Telushkin, Joseph Books

Jewish Literacy Revised Ed: The Most Important Things to Know About the Jewish Religion, Its People, and Its History

Joseph Telushkin

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Total reviews: 2 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

What does it mean to be a Jew? How does one begin to answer so extensive a question?

In this insightful and completely updated tome, esteemed rabbi and bestselling author Joseph Telushkin helps answer the question of what it means to be a Jew, in the largest sense. Widely recognized as one of the most respected and indispensable reference books on Jewish life, culture, tradition, and religion, Jewish Literacy covers every essential aspect of the Jewish people and Judaism. In 352 short and engaging chapters, Rabbi Telushkin discusses everything from the Jewish Bible and Talmud to Jewish notions of ethics to antisemitism and the Holocaust; from the history of Jews around the world to Zionism and the politics of a Jewish state; from the significance of religious traditions and holidays to how they are practiced in daily life. Whether you want to know more about Judaism in general or have specific questions you'd like answered, Jewish Literacy is sure to contain the information you need.

Rabbi Telushkin's expert knowledge of Judaism makes the updated and revised edition of Jewish Literacy an invaluable reference. A comprehensive yet thoroughly accessible resource for anyone interested in learning the fundamentals of Judaism, Jewish Literacy is a must for every Jewish home.

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

Joseph Telushkin

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Total reviews: 79 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

In 1988, Rabbi Joseph Telushkin undertook a mission to heal "Jewish ignorance," an affliction whose symptoms include the ability to name the three components of the Trinity, coupled with an inability to explain mitzvah. Telushkin's contribution to the cure is his wide-ranging, entertaining Jewish Literacy. First published in 1991, Jewish Literacy contains almost 350 entries on subjects ranging from the Ten Commandments to The Protocols of the Elders of Zion. Entries are numbered (for easy, encyclopedia-style reference) and organized topically (to smooth the experience of reading each page straight through). And the revised edition contains several new entries (including articles about the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin and the vice-presidential nomination of Joseph Lieberman) as well as numerous corrections, enlargements, and updates. One might expect Rabbi Telushkin's project of inspiring Jewish literacy to be overly earnest, but the author's understated wit adds considerable levity to most entries. The entry on "Sodom and Gomorrah," for instance, ends this way: "A number of years ago, some Israeli promoters of tourism suggested transforming the modern city of Sodom into a tourist haven with casinos, nightclubs, and even strip shows. The Chief Rabbinate in Israel sharply demurred, warning that there was nothing to prevent God from destroying the city a second time. The plan was dropped." --Michael Joseph Gross

The Book of Jewish Values: A Day-by-Day Guide to Ethical Living

Joseph Telushkin

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Total reviews: 31 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

The Book of Jewish Values requires great commitment from its reader, and it promises great reward. "[F]or ethical teachings to carve a way into our hearts, we must study and practice them ... day after day after day," explains Rabbi Joseph Telushkin in the book's introduction. The book is structured as a daily guide to living, with scriptural lessons, meditations, and exercises covering topics ranging from "the first trait to look for in a spouse (Day 17)" to "how to change negative patterns of behavior (Day 150)." At the end of each week, Rabbi Telushkin provides a special Sabbath review of the prior six days' teachings, to ensure continuity among the book's many lessons. This simple, straightforward approach to religious and ethical teaching is an ancient and proven one. As Rabbi Telushkin points out, great teachers through the ages have always said that diligence is the beginning of virtue. (Consider, for instance, Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav: "If you are not going to be better tomorrow than you were today, then what need have you for tomorrow?") --Michael Joseph Gross

Nine Questions People Ask About Judaism

Dennis Prager, Joseph Telushkin

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Total reviews: 23 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Very easy to read but informative 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

I was raised Christian, if lapsed, and have always wanted to learn about Judaism. This was a great book to start with. It explained lots of things to me relating to things I have thought about but couldn't put words to. It also tells why Israel is and always has been a threat to hardcore leftists and Comminusts, and accurately describes foes to Judaisn, like Marxism, as religions in their own right. The authors explain that there must be reason with religion, otherwise one without the other causes evil. Blind faith and making faith alone more important than deeds is as bad as being an immoral athiest. Discusses how a denial of God cannot make a moral person, and the old silly theory (still taught in some of my old college classes) of moral relativism, justifying evil behavior. I defintely want to read more!

Editorial Review:

If you have ever wondered what being born Jewish should mean to you; if you want to find out more about the nature of Judaism, or explain it to a friend; if you are thinking about how Judaism can connect with the rest of your life -- this is the first book you should own. It poses, and thoughtfully addresses, questions like these:

Can one doubt God's existence and still be a good Jew?
Why do we need organized religion?
Why shouldn't I intermarry?
What is the reason for dietary laws?
How do I start practicing Judaism?

