Congratulations. I'd like to organize a mini-symposium about the book on Balkinization. Do you think you could arrange with Oxford to send copies of the book to, say, 8-10 people who would in effect be reviewing it there?
sandy From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Kwall, Roberta Sent: Monday, February 02, 2015 2:33 PM To: Law & Religion issues for Law Academics Subject: The Myth of the Cultural Jew Dear colleagues- I wanted to share with the members of this group that my new book--The Myth of the Cultural Jew: Culture and Law in Jewish Tradition--is now out and available on Amazon (http://amzn.to/15f7bLH), Barnes & Noble, and of course the Oxford University Press website. I am deeply gratified by Dean Erwin Chemerinsky's cover comments "A brilliant exploration of the relationship between law and culture in the context of Judaism. Kwall offers a provocative thesis and impressively analyzes a myriad of contemporary topics. This book is a 'must read' not only for all interested in Judaism, but for all who are studying the relationship between law and culture." Below is a brief summary of my book- A myth exists that Jews can embrace the cultural components of Judaism without appreciating the legal aspects of the Jewish tradition. This myth suggests that law and culture are independent of one another. In reality, however, much of Jewish culture has a basis in Jewish law. Similarly, Jewish law produces Jewish culture. A cultural analysis paradigm provides a useful way of understanding the Jewish tradition as the product of both legal precepts and cultural elements. This paradigm sees law and culture as inextricably intertwined and historically specific. This perspective also emphasizes the human element of law's composition and the role of existing power dynamics in shaping Jewish law. In light of this inevitable intersection between culture and law, The Myth of the Cultural Jew: Culture and Law in Jewish Tradition argues that Jewish culture is shallow unless it is grounded in Jewish law. The book develops and applies a cultural analysis paradigm to the Jewish tradition that departs from the understanding of Jewish law solely as the embodiment of Divine command. Her paradigm explains why both law and culture must matter to those interested in forging meaningful Jewish identity and transmitting the tradition. Warmly, Bobbi Kwall Roberta Rosenthal Kwall Raymond P. Niro Professor Founding Director, DePaul University College of Law Center for Intellectual Property Law & Information Technology Author of The Myth of the Cultural Jew: Culture and Law in Jewish Tradition http://amzn.to/15f7bLH You can view my papers on the Social Science Research Network (SSRN) at the following URL: http://ssrn.com/author=345249 ________________________________
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