Jewish Literacy: The Most Important Things to Know about the Jewish Religion, Its People, and Its History by Joseph Telushkin

Jewish Literacy: The Most Important Things to Know about the Jewish Religion, Its People, and Its History Reviews

• 
  India M. Clamp

  Our author Joseph Telushkin was ordained at Yeshiva University and grew up in Brooklyn. With over fifteen books to his credit (non-fiction ) and cited by the President of Yeshiva University about his text “a gift to humankind," Rabbi Telushkin is an authority on Judaism. He illustrates quite simply the power of our words and how they can influence us and others in the right or wrong direction. Being mindful of the בְּרֵאשִׁית‎ and סוֹף and our non-secular substantive role in each.
  
  “The burning but unconsumed bush recalls nothing so much as the opening chapter of Genesis, in which God’s divinity is made manifest by his unique ability to control nature.”
  —Rabbi Joseph Telushkin
  
  The breadth of knowledge in this text is all encompassing. Many people wonder what is the essence of being a Jew. Rabbi Telushkin assists us in defining the meaning of the life of a Jew and this book serves as a reference on the intertwined connection apparent in the quotidian habits of a life, traditions (Shabbat), culture and religion of Judaism. Discussions within are part of learning about the bible, Talmud and how the play of ethics surfaces from anti-semitism to the holocost.
• 
  char

  The book was extremely thorough and educational, and works both as a collection of individual encyclopedic entries and as a whole cohesive narrative. However, it only gets three stars because of the distracting and persistent Islamaphobia that came up every time the author mentions "Mohammed" or laments the permanence of the mosque at the Dome on the Rock, lest there be "an international Islamic jihad (holy war)." He also misunderstands many themes and elements of the Qur'an, which is problematic when you're trying to compare the Qur'an to the Torah.
• 
  Simcha York

  Rabbi Telushkin's Jewish Literacy is intended to serve as a general introduction to Judaism and Jewish culture and history. It performs more than admirably as such an introduction. Telushkin's prose is simple and elegant and capable of delivering large amounts of information with little wasted verbiage. His style is engaging as well as informative. This is no dry Judaism 101 textbook. Telushkin clearly has a love for this work and it comes through in his writing. He has an academic's grasp of the facts, and a storyteller's gift for the personal and historical anecdote.
  
  This book is a must-have for anyone looking for a general introduction or reference to Judaism and Jewish cultural literacy.
• 
  Edward

  A good overview of Jewish ideas, history, and theological principles written by a member of the Jewish community. Arranged in short articles, the information is easy to digest regardless of background and makes for rapid reading despite its 750-page length.
  
  The author seems to come from a fairly conservative (in the context of Judaism, not necessarily politics) mindset, but makes a sincere effort to represent the many sects, opinions, and divisions within his religion. For non-Jews, this may be the most valuable attribute of the book: dispelling monolithic assumptions about Judaism. If you grew up in any kind of Christian religious tradition, you automatically know some things about the Jewish religion, because Christianity is a historical offshoot (or appropriation, depending on who you ask) of Judaism. If your knowledge stops there though, you only get part of the picture; you've only understood something as explained by outsiders from the outside of a community.
  
  As with any encyclopedic summary of a much broader, deeper subject, it's also important to see books like this as the beginning of further research. Because of the format, Telushkin often doesn't go into detail about topics that often have entire books devoted to them. This is not his fault, but it sometimes allows him (whether consciously or not) to gloss over facts that reflect negatively on his biases. As an example, his stance on the modern state of Israel: he is understandably very favorable toward it, its survival, and in justifying certain actions taken by its government. In one entry, he briefly mentions an incident that took place at Kafr Qasim, an Arab village within Israel's borders, in 1956, where a group of Israeli soldiers murdered almost fifty Arab civilians for unknowingly violating a curfew order. Telushkin condemns this of course, and notes how the Israeli government tried, and convicted, some of the soldiers involved. He stops there, and the reader is left with the impression that Israel holds itself to high standards when it comes to the conduct of its military. He neglected to note however, that all the convicted soldiers were pardoned within a year, and their commanding officer was given a largely symbolic fine. While this revelation doesn't mean Israelis don't care about Arab civilian deaths, it can affect one's judgement overall. It also explains why Arabs may still feel some bitterness over the affair despite an official condemnation of the soldier's actions.
  
