The Human and the Holy The Spirituality of Abraham Joshua Heschel [Paperback]

No Jewish thinker of the middle half of this 20th century has left such an indelible mark upon his times as has Abraham Joshua Heschel. A distinguished professor at the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York from 1945 until his death in 1972, Rabbi Heschel sought in both his writing and teaching to expose the depth and meaning of Judaism along with its relevance to our contemporary world, and in a special way to contemporary Christianity.

Rabbi Heschel was also in the forefront of the great human concerns of his day. He dealt with the problems of the young and of the elderly at two White House Conferences; he marched with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and lead protests against American policy in Vietnam, participating in numerous civil rights marches and peace rallies. He worked tirelessly for the betterment of Jewish-Christian relations and played a key role in the deliberations of Vatican II.

The Human and the Holy provides a fascinating overview of the spirituality of Rabbi Heschel, underscoring its meaning for both Jew and Christian. For as Heschel's spirituality makes abundantly clear, Jews and Christians share much on a religious, personal, and social level, while shedding greater light on the roots and challenges of their own particular faith tradition.

Moore (Fordham University) has given us a helpful introduction to the theological work of Abraham Joshua Heschel. Concentrating on Heschel's religious anthropology, he exposes the main issues relevant to understanding Heschel's profound belief that in human experience one finds authentic marks of transcendence and holiness. Moore's work is careful, informed, and intelligent and ranges across the entire spectrum of Heschel's rich and diverse output. His discussion of Heschel's rabbinic writings and his writings on Hasidism are particularly interesting, given the fact that Moore is a Jesuit. What these latter chapters lack in technical expertise they make up for in a deep and genuine sympathy, al†