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Inscribed
Encounters with the Ten Commandments
Edited by Rabbi Oren J. Hayon
Foreword by Andrew Rehfeld
232 Pages6.00 × 9.00 × 0.60 in
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This anthology gives voice to the many diverse and contemporary perspectives about each of the Ten Commandments. Written by an impressive collection of rabbis and scholars, the volume allots multiple chapters for each of the commandments in order to engage with the ways in which these timeless utterances have inspired contemporary laws, ethics, and moral guidelines.
Silver medal: Independent Publisher Book Award (Religion category)
Foreword by Andrew Rehfeld, PhD
Introduction by Rabbi Oren J. Hayon
Acknowledgments
First Commandment
God’s Identity: Perspectives from Jewish Philosophy
Rabbi Kari Hofmaister Tuling, PhD
Revelation as Conversation
Rabbi Joshua Feigelson, PhD
Israel’s History of Enslavement as a Prerequisite for Revelation
Elsie R. Stern, PhD
Second Commandment
Prohibition of Idolatry
Rabbi Reuven Firestone, PhD
Why the Second Commandment Still Matters: A Conversation with Maimonides
Kenneth Seeskin, PhD
Third Commandment
The Mystical Experience of the Divine Name
Rabbi Mordecai Finley, PhD
God’s Name in Theurgy, Amulets, and Magic Spells: Contemporary Lessons from Ancient Jewish Magic
Rabbi Geoffrey W. Dennis
Fourth Commandment
Permitted and Forbidden Labor: Legal and Ethical Dimensions
Rabbi Dr. Shmuly Yanklowitz
“Technology Shabbats”: Unplugging in a Hyper-Connected World
Tiffany Shlain
Fifth Commandment
Honoring Your Father and Mother
Rabbi Laura Geller
Navigating the New Life Stage of Caregiver
Rabbi Richard F. Address
Number Five
Rabbi Annie Belford
Sixth Commandment
“You Shall Not Murder”
Rabbi Harold L. Robinson
Police Violence
Rabbi Jonathan Siger
Seventh Commandment
Feminist Reading of the Commandment
Rabbi Darcie Crystal
Adultery and Deception
Rabbi Eliana Fischel
Eighth Commandment
The Bible, Intellectual Property, and Authorship Integrity
Roberta Rosenthal Kwall, JD
“You Shall Not Steal”—Ethics of Consumption
Rabbi Rachel Kahn-Troster
Ninth Commandment
Don’t Be That Person
Rabbi Michael Marmur, PhD
“Fake News” and Its Challenges to Journalism
Batya Ungar-Sargon, PhD
Tenth Commandment
Torah’s Thought Crime?
Rabbi Barry H. Block
Conquering and Transforming the Impulse to Want What Is Not Yours
Alan Morinis, PhD
Glossary
Contributors
Rabbi Oren J. Hayon received his undergraduate education at Rice University and his rabbinical ordination from HUC-JIR in Cincinnati. He has held a number of leadership roles in the Central Conference of American Rabbis, and serves as a frequent editor, translator, and contributor of Hebrew texts and poetry for the CCAR Press. He currently serves on the Editorial Board of CCAR Journal: The Reform Jewish Quarterly.
Currently, he and his family make their home in Houston, Texas, where he gratefully serves as Senior Rabbi of Congregation Emanu El, and is involved in the leadership of local interfaith, academic, and social service organizations. He is the editor of Inscribed: Encounters with the Ten Commandments from CCAR Press.
Inscribed: Encounters with the Ten Commandments is a beautiful, powerful meditation on the many faces of the Ten Commandments. It provokes and challenges, inspires and engages, and offers a myriad of new ways to understand and live out Revelation in our lives. It's both a wonderful personal read and a great tool for teaching.
- Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg, author of Surprised by God and Nurture the Wow
Deeply learned and yet accessible, this elegant collection of diverse rabbinic voices explores the many meanings of one of the central texts of the Torah, the Aseret Hadibrot. The sacred text remains unchanged, but we, of course, do not. In this powerful volume, the reader is taken on a journey through various life situations, to which the Ten Commandments are then applied and in which they become meaningful. Inscribed is a beautiful exploration of the abiding authority of the Torah, the messiness of our lives, and the many complicated ways in which the commandments continue to speak to us and guide us.
- Matthias Henze, Isla Carroll and Percy E. Turner Professor of Hebrew Bible and Early Judaism, Rice University
At a time when thoughtful dialogue can be difficult for individuals with contrasting views of the world, when more and more assert their perspectives as the only possible truth and surround themselves only with those of like mind, Rabbi Oren Hayon has assembled a timely, rich, and important compilation of essays on one of the world's great, revelatory Truths. With compelling and diverse writings on each of the Aseret Hadibrot by outstanding Judaic scholars, Inscribed shows us that differing, equally significant ideas can come together in one beautiful whole. Each chapter will inspire further study and engaging conversation as the relevant and timeless words of Torah are given new voice. Adapting the words of Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook, in Inscribed 'What is old has indeed been made new, and the new is sacred.'
- Rabbi Ron Segal, President, Central Conference of American Rabbis
The essays in Inscribed would be perfect for discussion groups and adult education classes. Readers who have not engaged in serious consideration of these commandments will learn just how relevant they are to contemporary lives. Those looking for additional ways to view the commandments or to challenge their current interpretations will also find this work has much to offer.
- Rabbi Rachel Esserman, The Jewish Reporter Group
This superb collection is one of the best books I've seen that examines the ins and outs of the Ten Commandments. The collection of authors who contribute to the anthology are among the leading thinkers in American Jewry.... A wonderful book for young and old, scholar and layperson alike.
- Rabbi Dov Peretz Elkins
Inscribed serves the very useful purpose of reminding and educating us about the broad and enduring applicability of the Ten Commandments in the twenty-first century, as well as being an excellent resource for contemplation and action.
- Rabbi Dr. Charles Middleburgh, Dean, Leo Baeck College
