Jewish passages : cycles of Jewish life
Author(s)
Bibliographic Information
Jewish passages : cycles of Jewish life
(S. Mark Taper Foundation imprint in Jewish studies)
University of California Press, c2003
Available at 1 libraries
  Aomori
  Iwate
  Miyagi
  Akita
  Yamagata
  Fukushima
  Ibaraki
  Tochigi
  Gunma
  Saitama
  Chiba
  Tokyo
  Kanagawa
  Niigata
  Toyama
  Ishikawa
  Fukui
  Yamanashi
  Nagano
  Gifu
  Shizuoka
  Aichi
  Mie
  Shiga
  Kyoto
  Osaka
  Hyogo
  Nara
  Wakayama
  Tottori
  Shimane
  Okayama
  Hiroshima
  Yamaguchi
  Tokushima
  Kagawa
  Ehime
  Kochi
  Fukuoka
  Saga
  Nagasaki
  Kumamoto
  Oita
  Miyazaki
  Kagoshima
  Okinawa
  Korea
  China
  Thailand
  United Kingdom
  Germany
  Switzerland
  France
  Belgium
  Netherlands
  Sweden
  Norway
  United States of America
Note
Includes bibliographical references and index
Description and Table of Contents
Description
American or Middle Eastern, Ashkenazi or Sephardi, insular or immersed in modern life - however diverse their situations or circumstances, Jews draw on common traditions and texts when they mark life's momentous events and rites of passage. The interplay of past and present, of individual practice and collective identity, emerges as a central fact of contemporary Jewish experience in Harvey E. Goldberg's multifaceted account of how Jews celebrate and observe the cycles of life. A leading anthropologist of Jewish culture, Goldberg draws on his own experience as well as classic sources and the latest research to create a nuanced portrait of Jewish rituals and customs that balances the reality of 'ordinary Jews' with the authority of tradition. Looking at classic rites of passage such as circumcision and marriage, along with emerging life-milestone practices like pilgrimage and identity-seeking tourism, "Jewish Passages" aptly reflects the remarkable cultural and religious diversity within Judaism.
This work offers a new view of Jewish culture and history with the individual firmly situated at their center by blending anecdote and historical vignettes with rabbinic, midrashic, and anthropological insights; by exploring Sephardi and Ashkenazi traditions as well as modern ideologies; and by bringing into sharp relief the activities of women and relations with Gentile neighbors. As such, this book provides a unique window on the particulars - and the significance - of personal and communal acts of identification among Jews past, present, and future.
Table of Contents
List of Illustrations Acknowledgments List of Abbreviations 1. Being Jewish 2. Beginnings: Birth, Circumcision, and Naming 3. Rituals of Education 4. Marriage 5. Pilgrimage and Creating Identities 6. Death, Mourning, and Remembering 7. Bonds of Community and Individual Lives Appendix 1. Outline of a Circumcision Ceremony (Brit Milah) Appendix 2. Ceremony for Naming a Daughter (Zeved Ha-bat) Appendix 3. Tefillin and the Shma Appendix 4. Elements of the Marriage Service and Blessings Notes Glossary Index
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