A Baptist Among The Jews

Book Summary

"At the heart of A Baptist Among the Jews is a willingness to enter into fellowship. Thanks both to Mary Blye Howe's chutzpah and to the warmth and generosity of her Jewish hosts, we too are invited . . . . I hope some bright young independent film director will be alert to the potential of Howe's story, which could become another "My Big Fat Greek Wedding,"" -- From the Foreword by John Wilson, editor, Christianity Today and Books and Culture "The great Jewish theologian Martin Buber once wisely observed that religions are like houses of worship and that you can only look through the windows from the outside of those other than your own. Mary Blye Howe comes disturbingly close to proving him wrong. She is clearly a Baptist but she has peered through the windows of so many different Jewish prayer halls that she has acquired a remarkably clear vision of American Judaism. Or, to put it another way, Ms. Howe seems simply to have done it all and got it right . . . . this book is kosher." -- From the Afterword by Rabbi Lawrence Kushner, author, "Honey from the Rock" "This book does not so much explain Judaism as much as it provides a 'feel' as to what it means to enter into Judaism as an outsider. You will get a taste of the mystical and joyful excitement of our Jewish friends that will carry you way beyond any understanding of Judaism as some kind of legalistic religion. As a man with a Jewish son-in-law, I found this book most helpful." -- Tony Campolo, Eastern University, St. Davids, PA; author, F"ollowing Jesus Without Embarrassing God "and" 20 Hot Potatoes Christians Are Afraid to Touch" "A fascinating journey of religious and spiritual identity-- Howe showsus that all people have a powerful connection with one another when they search for meaning and purpose." -- Rabbi Karyn D. Kedar, regional director, Great Lakes Council and Chicago Federation of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations; author, G"od Whispers: Stories of the Soul, Lessons of the Heart "and" The Dance of the Dolphin: Finding Prayer, Perspective, and Meaning in the Stories of Our Lives " Like most Christians, Mary Blye Howe was uninformed about Jewish ritual and tradition. To satisfy her curiosity she joined a Jewish study group held in the home of a Hasidic rabbi. "A Baptist Among the Jews" is Howe's first-person account of her eye-opening experience of studying with that welcoming group and how this experience led her to a deeper, richer relationship with her God. While learning about the traditions of Judaism and studying the Torah, Howe discovered a new world of worship and ritual that expanded her experience to include several different Jewish groups, among them Reform, Conservative, and Orthodox. She reveled in the joys of arguing with God (even though God always wins), synagogue-hopping on the Jewish holiday of Shavuot, and dancing with a sefer torah through the streets of Dallas. Page after page, we join Howe on her religious quest and discover how her once-narrow concept of God has expanded with her ability to read the scriptures and understand this new faith. Howe's profound and transforming experiences helped her develop a new sense of worship-- one that eschews spectatorship in favor of participation.

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