What They're Saying
Some responses from readers of Jewish Sages of Today ....
"If we know what others are doing, perhaps we'll find more ways to be Jewish together."
—Washington Jewish Week
"How wonderful to share the stories of these inspiring and diverse Jewish thinkers and leaders with readers around the world."
—Rabbi Leon Morris, executive director, Skirball Center for Adult Jewish Learning
"This is an outstanding book."
—Shalom Freedman, American-Israeli writer, Jerusalem
"What a great idea ...Keep up the excellent work."
—Rabbi Joshua Elkin, executive director, Partnership for Excellence in Jewish Education
"A truly impressive cast of characters."
—Gary Retelny, managing director, MSCI Inc.
"Thank you so very much for the Jewish Sages book—it's spectacular!"
—Ena Heller, executive director, Museum of Biblical Art
"This incredible collection of visionaries from all areas of Jewish life is a treasure to be shared with all generations."
—Jeanne Epstein, Florida regional director, The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
"This well-done volume will help me in my work and my teaching."
—Cindy Chazan, vice president, Alumni and Community Development, The Wexner Foundation
"This is a must-read for all those involved in Jewish leadership and education. The book is a wonderful combination of the inspirational and visionary stories of the true Jewish heroes of this era."
—Gal Golod, Farmington Hills, Michigan
"It's wonderful to read about so many Jewish luminaries."
—Mark Verman, Larry and Leonore Zusman Professor of Judaic Studies, Wright State University
"An enlightening, personalized description of diverse Jewish personalities in a contemporary, pluralistic Jewish world. The editor, Aryeh Rubin, has brought together a fine collection of Jewish personalities in American and Israeli society, who have made distinctive contributions to Jewish culture. Perhaps the best known of these is Adin Steinsaltz, an eminent Talmudist and Kabbalist, whose distinctive journey is profiled. Other Israeli figures of note include but are not limited to Avivah Zornberg, only the second Orthodox woman after Nechama Leibowitz to publish a Torah commentary, as well as Ephraim Zuroff, who is one of the last important Nazi hunters. These interviews evoke in the reader a desire to read each of the subject's books and memoirs, and for those already familiar with them to read further. What all of the figures profiled in this book have in common is an aversion to dogmatism, either Orthodox or anti-Orthodox. In this sense, it is more than a matter of looking for common ground. It is a matter of showing that distinctive contributions can be made from very different directions. The American personalities profiled are too numerous to mention individually, but include encounters with Michael Berenbaum, who worked for years as a central figure in establishing and guiding the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C., Blu and Irving Greenberg, who have worked to make modern Orthodoxy more inclusive, and Michael Steinhardt, the major donor and guiding force behind the Revolutionary Birthright Israel program that has met with so much success. The book is congenial reading and promotes rather than forecloses further discourse."
—Richard I. Sugarman, professor of religion, University of Vermont
"A heartfelt congratulations on an excellent piece of work. I am certain that the volume and its soon to be released curriculum will be of tremendous value to the field."
—Dr. Chaim Y. Botwinick, president/CEO, Center for the Advancement of Jewish Education (CAJE), Miami
"Jewish Sages of Today was waiting for me on my desk when I returned from a pilgrimage to Auschwitz. Nothing could have been a more powerful contradiction to the devastating grief I felt than to be inspired by a cadre of deeply rooted, courageous and out-of-the-box Jews, who have made it their life's mission to keep Judaism's flame burning mightily in the world."
—Hedy Schleifer, MA, LMHC, Miami Beach
"The method in which you strive to strengthen the Jewish community, namely by highlighting Jewish prominent figures, is a unique way to reach people's hearts and minds. Upon reading your book we have received tremendous insight into your mission and have found that this is truly an effective means to achieving this objective. This [book] ...is sure to improve the Jewish community as a whole."
—Daniel Rothner, founder and director, Areyvut, Teaneck, New Jersey