Lawrence KushnerCritiques

A Reader

Finding Self, Spirituality & Meaning

This is a nice idea, but if you have any familiarity with the Hebrew alef-bait, the amount of additional material here is small.

I loved this book. I needed something hopeful.

The book is designed to serve as a Jewish primer on the Spirituality of ancient Hebrew.

Within the great intellectual currents of our time, Lawrence Kushner discerns the river of light: consciousness-a passageway for what begins in the shadows of the dream, surfaces in a moment of rare and striking vision, and illuminates the world with fresh vision.

The River of Light is a manual for all spiritual travellers who would attempt a spiritual journey in our times. It is a guide to the meaning of self-discovery and scientific inquiry. It demonstrates that we stand at the frontier of a new spirituality. Taking us step by step, Kushner allows us to discover the meaning of our own quest. He points the way for us 'to allow the river of light-the deepest currents of consciousness-to rise to the surface and animate our lives.'

'...a very important book, applying Jewish concepts to contemporary living in particularrly creative and suggestive ways...'-Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, Jerusalem Kabbalist and Talmudic scholar

'Philosophy and mystical fantasy...exhilarating speculative flights launched from the Bible...Anybody-Jewish, Christian, or otherwise...will find this book an intriguing experience.'-The Kirkus Reviews

'...Rich, bright, mystical and intellectual in one...and a wornderful window for Christian readers into Jewish spirituality that is both rooted in the tradition and transcends it by depth...'-Krister Stendahl, Former Dean of the Harvard Divinity School and Bishop of Stockholm

'All those who enjoyed Lawrence Kushner's Honey for the Rock will plunge into his River of Light and emerge from it enchanted: The author's imagination is matched only by the reader's desire to enter the hidden world of their common mystical memory.'-Elie Wiesel

Lawrence Kushner, author, lecturer, spiritual leader, is regarded as one of the most creative religious writers in America. For over twenty years, he has focused people of all faiths on spiritual renewal with wisdom and humor.

His acclaimed books include Honey from the Rock: An Easy Introduction to Jewish Mysticism; The Book of Letters: A Mystical Hebrew Alphabet; and Invisible Lines of Connections: Sacred Stories of the Ordinary. Rabbi at Congregation Beth El in Sudbury, Massachusetts, he is on the faculty of the rabinic school of Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, and is a commentator on National Public Radio.

This is a lovely book about Jewish mysticism but written so as to be useful to anyone interested not only in understanding Jewish mysticism (or the spirit of Kabbalah) but also in valuing and understanding mysticism and relationships with the Divine in general. Kushner has a great deal of sensitivity and creativity in his representations. He has also written 'Honey from a Rock' which I have yet to read. There are several fine quotes in the book that I've added to my collection:

p. 18 Disgust and dread are the sorts of feelings we frequently marshal to conceal deeper layers of our psyche. 'If an element appearing in a myth or in a dream belongs to a much earlier phase of development and is not part of the conscious frame of reference at the time of the final formation of the myth, this element often carries with it the quality of dread and awfulness.' Quoting Erich Fromm

p. 108 Humanity, one might say, is the organ of consciousness in the universe. We are the result of consciousness's desire to become aware of itself. As Jung observed, 'If the Creator were conscious of himself, he wouldn't have needed us.' Being speaks of and listens to itself through humanity... Of course, there is no consciousness in the universe without humanity. Humanity is the organ of consciousness in the universe and for this reason we hold our Creator hostage; without our eyes the Holy One of Being would be blind. Insensate.-Neal J. Pollock

Contents

Foreword
Introduction
Abraham's journey: A legend
1 Like ones in a dream
2 The river of light
3 The self-reflection at Sinai
4 Protoplasm of consciousness
5 The light of creation
6 Returning to nothing
7 Living in the river
Epilogue
Notes

This book was amazing. So much to think about. Seven ways to interpret one verse of the Torah. Each requiring time and thought. I found this to be a wonderful meditation. I am sure that I will return to it frequently to wake again to a new way to see my relationship with God. I think each rereading will bring new insights. Really well done. Very readable. Lots of breaks to make it possible to stop, ponder and find one's place when returning.

