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Cosmopolitans and Parochials

Modern Orthodox Jews in America

Far from simply vanishing in the face of modernity, Orthodox Jews in the United States today are surviving and flourishing. Samuel C. Heilman and Steven M. Cohen, both distinguished scholars of Jewish studies, have joined forces in this pathbreaking book to articulate this vibrancy and to characterize the many faces of Orthodox Jewry in contemporary America. Who are these Orthodox Jews? How have they survived, what do they believe and practice and how do they accommodate the tension between traditional Jewish and modern American values? Drawing on a survey of more than one thousand participants, the authors address these questions and many more.

Heilman and Cohen reveal that American Jewish Orthodoxy is not a monolith by distinguishing its three broad varieties: the "traditionalists," the "centrists," and the "nominally" orthodox. To illuminate this full spectrum of orthodoxy the authors focus on the "centrists," taking us through the dimensions of their ritual observances, religious beliefs, community life, and their social, political, and sexual attitudes. Both parochial and cosmopolitan, orthodox and liberal, these Jews are characterized by their dualism, by their successful involvement in both the modern Western world and in traditional Jewish culture. In painting this provocative and fascinating portrait of what Jewish Orthodoxy has become in America today, Heilman and Cohen’s study also sheds light on the larger picture of the persistence of religion in the modern world.

258 pages | 6.00 x 9.00 | © 1989

Religion: Judaism

Sociology: Race, Ethnic, and Minority Relations

Table of Contents

Preface
1. Introduction
2. Mitzva: Ritual Practices and Orthodox Jews
3. The Religious Faith and Fervency of Orthodox Jews
4. Kehilla: Orthodox Insularity and Community Boundaries
5. The Ethos of Orthodoxy: Political, Social, and Sexual Attitudes
6. Whither Orthodoxy?
7. Conclusion
Notes
Bibliography
Index

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