  Still, I think it's on the reader to tease out this kind of information and make decisions about its larger implications on his or her own. Personally, I came away with more sympathy toward Israel than I had before--and a greater awareness of the assumptions many Americans make when it comes to going too far in that direction and believing Israel can do no wrong. I look forward to reading more about Israel, and everything else Telushkin covered.
• 
  Coop Williams

  "Jewish Literacy" is formatted as an encyclopedia of Jewish history, with 1-5 pg. entries on things like King Nebuchadnezzar and The Damascus Blood Libel. I chose to read it sequentially to my wife as a bedtime story. We found it often makes for violent and tragic bedtime stories. Nonetheless, the book is full of important summaries that seem really useful for a non-Jew trying to understand the Jewish people. Occasionally, the author shares a legend, story, or aphorism that is truly profound (I loved the chapter on Rabbi Israel Salanter). And if you've never surveyed the history of the Jews, you may be amazed by all the momentous turns of events and paradigm shifts.
  
  I have two substantial complaints, though. The first is that Rabbi Telushkin does not delve deeply enough into the Jewish thinkers he discusses. For some figures, like Rabbi Akiva or Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik, far too much time is spent on their geographical movements and the respect afforded them, and not enough time on their actual teachings.
  
  My second complaint is that the author is highly motivated, and not subtly, to read Zionism into potentially any part of Jewish history. If you read this book, you'll see what I mean. It becomes extremely annoying in that it feels like the author is wasting my time with politically motivated reasoning.
• 
  Ryan

  Really interesting for the first 600 pages. Har har.
  
  Exactly what I was looking for in terms of a book on a religion - it's essentially a narrative encyclopedia about Judaism. Goes through the Bible, religious texts, historical periods, and then contemporary practice and custom (the last bit I skimmed through). It picks out events, people, ideas, and places that you should know about to have some sort of literacy when thinking about Judaism (and by extension, good parts of Christianity, Islam, and world history). Really interesting. Each entry is anywhere from a few paragraphs to a few pages, usually brief and well written.
  
  I almost gave it 4 stars because at times he tries to paint Judiasm as logically the best choice of religions, but then I realized he's a Rabbi, writing a book called Jewish Literacy, and my goyim self should be more surprised at how even-handed and restrained it really was.
• 
  Laura

  Rabbi Telushkin's books are always welcomed on my nightstand, as his writing style is unassuming, eloquent, yet basic. This book serves almost as an anthology to all things Jewish, which is great for non-Jews to learn "why they do that?" for a variety of holidays, events, customs, tenets, etc.
  
  Considering Christianity is founded on many principles of Judaism, I think this book should be explored more by Christians than those of our own faith. This book certainly is written to assume that the audience knows nothing of Judaism.
  
  My favorite section of this book is that which is devoted to the noteworthy Jews of history, included Golda Meir and many others. I slowly savored each word of these mini-biographies, absorbing as much wisdom as possible.
• 
  Suzette Tanen

  I read this 670 page book over the course of the year - it's a great overview of Judaism and though I knew a lot of what's in it, R. Telushkin's stories and examples make it a very enjoyable read.
• 
  Susan

  
  This is an amazing book. In the past I'd used it for study but only read assigned pages. I'd also used it for reference. Since whatever I read was so interesting and educational, I finally decided to read it cover to cover. I learned SO much. It's not for in-depth knowledge with its chapters of 2-3 pages or less. But enough to know at least a little bit about almost every Jewish topic of import regarding history, theology, tradition, modern Jewish issues, important Jews and Jewish scholars, the Holocaust, etc etc. After reading, one should be literate about most aspects of Judaism. Exactly as the title says. It is a tremendous work, and clearly a long labor of love by Joseph Telushkin.
• 
  βαβυλών

  So, I came to the conclusion this author was sort of insufferable well before I made it to the point in the book, about 1/3 through, that it devolves into nothing but virulent anti-Palestinian/pro-Zionist propaganda. There is nothing in this book that can't be found elsewhere, from authors that aren't casually Islamophobic apologists of genocide that use the n-word to make points about antisemitism. Awful.
• 
  Amanda J

  Comprehensive and very well organized reference book on the Jewish people and Judaism.
• 
  Frankie