Rabbi Kushner has written a brief treatise (105 pages) to present some of the most generalized perspectives of a good Jew in a way that someone outside that world can understand. He speaks directly to Christians. He puts forth some very clear distinctions between Judaism and Christianity. He does not need to see the Scriptures (Torah) particularly as a record of history to be interpreted literally. From the beginning of Genesis, he argues that what is important is to study the teachings in order to strive to conform one's behavior to that which is described in the Scriptures. Judaism is not strictly a collection of specific beliefs to which one must adhere intellectually. Rather than try to analyze and understand what they mean, we are to do and live according to its teaching. It is in that context that we can understand more and more as we dig into the deeper meaning of what is taught. He teaches that God is not about reward and punishment; instead God looks at how closely we live our lives toward the conformity of the Scriptures. Knowing we have done either well or not toward that end is the only reward we receive. His explains that nothing is more beloved before God than to do a holy deed. We are to give ourselves over to that deed completely. In that process we are to lose our self.

Quoting from page sixty-eight we read, your self "must be willing to allow it to dissolve like a drop of water fallen in the ocean, so that it is no longer recognizable as a separate or discrete thing. Such a spiritual loss of self and fusion with the divine is called Devekut... The borders of your self are erased. You realize that you are (and indeed have always been) present within the divine! It's all God!"

Kushner states, "For classical Judaism, the coming of the Messiah would not 'complete' Judaism;l it would bring an end to history and resolve every problem for every religion and every person.

As a Christian, I find these ideas to stand in sharp contrast to my understanding of Scripture. I gave it a five star rating for two reasons. First the author speaks very clearly and directly to these issues. Second, his clarity helped me to expand my understanding of Judaism in a much more broad context than the most basic distinction embraced by many Christians, being the belief that Jesus is both God and Messiah. This is not an apologetic for Judaism; it is a clear basic explanation of some of the most fundamental Jewish perspectives.

I feel sorry to have to say this, particularly as a student of Hebrew letters via my Torah reading, but I did not really enjoy this book. I found it a bit forced much of the time, and trying a bit too hard to be some version of modern mystical.

I did however enjoy the mention of Mishnat Soferim in Mishna Berura, on page 18.

To Life,
Shira

A quote about a story in which Reb Zusya says he has never suffered (even though, objectively, he has):
"People get what they get; it's not about what they deserve, but about how they receive it." [p. 128]

I feel sorry to have to say this, particularly as a student of Hebrew letters via my Torah reading, but I did not really enjoy this book. I found it a bit forced much of the time, and trying a bit too hard to be some version of modern mystical.

I did however enjoy the mention of Mishnat Soferim in Mishna Berura, on page 18.

To Life,
Shira

I read this book while sick with the flu, so there is nothing mixing Jewish mysticism and fever dreams. This short book combines the tale of a 14th century manuscript's effect on it's new owner, and an explanation of kabbalah (pronounced ka-ba-lah). This Jewish studies is based the concept that are different levels of reality, and man's goal to reach a higher level. Kabbalah is usually the domain the Hassidim, but aspects of it included the Kabbalah Shabbat service in Reform and Conservative Judaism. It seems esoteric until you have experienced a traumatic event which changes your doors of perception, like Alice in Wonderland.

I was surprised how small the book was, it's really more a pamphlet than a book. There are probably better books out there if you are interested in learning more about Hebrew.

"Where is God?" “What does God look like?” “How does God make things happen?” "With little hands, and big hands. With young hands and old hands, With your hands.” Mixing sparks of curiosity and spiritual imagination, this book shows how God is with us every day, in every way.

Mixing sparks of curiosity and spiritual imagination, this book shows how God is with us everyday, in every way.

A wonderful, wonderful book.

A wonderful book for all ages exploring these questions, Where is God? What does God look like? And How Does God Make things happen?

