This Is Real And You Are Completely Unprepared: The Days Of Awe As A Journey Of Transformation

Book Summary

There are moments in life when one is caught utterly unprepared. Drawing on both his rabbinical training and his scholarship in Buddhism, Lew leads readers on a journey from confusion to clarity, from doubt to belief, as he opens a path to self-discovery that is accessible to readers of all faiths. There are moments in life when one is caught utterly unprepared: a death in the family, the end of a relationship, and health crisis. These are times when the solid ground we thought we stood on disappears beneath our feet, and we turn to faith to help up find our way back. The Days of Awe encompass the weeks just preceding Rosh Hashanah up to Yom Kippur, a period in which Jews take part in a series of rituals and prayers that reenact the journey of the soul through the world from birth to death. Like the days of Lent or Ramadan, the purpose of these rituals is to experience this brokenheartedness and open one's heart to God. The acclaimed Rabbi Lew has taken the beauty and power of these rituals and made of them a journey of seven distinct stages that will touch the spirit of all readers in search of inner transformation. Rabbi Lew weaves together Torah readings, Buddhist parables, and Jewish fables and stories from his own life, to lay bare the meanings of this ancient Jewish passage. Drawing on both his rabbinical training and his scholarship in Buddhism, Lew leads readers on a journey from confusion to clarity, from doubt to belief, as he opens a path to self-discovery that is accessible to readers of all faiths. THIS IS REAL AND YOU ARE COMPLETELY UNPREPARED unveils the deeper meanings of the High Holidays, enabling Jews and believers of all kinds to reconnect to their faith with a vibrancy and intimacy that will resonate throughout the year. - Lew is one of the most sought after rabbis on the lecture circuit. He has had national media exposure for his dynamic fusion of Eastern insight and Bible study, having been the subject of stories on ABC News, The News Hour with JimLehrer, and various NPR programs. - Lew's first book, One God Clapping, was a San Francisco Chronicle bestseller and winner of the PEN Josephine Miles Award for Literary Excellence. - This book has the potential of being a backlist perennial bestseller, a guide to the themes of reawakening and redemption, self-awareness and healing that are an integral part of this 3,000-year-old ritual.

Book Details