The Jews and the Bible

the long version

Despite its deceptively simple title, this book ponders the thorny issue of the place of the Bible in Jewish religion and culture. By thoroughly examining the complex link that the Jews have formed with the Bible, Jewish scholar Jean-Christophe Attias raises the uncomfortable question of whether it is still relevant for them. The Jews and the Bible reveals how the Jews define themselves in various times and place with the Bible, without the Bible, and against the Bible. Is it divine revelation or national myth? Literature or legislative code? One book or a disparate literary? Text or object? For the Jews, over the past two thousand years or more, the Bible has been all that and much more, telling a fascinating story and raising provocative philosophical and ethical questions. The Bible is indeed an elusive book, so Attias explores the fundamental discrepancy between what we think the Bible tells us about Judaism and what Judaism actually tells us about the Bible. With passion and intellect, Attias informs and enlightens the reader, never shying from the difficult questions, ultimately asking: In our post-genocide and post-Zionist culture, can the Bible be saved? -- from back cover.