A rather idiosyncratic collection of definitions for some of the most common terms in Judaism. Some of the ideas I agree with, others I am more dubious about (and unfortunately, he is dead wrong in one place -- there are people out there who do evil deeds on purpose), but Kushner writes in a very clear, engaging style and all his short essays are good food for thought.½

I'm not entirely sure there is much of value here. Is this really Kabbalah? It seems very different from the other Kabbalah books I have read and my yeshiva classes. It does on the other hand connect to the Torah very well and Talmud too.

This little book is one that frequently makes me pause and smile as I peruse my bookshelves. A quiet snowy day had me reaching out to read it again and I was not disappointed. When you feel the need for a little hope, a change of perspective, or a dose of adventure this is the book to reach for, time and again.

NO OF PAGES: 223 SUB CAT I: Jewish Mysticism SUB CAT II: SUB CAT III: DESCRIPTION: Eyes Remade for Wonder: A Lawrence Kushner Reader, by Lawrence Kushner, with an introduction by Thomas Moore, collects some of the best writings by one of the most insightful rabbis in America. Kushner writes with profound reverence for the silence that surrounds his words. He believes that the essence of religious seeking is to "devotedly, stubbornly, compulsively return again and again to that line between noise and silence, hoping against hope to find a way to say what finally cannot be said. If it could be said straight out, you wouldn't have to try to find a better way to say it. If you couldn't speak it at all, then you'd have to resort to such nonverbal modes of communication as art or dance or music. The thing about spiritual truth is that it wants to be spoken. It is too important, too transforming, to be left alone in silence. It seems to have speakable content." This book begins with a selection of writings on cultivating awareness of God, the self, and the world. It moves on to explore the bedrock of Jewish religion, sacred text. Later chapters describe mystical, ethical, and political aspects of Jewish spiritual life, concluding with an excellent selection of meditations on the revelatory power of daily life. Kushner sees divine light glinting off his eyeglasses, shining through telescopes, and beaming out from lighthouses. Eyes Remade for Wonder is excellent devotional reading, and a fine introduction to Kushner's wide-ranging mind and empathic spirit.NOTES: Purchased from the Amazon Marketplace. SUBTITLE:

Rabbi Lawrence Kushner's Kabbalah: A Love Story is the best Kabbalah book I read for a long time. It just is a great combination of teachings embedded in a simple, yet attractive story line. OK, the story line is not simple. There are vignettes from most the last ten centuries, each with its specific characters and geographic locations. Sometimes these segments are just a paragraph long, so you have to work your mind to connect it to the rest fo the book. But they all worked out, that's one magic of the book. (And by magic I don't mean ritualistic magick.) Then, even the events in the life of the main character, Kalman Stern a divorced scholar in New York, are presented in chronological order and an event is written up multiple, times Rashomon style. Except that in Rashomon we get different perspectives of the same events, while here we get different understanding of the same event from the same perspective. Yes, there is a classical love story in it as well, along with a love story that only existed in the jealous husband's mind.

The beauty of this book is the simplicity of the complexity, just like Kabbalah's itself. Every element of the book is simple and complex at the same time. You can read it, just on the top level and get a straightforward romantic story of two intellectuals. Or you can dig deeper and excavate layers of meanings. This goes well with the tradition of the four layers of textual analysis in Jewish tradition: PaRDeS.

Asfar as I know this was the first original fiction written by Rabbi Kushner. He wrote plenty of books on Kabbalah and spirituality. (See his list of publications.) Being an expert and master of the topic he had no difficulties to infuse his first novel with lessons from this discipline. If his intenion was to teach Kabbalah to w ide range of people he found the best way to do so. From my perspective he is one of the mist authentic teachers of our times, who is driven by motives that I have more sympathy for than the Bergs' or Laitman's.

This book is the first step in learning and understanding the letters which make up Hebrew. An essential reference, delicately written for all ages and learning levels.

A delightful retelling of the legend of the loaves in the ark, beautifully illustrated.

The writing lacks elegance, but I like it anyway.