  Amazing and totally a staple for me on my path!
• 
  Ray

  I think this was a nice introduction to Judaism. Not very in-depth, of course, but it has further piqued my interest. A major downside was the author's Zionist views and insistence that anti-Zionist Jewish people are "self-hating."
• 
  Nathan Albright

  This is by no means a small book, and I must admit I have some quibbles about it--especially where the author engages in Talmudic studies--but if you want to understand Judaism from a contemporary Conservative Jew, this is certainly a worthwhile reference source although at 750 pages is not the sort of book that most people will want to plow through in one go.  Even an ambitious reader like myself read this book in chunks over the period of a couple of weeks, and I cannot imagine this book being read much faster than this without becoming the stuff of nightmares.  It should be noted that there are a lot of parallels between this book and the author's work on biblical literacy, although in both cases the author's view of biblical interpretation involves the Talmud rather than merely the midrashic interpretation that non-Jewish readers would be more amenable to.  This book could likely be considered to be the sort of work that would not be likely to appeal outside of an audience of Jews who might want to understand their own background better or those who are at least somewhat close to Judaism in terms of their own religious thinking.
  
  This book consists of 352 entries arranged into fifteen parts that give an introduction to Jewish life and history and culture, followed by an index.  After various introductory material the author opens with a discussion about stories of the Bible, divided by book of the Bible, containing the first 63 entries (I).  After that there is a discussion of material taken from the mishnah and Talmud and the history of the second commonwealth period (II).  After this the author discusses the early medieval period where Jews were under Islam and Christianity (III), followed by the late medieval period (IV) and the early modern period in Western and Eastern Europe (V).  A somewhat sizable section includes the author's thoughts about matters relating to Zionism and Israel (VI) and another grim set of reading concerns the author's reflections on various aspects of the Holocaust (VII).  From this point the author moves on to a discussion of Jewish life in America (VIII) and short sections on Soviet Jewry (IX), Anti-Semitism (X), and Jewish texts (XI).  After this the author has some longer comments on Jewish ethics and basic beliefs (XII) as well as a discussion of the Hebrew calendar and Jewish holidays (XIII).  The author concludes the book with a discussion of the life cycle within the Jewish culture (XIV) and the synagogue and prayers of Judaism (XV), which makes for a satisfying conclusion.
  
  With a book like this I am not necessarily looking for things I agree with because there will be much that is outside of my own experience and practice.  That said, this book was very informative and I found it a worthwhile reference material from a Jewish perspective that I could take seriously even if I did not fully agree with it.  And that is likely to be the case with many readers, as this book reveals a great deal of the division that exists over authority and interpretations and beliefs and practices that is within the Jewish community.  The author is forthright about these divisions and makes a point of talking about distinctive elements that both bind people together and separate them, and that give the Jewish community a great deal of diversity even if there are frequently similar experiences of persecution to be found within the grim experience of Jews throughout much of the world.  The author has clearly thought and read a lot and conveys a melancholy sense that there is far more to say than he can manage but that he felt it important to try to provide a guide to Jewish life and history.  The achievement, if an incomplete one, is certainly a worthwhile one, and if you want a book on the subject this is certainly a fine one.
• 
  Lirazel

  5/5 for thoroughness and accessibility. I docked a star because sometimes Telushkin's bias comes through. He actually does a quite admirable job of presenting a range of Jewish beliefs on most topics in a fair and balanced way (if this were a Christian book, I'd describe it as ecumenical, but I don't know what the Hebrew/Jewish equivalent to that word is), especially considering that he's Orthodox, but there are definitely a few moments, many related to how he talks about the Arab world, that made me uncomfortable.
  
  Still, I think this is a truly excellent resource and would recommend it to anyone who's trying to increase their Jewish fluency--just keep your eyes open for those moments he might go too far. I listened to the whole audiobook from start to finish, but I think this would also be very useful as a reference book.
• 
  John Weiler

  In his epic work, Rabbi Telushkin provides a superb introduction to all things relevant to Judaism, Israel, and the Jewish people and their history. It is next to my dictionary and I have already consulted it a number of times. I am richer and wiser because of this book.
  
