God Is Here
Reimagining the Divine

Name: God Is Here
Brand: Dreamscape Media
Availability: InStock
Author: Toba Spitzer
ISBN: 9781666527094

Author: Toba Spitzer

Narrator: Angie Kane

Unabridged: 6 hr 27 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Dreamscape Media

Published: 03/08/2022

Categories: Nonfiction, Religion, Spirituality, Judaism, Body, Mind, & Spirit

Synopsis

Most of us are hungry for a system of meaning to make sense of our lives, yet traditional religion too often leaves those seeking spiritual sustenance unsatisfied. Rabbi Toba Spitzer understands this problem firsthand and knows that too often it is traditional ideas of the deity?he's too big, too impersonal, and too unbelievable?that get in the way. In God Is Here, Spitzer argues that whether we believe in God or fervently disbelieve, what we are actually disagreeing about is not God at all but a metaphor of a Big Powerful Person that limits our understanding and our spiritual lives. Going back to the earliest sources for Judaism as well as Christianity, Spitzer discovers in the Hebrew Bible a rich and varied palette of metaphors for the divine?including Water, Voice, Fire, Rock, Cloud, and even the process of Becoming. She addresses how we can access these ancient metaphors, as well as those drawn from rabbinic tradition and modern science, to experience holiness in our daily lives and to guide us in challenging times. Each chapter contains insights from the Bible and teachings from Judaism and other spiritual traditions, accompanied by suggestions for practice to bring alive each of the God metaphors. Rabbi Toba Spitzer has helped many people satisfy their spiritual hunger. With God Is Here, she will inspire you to find new and perhaps surprising ways of encountering the divine, right where you are.

About Toba Spitzer

Rabbi Toba Spitzer is a popular teacher of courses on Judaism and economic justice, Reconstructionist Judaism, new approaches to thinking about God, and the practice of integrating Jewish spiritual and ethical teachings into daily life. She was the first LGBTQ rabbi to head a national rabbinic organization and has been included in Newsweek’s Top 50 Rabbis in America list and the Forward list of 50 Female Rabbis Who Are Making a Difference. She lives in Massachusetts.

About Angie Kane

Angie Kane is a theatre artist and audiobook narrator based in Southeast Michigan. She is a proud member of the Actors' Equity Association and a Resident Artist of The Purple Rose Theatre Company.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Kate

As a Jewish American who feels deeply connected to my heritage & culture but struggles with the religious aspect — specifically belief in God — I found this book invaluable. The way is it positions God as outside our standard, boxed-in means of thinking made God seem more accessible to me, less like......more

Goodreads review by Literary

Rabbi Spitzer gives helpful ways to envision God for those struggling to believe in a "conventional" viewpoint. A healing book for many who want to believe but have been stymied by such obstacles as religious language. Out now. Thanks to the author, St. Martin's Press, and NetGalley for the ARC. Opi......more

Goodreads review by Joe

Rabbi Spitzer makes a good attempt at dismantling the image of God as an all-knowing supreme being. The challenge to reimagining the Divine is getting past the concept of God as a Supreme Being. It will likely take multiple readings of this book to accomplish the author's objective. Even so, her exp......more

Goodreads review by Richard

Have you ever read a book and found yourself thinking as you wrapped it up "This is not the book that I expected it to be?" This was my experience with Toba Spitzer's "God Is Here: Reimagining the Divine," a book of obvious intelligence and insight that never quite fully satisfies when viewed throug......more

Goodreads review by enjoyingbooksagain

Religion is something very personal to each one of us. I think this is a book that I would recommend to read a few chapters at a time to absorb and think about what the author is saying to you. I needed to read some of it and think about it, to really absorb what she was saying to me. I think everyo......more

Quotes

. . . Spitzer makes it clear that her writings are non-ecumenical, applicable to any human searching for a higher spirit as a life guide.