In this first one-volume English-language full biography of Abraham Joshua Heschel, Edward K. Kaplan tells the engrossing, behind-the-scenes story of the life, philosophy, struggles, yearnings, writings, and activism of one of the twentieth century's most outstanding Jewish thinkers. Kaplan takes readers on a soulful journey through the rollercoaster challenges and successes of Heschel's emotional life. As a child he was enveloped in a Hasidic community of Warsaw, then he went on to explore secular Jewish Vilna and cosmopolitan Berlin. He improvised solutions to procure his doctorate in Nazi-dominated Berlin, escaped the Nazis, and secured a rare visa to the United States. He articulated strikingly original interpretations of Jewish ideas. His relationships spanned not only the Jewish denominational spectrum but also Catholic and Protestant faith communities. A militant voice for nonviolent social action, he marched with Martin Luther King Jr. (who became a close friend), expressed strong opposition to the Vietnam War (while the FBI compiled a file on him), and helped reverse long-standing antisemitic Catholic Church doctrine on Jews (participating in a secret meeting with Pope Paul VI during Vatican II). From such prodigiously documented storiesHeschel himself emerges—mind, heart, and soul. Kaplan elucidates how Heschel remained forever torn between faith and anguish; between love of God and abhorrence of human apathy, moral weakness, and deliberate evil; between the compassion of the Baal Shem Tov of Medzibozh and the Kotzker rebbe 's cruel demands for truth. "My heart, " Heschel acknowledged, is "in Medzibozh, my mind in Kotzk."

- 480 pages
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
eBook - ePub
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Information
Topic
Theology & ReligionSubtopic
Religious BiographiesTable of contents
- Front Cover
- Half Title Page
- Title Page
- Copyright Page
- Dedication Page
- Contents
- List of Photographs
- Preface
- Acknowledgments
- Notes on This Volume
- Part I. From Hasidism to Modernity
- Part II. Theological Foundations in America
- Part III. Spiritual Activism
- Epilogue
- Notes
- Note on Sources
- Selected Bibliography
- Index of Names
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Yes, you can access Abraham Joshua Heschel by Edward K. Kaplan in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in Theology & Religion & Religious Biographies. We have over 1.5 million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.