"Not only the first book of Jewish ethics and morality in two decades, it is also a landmark work on the
leading edge of Jewish thought. One of the remarkable features of this anthology is the scope of the views it presents....Because
it is accessible to a wide audience, lay persons who must face agonizing choices will find this meaningful work
an excellent guide to decision-making....This anthology is an absolute necessity for the contemporary Jew who wants
to strive to live a thoughtful and meaningful life. It has to be read slowly, savored, and constantly reviewed.
It does not belong on the shelves of rabbis, Jewish scholars, ethicists, and ordinary people, but in their hands.
It is simply the best in its field. It is post-modern and it will endure."
--The Jerusalem Post Magazine
"An excellent collection of articles! It is a much-needed and up-to-date replacement for Kellner's Contemporary
Jewish Ethics. Exactly the book I have been waiting for to use in my Jewish Ethics course."
--Jeffrey Rubenstein, New York University
"Superb! Very perceptive and comprehensive in its topic. It filled out a neglected area of previous study
and gave me some frameworks for evaluating Christian Ethics."
--Prof. Kennard, Moody Bible Institute
"Having taught Jewish Ethics for ten years, I have been searching for a textbook so comprehensive and thorough.
It is a very valuable contribution to the field and a blessing for instructors and students."
--Stanley Wagner, University of Denver
"A valuable collection of thirty-two essays, gathered into two parts, that presents the vast resources and
diversity of Jewish ethics....This collection is an essential resource to students and scholars of religious ethics,
and is indespensable for college, university, and seminary libraries."
--Gabriel Palmer-Fernandez, Youngstown State University
Oxford University Press Web Site, May, 2000
Summary
Over the past decade much significant new work has appeared in the field of Jewish ethics. While much of this
work has been devoted to issues in applied ethics, a number of important essays have explored central themes within
the tradition and clarified the theoretical foundations of Jewish ethics. This important text grew out of the need
for a single work which accurately and conveniently reflects these developments within the field.
The first text of its kind in almost two decades, Contemporary Jewish Ethics and Morality presents wide-ranging
and carefully organized recent essays on Jewish ethical theory and practice. Serving as an introduction to Jewish
ethics, it acquaints the student with the distinctive methodological issues involved and offers a sampling of Jewish
positions on contemporary moral problems. The book features work from both traditionalist and liberal contributors,
making this the only volume which encompasses the full range of contemporary Jewish ethical perspectives. Writers
such as Harold Schulweis, Judith Plaskow, David Novak, David Hartman, and Blu Greenberg discuss law and ethics,
natural law, humility, justice, sex and the family, euthanasia, and other vital issues relating to modern Judaism.
Many of the readings appear here for the first time, making this important text the most timely sourcebook in its
field. Uniquely qualified to reflect the high level and depth of contemporary work in this area of study, Contemporary
Jewish Ethics and Morality is an essential contribution to any course dealing with Jewish ethics.
Table of Contents
Editors' Introduction
I. JEWISH ETHICS
A. The Literature and Context of Jewish Ethics.
1. Menachem Kellner, "The Structure of Jewish Ethics".
B. Theoretical Issues in Jewish Ethics.
1. Louis Newman, "Ethics as Law, Law as Religion".
2. David Novak, "Natural Law, Halakah, and the Covenant".
3. Harold Schluweid, "The Single Mirror of Jewish Images".
4. Elliot Dorff, "Covenant: The Transcendent Thrust in Jewish Law".
C. Reconceptualizing Jewish Ethics in Modern Times.
1. S. Daniel Breslauer, "Modernizing American Jewish Ethics: The Liberal Dilemma".
2. Eugene Borowitz, "The Jewish Self".
3. Richard J. Israel, "Jewish Tradition and Political Action".
D. Methodological Problems: The Case of Jewish Medical Ethics.
1. David Elleson, "How to Draw Guidance from a Heritage: Moral Choices".
2. Louis Newman, "Woodchoppers and Respirators: The Problem of Interpretation".
3. Elliot Dorff, " A Methodology for Jewish Medical Ethics".
4. Aaron Mackler, "Cases and Principles in Jewish Bioethics".
E. Alternative Visions of Jewish Ethics.
1. Michael Morgan, "Jewish Ethics After the Holocaust".
2. Laurie Zolof-Dorfman, "An Ethics of Encounter: Public Choices and Private Acts".
