Publisher's Synopsis
Placing proud warrior queens of Gonder and Shire side by side with the Jewish pirates of the Caribbean, Bollywood stars next to American gangsters, or even perusing the vast list of Jewish Messiahs (from before Alexander the Great to long after Napoleon) helps to also illustrate the ongoing philosophical and theological differences between Rabbinic and Non-Rabbinic Judaism, and even the reasons why some Jews consider a cheeseburger Kosher, or why some Jews rely on Priests and others on Prophecy. Discover the actual location of the Ark of the Covenant as well as new Jewish cuisine, learn about how Jews rescued the Chinese Emperor and how the patron Saint of Crypto Jews who is also secretly a Jew, or the way the Yemenis utilized antisemetic propaganda to secure their Jewish state and you will come closer to understanding the forces that continue to shape Jewish practice today. The complex relationship between Judaism and Buddhism, and even Christianity, can be explored through the identity crisis of modern Arab Jews - or the reasons why the European Jews developed the Seder plate.
This book also highlights some of the newest Jewish communities that have formed in Africa and Asia, and traces their development back to tribal Judea, celebrating how the origins of the Star of David led to the rising of a constellation of Judaism worldwide. And it comes complete with a rich resource of Appendices and full bibliography. This fun and educational exploration celebrates the diversity of Jewish practice worldwide in the context of its historical evolution and future development through both a presentation of history and archeology as well as biographical highlights of the some of world's most famous Jews, past and present. Judaism is commonly described as Mosaic. Yet when so many communities of Jews predate Moses, and so many others have evolved and grown beyond Mosaic law, it may be concluded Jewish communities have formed a complex tapestry of practice rather than anything so monolithic that it may be easily described as Mosaic in nature. Rather, it is more appropriate to understand Judaism as a kind of mosaic. And that in all its varied forms and practices, it is worth discovering! Judaism is so much more than about Israel and the holocaust, or even about Hannukah.
