Living a Joyous Life: The True Spirit of Jewish Practice - Hardcover

Aaron, Rabbi David

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1590303954 ISBN 13: 9781590303955

Publisher: Trumpeter, 2007

Synopsis

Secular and religious Jews alike will find wisdom and inspiration in this new book in which Rabbi David Aaron reveals the joy that living a Jewish life can bring. With his characteristic humor, enthusiasm, and insight, Rabbi Aaron looks at key, and often misunderstood, aspects of Jewish practice—our relationship with God, Torah study, prayer, living the commandments, celebrating the Sabbath, and keeping kosher—and shows us how they enable us to access and express the godliness within us.   

Celebrating Shabbat, for example, reminds us that we are created in the image of God, empowered with free choice and intention; studying the Torah releases our chen, or inner beauty and grace; and observing kosher laws helps keep us in touch with our human sensitivity. Rabbi Aaron clarifies why many Jews today feel disconnected from their heritage. He invites readers who have lost touch with their Jewish roots to "unpack their spiritual baggage" and discover the true spirit of Judaism.

Rabbi Aaron is one of the most dynamic and accessible teachers of Kabbalah and Jewish wisdom today, and this book is a warm invitation to anyone struggling to find fresh meaning in Jewish practice.

To learn more about the author, Rabbi David Aaron, visit his website at www.rabbidavidaaron.com. 

About this title

About the Author

Rabbi David Aaron, the son of a Holocaust survivor, has struggled since early youth to understand the world's potential for hatred and paradoxical yearning for meaning, love, and creativity. His own spiritual journey led him to Israel, where he studied Torah and Jewish mysticism under the tutelage of the great masters. He received his rabbinical ordination in 1979 from the Israel Torah Research Institute (Yeshivat ITRI). A popular lecturer in North America and a frequent guest on radio and TV, he is the founder and dean of Isralight (www.isralight.org), an international organization with programs throughout North America, South Africa, and Israel. He lives in Jerusalem with his wife, Chana, and their seven children and three grandchildren. For more information visit www.rabbidavidaaron.com.

Review

"To go from 'the oy to the joy,' [Aaron] provides accessible, readable chapters. . . . Each chapter asks a complex, theological question, then proceeds to answer it simply and clearly, with personal anecdotes, analogies, and teachings from Jewish sources. Because Aaron himself grew up without a strong religious background, his empathetic insights strike a note resonant enough to reawaken the spiritual taste buds."—Publishers Weekly

"Rabbi Aaron takes these ancient [Jewish] traditions and makes them relevant to modern life while respecting that they are filled with mystery. It is evident that he loves being Jewish, and in this capacious volume that enthusiasm shows through on every page."—Spirituality and Health

"With energy and enthusiasm, Rabbi Aaron infuses the Jewish way of life with joy, which is, as his subtitle phrases it, 'the true spirit of Jewish practice.' . . . Written in a felicitous style that succeeds in being both straightforward and inspirational, Living a Joyous Life offers a way to begin this New Year with Jewish meaning, knowledge, and joy. New understanding will help sustain Jewish practice, so that belief and behavior become one."—Chicago Jewish Star

"With his trademark common sense and extraordinary range of poignant and telling anecdotes, Rabbi Aaron presents a Jewish vision that can guide one to a life of holiness and joy."—Rabbi Joseph Telushkin, author of A Code of Jewish Ethics and Jewish Literacy

"This book is not about Judaism; it is Judaism itself. It is truly a joy to read—clear, incisive, inspiring, witty, and entertaining."—Rabbi Berel Wein, author of Tending the Vineyard

"This book will convince you that God loves you—far more than you can possibly imagine."—Dr. Miriam Adahan, author of It's All a Gift

Edition details

• Publisher: Trumpeter
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 1590303954
• ISBN 13: 9781590303955
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 192