The Wondering Jew: Israel and the Search for Jewish Identity

by Micah Goodman, Eylon Levy (Translator)

Overview

A celebrated Israeli author explores the roots of the divide between religion and secularism in Israel today, and offers a path to bridging the divide

"A thoughtful social, political, and philosophical examination of Judaism. . . . A cogent consideration of the place of religion in the modern world."—Kirkus Reviews

Zionism began as a movement full of contradictions, between a pull to the past and a desire to forge a new future. Israel has become a place of fragmentation, between those who sanctify religious tradition and those who wish to escape its grasp. Now a new middle ground is emerging between religious and secular Jews who want to engage with their heritage—without being restricted by it or losing it completely.
 
In this incisive book, acclaimed author Micah Goodman explores Israeli Judaism and the conflict between religion and secularism, one of the major causes of political polarization throughout the world. Revisiting traditional religious sources and seminal works of secularism, he reveals that each contains an openness to learn from the other’s messages. Goodman challenges both orthodoxies, proposing a new approach to bridge the divide between religion and secularism and pave a path toward healing a society torn asunder by extremism.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780300252248
Publisher:	Yale University Press
Publication date:	11/10/2020
Pages:	264
Product dimensions:	6.12(w) x 9.25(h) x 0.93(d)

About the Author

Micah Goodman is president of Beit Prat, one of the leading organizations in Israel for young adults, and a senior fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem. The author of Catch‑67, he is considered one of the most original and influential public intellectuals in Israel.

Table of Contents

Introduction: A Twenty-First-Century Dilemma 1

Part I The Clash Of Identities That Ruptured Israeli Judaism

Introduction 15

1 The Great Revolt 21

2 The New Orthodoxy 31

Part II Alternative Secularism

Introduction 43

3 Cultural Secularism 47

4 Mystical Secularism 61

5 Halakhic Secularism 71

6 Is Secular Judaism Still Judaism? 77

Part III Alternative Religiosity

Introduction 97

7 Messianic Religious Zionism 103

8 Non-Diasporic Judaism 111

9 Sephardic Rabbis and Traditionalist Judaism 129

Part IV Toward A Revitalized Judaism

Introduction 145

10 Parallel Worlds, Parallel Divisions 149

11 Self-Confidence and Fears About identity 163

12 The Israeli Middle Ground 171

Afterword: A Digital-Free Sabbath 181

Notes 191

Acknowledgments 245

Index 249

Editorial Reviews

"A thoughtful social, political, and philosophical examination of Judaism. . . . A cogent consideration of the place of religion in the modern world.“—Kirkus Reviews

“An informed account of contemporary developments within Israeli Judaism that is essential information for anyone who would want a deeper study of contemporary Judaism.”—Daniel Joslyn-Siemiatkoski, Horizons

“What a delight to once again read the wisdom, relish the immense scholarship, experience the passion, and hear the singular voice of Micah Goodman. The Wondering Jew is a modern Jewish classic, an essential read for all those who care about the future of Judaism, of Israel, and the Jewish people.”—Michael B. Oren, author of Six Days of War

“What a joy it is to read Micah Goodman’s calm, intelligent and authoritative analysis of the explosive divide between the religious and the secular. His cogent solutions offer healing and hope for all of society. This book is not just important—it’s necessary.”—Francine Klagsbrun, author of Lioness: Golda Meir and the Nation of Israel

“With this masterwork, Goodman completes his great project, begun with his previous book, Catch-67, of analyzing and helping heal Israel’s political and cultural rifts. This book will help American readers understand why Micah Goodman is regarded by his fellow Israelis as one of the few indispensable voices of this generation.”—Yossi Klein Halevi, Shalom Hartman Institute and author of Letters to My Palestinian Neighbor

“In The Wondering Jew, Micah Goodman tackles Israel’s religious-secular divide, pointing to the insights and contributions of each side, bravely imagining a renewed Israeli Judaism that might speak to and inspire both.”—Daniel Gordis, author of Israel: A Concise History of a Nation Reborn

“With characteristic depth and a profound sense of urgency, Micah Goodman examines the dangers of authoritarian religiosity and the shortfalls of secularism, and yet somehow leaves you feeling hopeful about the future.”—Rabbi Sharon Brous, IKAR

From the Publisher

2020-09-16
An Israeli scholar considers the future of Judaism.

In a thoughtful social, political, and philosophical examination of Judaism, Goodman—a senior fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem and author of the acclaimed and controversial 2018 book Catch-67, among other works—argues for the revitalization of Judaism that meets what he sees as an abiding hunger for connection and communion. Because Orthodox Judaism is the established religion in Israel, many Israeli Jews feel a “painful tension between modern values and ancient traditions. Religious Jews feel compelled to sacrifice their conscience for their faith,” and secular Jews feel compelled to reject orthodoxy’s cultural insularity and strictures. But in rejecting religion, Goodman asserts, secular Jews cut themselves off from strong communal ties and sustaining traditions. “Human beings need to feel that they are part of, and have a part in, a story that is bigger than themselves,” he writes. Religious traditions “instill a sense that the individual will is not the most important thing in life, and this feeling pushes people to make room in their lives for others.” Goodman brings to bear the thinking of myriad Jewish philosophers and theologians to support his view that all Jews, even atheists, can benefit from a connection to Jewish tradition, including seminal texts such as the Torah, and “that secularism at its most profound maintains a relationship with the past.” “In the Jewish tradition,” he adds, “the past is engaged in a dialogue with the future.” As a member of an Orthodox congregation, he is “well aware that the stricter Orthodox Juda­ism becomes, the more acute the paradoxes at its heart will be.” Yet he believes that maintaining an “intimate contact with the cultural assets of the past” enriches his, and his family’s, life. “Judaism,” he asserts, “is the Jews’ ongoing conversation. The conversation about Judaism is Judaism.”

A cogent consideration of the place of religion in the modern world.

Kirkus Reviews