George Robinson (1) (1953–)
Author of Essential Judaism: A Complete Guide to Beliefs, Customs & Rituals
For other authors named George Robinson, see the disambiguation page.
About the Author
George Robinson is the recipient of a Simon Rockower Award for excellence in Jewish journalism from the American Jewish Press Association. A member of the National Book Critics circle, his writing on Jewish issues appears frequently in "The New York Times", "Washington Post", and "Newsday". (Bowker show more Author Biography) show less
Works by George Robinson
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Birthdate
- 1953
- Gender
- male
- Relationships
- Fox, Margalit (wife)
Members
Reviews
Essential Judaism: A Complete Guide to Beliefs,… by George Robinson
Author is the recipient of a Simon Rockfeller Award for excellence in Jewish Journalism. The book has won numerous critical acclaims.
A decent overview of Judaism. I enjoyed the parts of the book that related to current rites and rituals and the why behind them. The book was less interesting (and this is to me only) when it came to covering the history of the various divisions withing Judaism. I also was not looking for information on Jewish philosophers. A very good overview book though that one can simply skip that which is not one's cup of tea.
Essential Torah : a complete guide to the five books of Moses by George Robinson
I have been through a number of books about the Bible, but they have mainly focused on the New Testament. As corrective, I picked up this, which looks at the Torah.
It is a tricky subject, reading a book designed for Jews as a Christian. I am reading this book for insights into how Jews understand and make use of a sacred book which they share with Christians. Most of the established commentary on the Torah post-dates Jesus. So much of it does not provide any insight into how Jesus or his Jewish followers would have understood and used the text. It does indicate how the thought of the Jews of Jesus' day has developed.
Still, this is a fascinating book. Jews, who Christians must admit know a bit about this text, interpret much of it very differently than many Christians do. While the plain text is important, it is far from paramount. Since they are reading it in the actual language and not translation, the placement of words, the alliteration, the rhymes and rhythms, the punctuation all count as part of the "plain reading." This is very different from some "literal" Christian commentaries, that are based more on English translations than the actual text.
Robinson quotes extensively from the centuries of commentary, showing the range and variety of opinion. Lacking a temporal authority to enforce any exclusivity, a thousand flowers blossomed. Fiat doesn't matter, but competent authority does.
The first half of the book is an overview of the text and how it has been interpreted. I found it very informative. The second half is a week by week run through of the readings with brief commentary. I found this less interesting just because 54 weeks/chapters made it seem long.
Robinson is the author of Essential Judaism (not read).… (more)
I have been through a number of books about the Bible, but they have mainly focused on the New Testament. As corrective, I picked up this, which looks at the Torah.
It is a tricky subject, reading a book designed for Jews as a Christian. I am reading this book for insights into how Jews understand and make use of a sacred book which they share with Christians. Most of the established commentary on the Torah post-dates Jesus. So much of it does not provide any insight into how Jesus or his Jewish followers would have understood and used the text. It does indicate how the thought of the Jews of Jesus' day has developed.
Still, this is a fascinating book. Jews, who Christians must admit know a bit about this text, interpret much of it very differently than many Christians do. While the plain text is important, it is far from paramount. Since they are reading it in the actual language and not translation, the placement of words, the alliteration, the rhymes and rhythms, the punctuation all count as part of the "plain reading." This is very different from some "literal" Christian commentaries, that are based more on English translations than the actual text.
Robinson quotes extensively from the centuries of commentary, showing the range and variety of opinion. Lacking a temporal authority to enforce any exclusivity, a thousand flowers blossomed. Fiat doesn't matter, but competent authority does.
The first half of the book is an overview of the text and how it has been interpreted. I found it very informative. The second half is a week by week run through of the readings with brief commentary. I found this less interesting just because 54 weeks/chapters made it seem long.
Robinson is the author of Essential Judaism (not read).… (more)
More of a reference book than a "sit-down-and-read" book in my library. But I've enjoyed the parts I've skimmed so far.
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Statistics
- Works
- 3
- Members
- 675
- Popularity
- #37,411
- Rating
- 3.8
- Reviews
- 6
- ISBNs
- 32
- Languages
- 1