The Nine Questions People Ask About Judaism was written for the educated, skeptical, searching Jew, and for the non-Jew who wants to understand the meaning of Judaism. It has become a classic and very widely read introduction to the oldest living religion. Concisely and engagingly, authors Dennis Prager and Joseph Telushkin present Judaism as the rational, moral alternative for contemporary man.

Jewish Wisdom: Ethical, Spiritual, and Historical Lessons from the Great Works and Thinkers

Joseph Telushkin

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When, if ever, should lying be permitted?

If you've damaged a person's reputation unfairly, can the damage be undone?

Is a person who sells weapons responsible for how those weapons are used?

if the fetus is not a life, what is it? How, as an adult, can one carry out the command to honor one's parents when they make unreasonable demands?

What are the nine biblical challenges a good person must meet?

What do the great Jewish writings of the last 3,500 years tell us about these and all other vital questions about our lives? Rabbi Joseph Telushkin has devoted his life to the search for answers within the teachings of Judaism. In Jewish Wisdom, Rabbi Telushkin, the author of the highly acclaimed Jewish Literacy, weaves together a tapestry of stories from the Bible and Talmud, and the insights of Jewish commentators and writers from Maimonides, Rashi, and Hillel to Einstein, Isaac Bashevis Singer, and Elie Wiesel. A richer source of crucial life lessons would be hard to imagine.

Accompanying this extraordinary compilation is Teluslikins compelling commentary, which reveals how these texts continue to instruct and challenge Jewsand all people concerned with leading ethical livestoday As he discusses these texts, Rabbi Telushkin addresses issues of fundamental interest to modern readers: how to live with honesty and integrity in an often dishonest world; how to care for the sick and dying; how to teach children to respect both themselves

and others, how to understand and confront such great tragedies as antisemitism. and the Holocaust; what God wants from humankind. Within Jewish Wisdom's ninety chapters the reader will find extended sections illuminating Jewish perspectives on sex, romance, and marriage, what kind of belief in God a Jew can have after the Holocaust, how to use language ethically, the conflicting views of the Bible and Talmud on the death penalty, and much, much more.

Jewish Wisdom adds a new dimension to the many widely read contemporary books that retell the stones and reveal the essence of classic religious and secular literature. Possibly the most far-ranging volume of stories and quotations from Jewish texts, Jewish Wisdom will itself become a classic, a book that not only has the capacity to transform how you view the world, but one that well might change how you choose to live your life.

Words That Hurt, Words That Heal: How to Choose Words Wisely and Well

Joseph Telushkin

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Words That Hurt, Words That Heal 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I have owned this book for many years, both my son and daughter have a copy. This is an absolute must read not just for those of the us who are Jewish; but for anyone who struggles with the truth or is incapable of telling it. I have given this particular book many, many times. Only recently I thought of a business arrangement involving a particular couple who would benefit from this book. I have ordered this book for them and hope this reading sets them free.

Editorial Review:

Joseph Telushkin is renowned for his warmth, his erudition, and his richly anecdotal insights, and in Words That Hurt, Words That Heal he focuses these gifts on the words we use in public and in private, revealing their tremendous power to shape relationships. With wit and wide-ranging intelligence, Rabbi Telushkin explains the harm in spreading gossip, rumors, or others' secrets, and how unfair anger, excessive criticism, or lying undermines true communication. By sensitizing us to subtleties of speech we may never have considered before, he shows us how to turn every exchange into an opportunity.

Remarkable for its clarity and practicality, Words That Hurt, Words That Heal illuminates the powerful effects we create by what we say and how we say it.

Why the Jews? The Reason for Antisemitism

Dennis Prager, Joseph Telushkin

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Total reviews: 33 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

From the bestselling authors of The Nine Questions People Ask About Judaism comes a completely revised and updated edition of a modern classic that reflects the dangerous rise in antisemitism during the twenty-first century.

The very word Jew continues to arouse passions as does no other religious, national, or political name. Why have Jews been the object of the most enduring and universal hatred in history? Why did Hitler consider murdering Jews more important than winning World War II? Why has the United Nations devoted more time to tiny Israel than to any other nation on earth?

In this seminal study, Dennis Prager and Joseph Telushkin attempt to uncover and understand the roots of antisemitism -- from the ancient world to the Holocaust to the current crisis in the Middle East. This postmillennial edition of Why the Jews? offers new insights and unparalleled perspectives on some of the most recent, pressing developments in the contemporary world, including:

• The replicating of Nazi antisemitism in the Arab world

• The pervasive anti-Zionism/antisemitism on university campuses

• The rise of antisemitism in Europe

• Why the United States and Israel are linked in the minds of antisemites

Clear, persuasive, and thought provoking, Why the Jews? is must reading for anyone who seeks to understand the unique role of the Jews in human history.

