Righteous Gentiles in the Hebrew Bible: Ancient Role Models for Sacred Relationships

by Jeffrey K. Salkin, Phyllis Tickle (Preface by), Harold M. Schulweis (Foreword by)

Overview

Who are the ancient role models for the sacred relationship between Jews and non-Jews today?

Now more than ever, gentiles are an integral part of the Jewish community. But they are not new to the Jewish story. In fact, righteous gentiles go back to Abraham. The story of the Jewish people can’t be told without them.

Noted author and educator Rabbi Jeffrey Salkin provides an informative and inspiring look at the sympathetic non-Israelite characters of the Hebrew Bible and the redemptive relationships they had with the Jewish people. Relying on biblical and extra-biblical sources, he introduces each character, drawing lessons from the life of each that will be relevant to you, whatever your faith tradition. They include the …

• First gentile to bless a Jew
• First woman to hear the Divine voice and save a Jewish baby
• First teacher of morality to the Jews
• First gentile mother of Jewish children
• Gentile midwives who invented civil disobedience
• Mother of Moses and nurturer of the Jewish people
• Father-in-law and teacher of Moses
• First “gentile Zionist”
• Gentile warrior who fought for the Israelites
• Gentile contractor for Solomon’s Temple
• Gentiles who acknowledged God and repented
• Creator of the Second Jewish Commonwealth

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781683362708
Publisher:	TURNER PUB CO
Publication date:	10/01/2008
Pages:	192
Sales rank:	677,722
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 2.40(d)

About the Author

Rabbi Jeffrey K. Salkin is recognized as one of the most thoughtful Jewish writers and teachers of his generation. He has helped people of all ages find spiritual meaning in both the great and small moments in life.

A noted author whose work has appeared in many publications, including the Wall Street Journal, Reader's Digest and the Congressional Record, Rabbi Salkin is editor of The Modern Men's Torah Commentary: New Insights from Jewish Men on the 54 Weekly Torah PortionsandText Messages: A Torah Commentary for Teens; and author of Being God's Partner: How to Find the Hidden Link Between Spirituality and Your Work, with an introduction by Norman Lear; the best-seller Putting God on the Guest List: How to Reclaim the Spiritual Meaning of Your Child's Bar or Bat Mitzvah; For Kids—Putting God on Your Guest List: How to Claim the Spiritual Meaning of Your Bar or Bat Mitzvah and Righteous Gentiles in the Hebrew Bible: Ancient Role Models for Sacred Relationships (all Jewish Lights), among other books.

Phyllis Tickle, a widely acclaimed expert on religion in America, is the author of more than two dozen books, including the three-part prayer manual The Divine Hours and the memoirs The Shaping of a Life and Prayer Is a Place. She has been a magazine editor, college dean, media commentator and publisher.

Rabbi Harold M. Schulweis, one of the most respected spiritual leaders and teachers of his generation, has been a rabbi at Valley Beth Shalom in Encino, California, for close to forty years. He is the founding chairman of the Jewish Foundation for the Righteous, an organization that identifies and offers grants to those non-Jews who risked their lives to save Jews threatened by the agents of Nazi savagery. He is also the founder of Jewish World Watch, which aims to raise moral consciousness within the Jewish community. Synagogues and other religious institutions are now supporting this effort across the country.

Rabbi Schulweis is the author of many books, including: Conscience: The Duty to Obey and the Duty to Disobey (Jewish Lights), Approaches to the Philosophy of Religion, For Those Who Can't Believe, Finding Each Other in Judaism, In God's Mirror, and two books of original religious poetry and meditation—From Birth to Immortality and Passages in Poetry. His Evil and the Morality of God is regarded as a classic.

Table of Contents

Foreword
Preface
Introduction

1. Melchizedek
The First Righteous Gentile and the First Person to Bless a Jew
2. Hagar and Ishmael
The First Woman to Hear the Divine Voice; the First Jewish Child to Be Saved from Death
3. Tamar
The First Teacher of Morality to the Jewish People
4. Asnat
The First Gentile Mother of Jewish Children
5. Shifrah and Puah
The Righteous Midwives Who Invented Civil Disobedience
6. Bityah, Pharaoh's Daughter
The Mother of Moses and Nurturer of the Jewish People
7. Jethro
The Father-in-Law and Teacher of Moses
8. Rachav
The Prostitute Who Was the First "Gentile Zionist"
9. Yael
The Gentile Warrior Who Fought for the Israelites
10. Hiram
The Gentile "Contractor" for Solomon's Temple
11. Naaman
The Syrian General Who Acknowledged God
12. The Sailors and the Ninevites
Gentiles Who Acknowledged God; Gentiles Who Repented
13. Ruth
The Classic “Convert” to Judaism
14. Cyrus, King of Persia
The Creator of the Second Jewish Commonwealth
15. Dama ben Netinah
A Postbiblical Righteous Gentile and Exemplar of Honoring Parents

Notes
Glossary
Acknowledgments

Editorial Reviews

"An engaging book with a worthy message."
—Congregational Libraries Today

"Excellent.... Gives us new insights into how Jews lived with non-Jews in the biblical world.... Demonstrates the lessons to be learned for our times within the traditions of the ancient stories."
—Jewish Book World

“A treasure trove…. Teaches us to open our eyes to people of all faiths among us who embody the highest ethical ideals, enhance our lives and ensure the ultimate redemption of all of humankind. A must read and gift for everyone who is interested in reading the Bible.”
—Norman J. Cohen, rabbi, provost of Hebrew Union College–Jewish Institute of Religion and professor of midrash; author, The Way Into Torah

“Sparkles with fresh insights and new perspectives. Jews and Christians alike will be bemused and enlightened by Salkin's new look at our ancient texts.”
—Dr. Eugene J. Fisher, associate director emeritus, Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops

“A mitzvah of great generosity. Will help gentiles like me find a place in the story of God's people without taking what does not belong to us.”
—Barbara Brown Taylor, author, An Altar in the World: A Geography of Faith

From the Publisher