ABSTRACT

The Routledge Handbook of Judaism in the 21st Century is a cutting-edge volume that addresses central questions and issues animating Judaism, Jewish identity, and Jewish society in a global, integrated, and forward-looking way. It introduces readers to the complexity of Judaism as it has developed and continues to develop throughout the 21st century through the prism of three contemporary sets of issues: identities and geographies; structures and power; and knowledge and performances.

Within these sections, international contributors examine central issues, topics, and debates, including: individual and collective identity; globalization and localization; Jewish demography; diversity, denominations, and pluralism; interreligious relations; political orientations; community organization; family and gender; the Bible and Talmud today; Jewish philosophy and authority in Jewish thought; digital Judaism; antisemitism; Jewish spirituality and rituals; memory; language; religious education; material culture, literature, music, and art; approaches to the environment; and contemporary Zionism and Israel. The handbook also includes an extensive bibliography to help orient readers to the most important and leading work in the field.

The Routledge Handbook of Judaism in the 21st Century is essential reading for students and researchers in religious studies and Jewish studies. It will also be useful for those in related fields, such as cultural studies, literature, sociology, anthropology, and history, as well as Jewish professionals and lay leaders.

chapter |17 pages

Introduction

part I|111 pages

Identities and Geographies

chapter 2|13 pages

The Polarizing Politics of Peoplehood

Judaism and Collective Identity in the 21st Century

chapter 6|19 pages

We Are All Jews

The Jewish Other and the Other as Jew in Sartre, Levinas, and Blanchot

part II|122 pages

Structures and Power

chapter 7|15 pages

Powerful and Powerless

Jews, Government, and Race in Contemporary America

chapter 8|15 pages

Israel

Internal, Regional, and International Issues and Challenges

chapter 12|14 pages

Transmuted Chosenness

“The Jewish Family” as Functional Religion in the US

chapter 13|22 pages

Gender Matters

Intermarried Jewish Men, Identity, and Parenting in an Age of Pluralism

chapter 14|11 pages

As If Forced by a Demon

Traditional Orthodox and Sexual Modesty Codes and Modern Times

part III|165 pages

Knowledge and Performance

chapter 16|19 pages

The Talmud Today

chapter 18|17 pages

A Digital Revolution?

Jewish Sacred Literature in the 21st Century 1

chapter 20|14 pages

God, Covenant, and Authority

chapter 25|19 pages

Looking Jewish in Century 21