Biblical Literacy: The Most Important People, Events, and Ideas of the Hebrew Bible

Joseph Telushkin

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Total reviews: 23 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

As he did so brilliantly in his bestselling book, jewish literacy,Joseph Teluslikin once again mines a subject of, Jewish history and religion so richly that his book becomes an inspiring companion and a fundamental reference. In Biblical Lileracy, Telushkin turns his attention to the Hebrew Bible (also known as the Old Testament), the most iniluential series of books in human history. Along with the Ten Commandments, the Bible's most famous document, no piece of legislation ever enacted has influenced human behavior as much as the biblical injunction to "Love your neighbor as yourself." No political tract has motivated human beings in so many diverse societies to fight for political freedom as the Exodus story of God's liberation of the Israelite slaves--which shows that God intends that, ultimately, people be free.

The Bible's influence, however, has conveyed as much through its narratives as its laws. Its timeless and moving tales about the human condition and man's relationship to God have long shaped Jewish and Christian notions of morality, and continue to stir the conscience and imagination of believers and skeptics alike.

There is a universality in biblical stories:

The murder of Abel by his brother Cain is a profound tragedy of sibling jealousy and family love gone awry (see pages 11-14).

Abraham',s challenge to God to save the lives of the evil people of Sodom is a fierce drama of man in confrontation with God, suggesting the human right to contend with the Almighty when it is feared He is acting unjustly (see pages 32-34).

Jacob's, deception of his blind father, Isaac raises the timeless question: Do the ends justify the means when the fate of the world is at stake (see pages 46-55).

Encyclopedia in scope, but dynamic and original in its observations and organization, Biblical Lileracy makes available in one volume the Bible's timeless stories of love, deceit, and the human condition; its most important laws and ideas; and an annotated listing of all 613 laws of the Torah for both layman and professional, there is no other reference work or interpretation of the Bible quite like this Stunning volume.

Jewish Humor: What the Best Jewish Jokes Say About the Jews

Joseph Telushkin

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Total reviews: 13 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Just plain enjoyable - You don't have to be Jewish... 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

This book is a real pleasure to read. Rabbi Telushkin not only tells some wonderful jokes he analyzes them in an interesting way. In his preface he notes that Jews do not joke about everything but have a certain set of subjects from verbal aggresiveness, to professional ambition which they persistently joke about. His message in the book is that the Jews joking about themselves tell a lot about their values, and that their jokes are really a mirror to the soul. So it is not surprising that one of the main subjects if the close relation of parents and children, and the tremendous worry pressure love concern parents show for their children. Telushkin does not develop an overall theory of Jewish humor though he of course notes that laughing at oneself is often a way of protecting oneself from the insults of others. An it is too a way of bringing about a kind of group or communal solidarity. Those that can laugh with me are really my friends. The fact that Jews so specialize in laughing at themselves Telushkin points out also contributes to their having had a predominant role in ' comedy in America. He cites the long list of Jewish comedians from the old line Burns, Groucho and other Marxes , Jack Benny , through the Milton Berle, Henny Youngman Phil Silvers down to the Seinfeld Billy Chrystal generation. Anyone who leaves out Alan King Jerry Lewis Buddy Hackett should of course be castigated for this. In any case the main point about this book is ' Try it you'll like it' Once in the Subway there used to be an add which went ' You don't have to be Jewish to like Levi's ryebread' I think the same might be said about this book. You don't have to be Jewish ( though it probably helps) to get many a good laugh out of this excellent work.

Editorial Review:

Here are more than 100 of the best Jewish jokes you'll ever hear, interspersed with perceptive and persuasive insight into what they can tell us about how Jews see themselves, their families, and their friends, and what they think about money, sex, and success. Rabbi Joseph Telushkin is as celebrated for his wit as for his scholarship, and in this immensely entertaining book, he displays both in equal measure. Stimulating, something stinging, and always very, very funny, Jewish Humor offers a classic portrait of the Jewish collective unconscious.

The Ten Commandments of Character: Essential Advice for Living an Honorable, Ethical, Honest Life

Joseph Telushkin

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Total reviews: 4 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Here is a wealth of astute and warmhearted counsel on many of life’s most difficult ethical dilemmas. Joseph Telushkin outlines his ten commandments of character, explaining why each one is so vital, and then addresses perplexing issues that can and often do crop up in our lives relating to family, friends, work, community, medical ethics, and money, such as:

• How honest should you be when you are asked to give a reference?
• How much assistance should you give your son with his college application essay?
• Is it wrong to receive a kidney from an executed prisoner in China?
• What should you do if your father begs you to end his life rather than allow him to descend into the hell of Alzheimer’s?
• Should a brother give up part of his inheritance if his sister has children and considerable expenses and he doesn’t?
• Should a dying woman reveal to her husband that their son is not really his?

Many of us are finding it increasingly hard to tread the fine line between right and wrong. In The Ten Commandments of Character, Telushkin faces these issues squarely and shows us how to live a life of true integrity.

“At a time when so many people are looking for moral guidance, we are lucky to have Joseph Telushkin as our guide and teacher. I am thoroughly impressed by his wisdom and good sense.”—Rabbi Harold Kushner, author of When Bad Things Happen to Good People