  It loses two stars because, far too many times, the author ascribes motives where it is not certain that one exists. Keep that in mind when you read this book. But, do ... read this book!
• 
  Eric

  This book was an amazing and addicting read that is accessible to a wide audience. It’s Judaism at a surface level but if one is interested in learning more, typically at the end of each chapter is a list of sources and further reading. I think the author strikes a perfect balance: informative but leaving you intellectually curious to want to know more.
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  liz.nicole

  i think it should be called american jewish literacy, or at most ashkenazi. it is a good general primer on those things, but it was very disappointing to get almost no information on sephardi, mizrachi and ethiopian traditions and history. it's like the western civ trajectory of judaism.
• 
  Eliina Pajunen

  Amazingly thorough introduction to Jewish religion, people, and history. Enjoyed the content overall and the history section was full of things I didn't know.
  
  EDIT: I agree with other commentors that the political bias is sometimes off-putting.
• 
  Victoria

  The short chapters on Jewish essentials make this a quick and easy book to read. Chapters are backed by scholarly references and historic anecdotes. It is best used as a reference guide.
• 
  Lesli

  A good survey, not profound, but interesting.
• 
  Bradley Farless

  Pretty good overview. It touches on almost anything one could think to ask about.
• 
  Derek Jordan

  Incredibly informative.. But so very full of facts that I really had to pair down and only 'read' in 20 min or so segments otherwise I would daydream and miss 90 percent of it.
• 
  Zachary Littrell

  For the book's flaws and warts and baggage, the vibrant, long history and deeply rooted culture has a way of shining through like a diamond. Telushkin oughtta be proud of what he's made. Because in spite of his hangups, he's written one mightily thorough, readable, and earnest catalog of everything Jewish.
  
  I cannot stress this enough: it's dizzyingly chockful of Judaica. Ancient history, modern history, biblical figures, the state of Israel, blessings, philosophies, holidays, wars, denominations, gender roles, the Holocaust, mysticism, famous writers, thinkers, politicians, and messiahs. Abraham, Fiddler on the Roof, the Jewish-Roman War, kibbutzim, Anne Frank, Flavius Josephus, and Sigmund Freud. Shoot, Telushkin even takes particular delight every chance he gets to share a little dose of Jewish humor in between:
  

  A Jew wants to get into a country club. He can’t get in because he’s Jewish; he converts and applies for membership.
  They ask him, ‘What’s your name?’
  He gives one of those pompous names like Hutchinson River Parkway III.
  ‘What do you do for a living?’
  ‘I own a seat on the New York Stock Exchange. I also have an estate; I raise horses.’
  Shoo-in for membership, one last question — ‘Sir, what is your religion?’
  ‘My religion? Why, I am a goy .’

  
  
  Although Telushkin, being a conservative Rabbi, naturally has some biases here or there about his own religion, he really does try to give an even-handed description of all varieties of Jewry. Reconstructionist, Reformed, Conservative, and Orthodox get their time. As does Ashkenazim and Sephardim. And the peculiarities of American Jews, Russians Jews, and even Ethiopian Jews. Golly, Telushkin paints this beautiful picture of an eternal, living nation spread across the world united by a history that -- not for nothing -- not even the most powerful empires in the world could break.
  
  So, then there's the problematic parts, and that's the baggage Telushkin brings with him. He is unbalanced and unfair, if not downright hateful, when he talks about Arabs and Muslims. Any mention of Islam is followed in the same damn breath as the word 'terrorist.' It's really disappointing that he speaks of Judaism's moral and ethical ideals, its millennia of surviving antisemitism, and he still depicts Arabs as, in general, the enemy.
  
  And his chapter of "Self-hating Jews" was likewise...not great. It is admittedly helpful in understanding that attitude. It is helpful to remember Jews are no more free than other groups of people from toxicity and divisive language. However, a blurb seems hardly fair to drag someone's name. It's against the encouraging spirit of the rest of the book. I think that section, as well as many others, calls for additional reading to make up your own mind, not what Telushkin's decided.
  
  (And, by the way, he is very thorough in his citations and extended readings...but boy howdy he cites himself a lot)
  
  Yet still, I gave it five stars. Mostly on the merits of Judaism itself, a really fascinating religion and people. Telushkin's best asset is clear, effective writing that stays out of its own way most of the time. And as much as it aggravated and frustrated me sometimes, I think I can call it a wonderful, unmitigated success in one aspect: many many pages later, it has me, a gentile, wanting to know much more.