Hineini in Our Lives: Learning How to Respond to Others through 14 Biblical Texts & Personal Stories - Softcover

Cohen, Dr. Norman J.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1580232744 ISBN 13: 9781580232746

Publisher: Jewish Lights, 2005

Synopsis

One simple, powerful word―hineini―contains the key to deepening your relationship with God and with others.

Hineini (Here I am!). This single spoken word appears only fourteen times in the Bible–each time in a memorable and meaningful story: Abraham offering Isaac as a sacrifice to God, Jacob deceiving his father for Esau's birthright, Moses answering the call that comes from the Burning Bush.

Scholar and popular teacher Norman Cohen explores each of these powerful stories and shows what each can reveal about you as parent, spouse, sibling, lover and friend. By probing these dynamic biblical relationships, Cohen challenges you to think about the ways you relate to the people in your life and God.

And, to add other fascinating perspectives to the conversation, eleven insightful authors and teachers share personal reflections that exemplify each of the hineini passages.

About this title

About the Author:

Dr. Norman J. Cohen is widely recognized as one of the great teachers of his generation. A rabbi, professor emeritus of midrash and former provost of Hebrew Union College–Jewish Institute of Religion, he frequently lectures to Jewish and Christian laypeople and scholars on Bible study and midrash―finding contemporary meaning from ancient biblical texts. Cohen was a participant in Bill Moyers's Genesis: A Living Conversation on PBS. He is author of Self, Struggle & Change: Family Conflict Stories in Genesis and Their Healing Insights for Our Lives; Voices from Genesis: Guiding Us through the Stages of Life; Moses and the Journey to Leadership: Timeless Lessons of Effective Management from the Bible and Today's Leaders; Hineni in Our Lives: Learning How to Respond to Others through 14 Biblical Texts & Personal Stories and The Way Into Torah (all Jewish Lights).

Review:

"The Book of Genesis is about fallible human beings struggling to do the right thing and to respond to the needs of the other in the absence of a formal legal system. It continues to provide guidance in a world in which the legal system still contains significant gaps and in which hineini responses can be very complicated."
― Alan M. Dershowitz

"What Abraham learned on the mountain is that God doesn't want us to sacrifice a part of ourselves in order to serve God. God wants us to pay attention, to be present, to bring the fullness of our selves into our relationship with God."
―Laura Geller

“The Jewish mystical tradition teaches that in everything there is a Divine spark, and we are in the places we find ourselves not by accident but to redeem the holy sparks present there. Everything invites us into relationship, but we often refuse. Everything calls to us―'Here I am'―but we aren't listening.”
―Sandy Eisenberg Sasso

“When Adam heard God’s voice calling him, Ayekkah (Where are you?), he had hidden himself for shame, so he did not answer, 'Hineini.' Who knows what would have been had he stood up and taken responsibility for his actions before God, owning up to his disobedience? By seeking to shift blame, he invited blame on himself and punishment.”
―Zalman Schachter-Shalomi

About this edition

• Publisher: Jewish Lights
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 1580232744
• ISBN 13: 9781580232746
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 228