An essential reference work for any thinking student of religion. Innovative and provocative, Evolving Halakhah affirms the system of traditional Jewish law, Halakhah, as a developing and moral structure, flexible enough to accommodate the changing realities of each generation. In this accessible analysis of Halakhah, Moshe Zemer issues a clarion call to follow the ancient and modern principles of evolving Halakhah, which demands ethical deeds, the discovery of holiness in the Commandments, a critical approach to the Tradition, and responsibility of the entire Community of Israel. These principles are viewed as the framework in which the other commandments are applied. To Jews who sometimes see no choices but those of fundamentalist rigidity on the one hand, or total rejection of tradition on the other, Zemer argues instead for awareness of the inherent flexibility of the halakhic system. Halakhah, he argues, has had many voices, and has changed to meet every generation’s needs. Equipped with this view, liberal Jews can reclaim their tradition from a conservative rabbinic establishment that all too often—especially in Israel—has seen the voice of strictness as more authentic than the voice of lovingkindness. The product of Zemer’s thirty-five years of work in the Israel Movement of Progressive Judaism, Evolving Halakhah includes chapters on matters ranging from personal status, especially marriage and conversion, through the “political” Halakhah of a response to the intifada. It shows that the traditional framework for understanding the Torah’s commandments can be the living heart of Jewish life for all Jews—including Reform, Reconstructionist, Conservative, and Modern Orthodox.

This collection of twenty-two essays and studies represents a cross section of Dr Petuchowski's work, paying tribute to the world of German Jewish scholarship that formed the background of his work.

The momentous events of modern Jewish history have led to a proliferation of books and articles on Jewish life over the last 350 years. Placing modern Jewish history into both universal and local contexts, this selected, annotated bibliography organizes and categorizes the best of this vast array of written material. The authors have included all English-language books of major importance on world Jewry and on individual Jewish communities, plus books most readily available to researchers and readers, and a select number of pamphlets and articles. The resulting bibliography is also a guide to recent Jewish historiography and research methods.