6Ku1fT8BwltAKLyRnDw7QllGQ9lyrx3oC6Lj3Cf_PjWxicfZeGa4bHx1g8liA0OCgwcjDQuwvzn1UwFpQT36eOSz8P5cBEoD75_Zx1j0RrOITkA22SyQEzJQDVRgT-5D18GN0swQvjAFGP3dBZs.cRMlEDBEBryDx7Apuj2I_Po-gQkSoZE1kf9qBrsFmts&qid=1709739074&sr=8-1).
A good one-volume commentary on the entire Bible, including the New Testament, is the Harper's Bible Commentary (I prefer the older edition: https://www.amazon.com/Harpers-Bible-Commentary-James-Mays/dp/0060655410/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1W7ZZE6J0RY3G&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.G28ca6SgDOXuN-98yw8eRlRIKe5KvxX8Db_DjH_qg8AytFdG2TL67k_7H0JAJxCbtedhk30rztXM4mlYoBY3F3OUJ_Op0e4EnhxisJLjm7vkeirhIs7jU_F2uDRivx_oq1hVJoBRvAB7Yt9z8Q4v9HPzNg__OG5PfoeMOFSbtl3WiOG1hXc5QtZIKhS5o8zRpROwOqhF_UBNdB3yFb29IRY2DcuiCdZrWTBUP-mBzng.R1R5RiUF5Kw04lKTcjAX8hO_ceTFcLBGKyRk6xIIc8g&dib_tag=se&keywords=harper%27s+bible+commentary&qid=1709739355&sprefix=Harper%27s+%2Caps%2C190&sr=8-1).
Incidentally, for a Jewish commentary on the New Testament, I recommend The Jewish Annotated New Testament (https://www.amazon.com/Jewish-Annotated-New-Testament/dp/0190461853/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2WJ2GZMJAED7T&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.e3sg_zawHCqdvfju56euwylC6RZ9fpbrlWqUiDlLe41-k5c97ZBnLxnIaDfD8HULMrQtcuZNfumf3PJ8F2SWRNvmNwIw4X2zsgHyuvqT9m0YB5Inyy_AEGrz2gpG3ojTmkkjOEyKJVepVb-wpow2cTv9HuT4MNIfpRXHqeiCoHNp0Y0zHKQIaw02ebMa3m206GqouoK6RF3_3Dh_mD1e4GdO-ndJkIYiH-X6I-VqOIs.zCscmT6wtXhWcyNK11BbGpFR4elE94WszUStizpaves&dib_tag=se&keywords=the+jewish+annotated+new+testament&qid=1709739471&sprefix=the+jewish+ann%2Caps%2C221&sr=8-1).
Wow, wonderful — thank you. I always value your recommendations.
I see from complaints in some of the reviews of the Jewish Annotated New Testament that it’s either too secular or that’s it’s even not Jewish enough, which I can’t confirm as I haven’t read it. However, for one thoroughly Jewish approach to the NT, there is the work by Dr. Eli Lizorkin-Eyzenberg on one of the NT books, The Jewish Gospel of John. He’s a notable Jewish religious scholar, is president of the Israel Bible Center in Jerusalem, his work is respected by both Jews and Christians, and he fully accepts Jesus as the Messiah, so he has some skin in the game one might say. Since that particular gospel has been problematized as anti-Jewish, Dr. Eli is diligent in discerning between evidence and conjecture, as well as important distinctions as to whom Jesus was addressing in his condemnation of the political corruption of the Judean system. Lots of context. He sees Christianity as still being Jewish, but which can take its place alongside the “gentile” version. Worth a look, and the Amazon user reviews provide some good indicators. For what it’s worth, Dr. Daniel Boyarin (UC Berkeley) admired it.
https://amzn.to/38VfEG8
Thanks for the tip.