With Roots in Heaven: One Woman's Passionate Journey into the Heart of Her Faith

Rating:
Summary: She Shows The Dark Underbelly of Orthodox Judaism
Review: I could really relate to this book in many ways. I was raised in a very traditional Jewish household, left that branch of Judaism, explored the New Age, and also still practice Judaism (I never really left it). I really love and admire this book. Firestone shows in sad detail what often happens when a child from a very religious background decides to head off in another direction - the parents, relatives, and community shun him or her. As I read along in the book, and I saw Firestone falling in love with her husband-to-be (a Protestant minister) I literally heard tense drumbeats in my head, as I knew her parents would cut her off from their lives. I also really appreciated the author showing her reaction, how distraught she was at her own wedding because her parents were so opposed to it, and her deep grief at her mother's refusal to even acknowledge her existence. Unfortunately, I have seen this "shunning" in the Orthodox community, as well as in other religious communities. This book also aptly explores the spiritual search a great number of Jews undertake - that is to what is commonly called "The New Age". Many Jews leave Judaism for good, but Firestone showed how she returned, and how she had to do it her way, in the Jewish renewal movement. This is a book that is courageous, honest, and very well-written. Anyone remotely interested in spiritual searching would love this book.

Rating:
Summary: A Really Good Book for Returnees to Judaism
Review: I was a little taken aback by some of the caustic reviews of Rabbi Firestone's book, claiming that it was "self-centered" and "narcissistic."

Well, duoh, folks --- it's a memoir! What else would it be about other than the author?

Also, some of the reviewers seem to be offended by Rabbi Firestone's portrayal of the dark side of Orthodoxy and make questionable claims about there being lots of tolerance for different viewpoints in the Orthodox community.

Based on my own experience --- my mother ran away from a dysfunctional Orthodox home --- I can attest to the truthfulness of Rabbi Firestone's depiction of the dark side of Orthodoxy.

Actually I thought it was a very courageous book. In an effort to help other people returning to Judaism, Rabbi Firestone unsparingly described her stormy journey from Orthodoxy to the New Age to marriage with a Christian minister to ordination as a Renewal rabbi with humor, tolerance, and kindness, using her own story as a way to do compassionate outreach to other Jews with dysfunctional families, intermarriages, flight from Orthodoxy, and alienation from Judaism.

Far from trying to aggrandize herself, Rabbi Firestone narrated many stories about her spiritual journey that someone more pompous or reputation-oriented would have gladly buried. There is a deep humility in sharing some of your worst stories in hopes that they might help others.

I have met Rabbi Firestone. She is not a perfect person --- are any of us? --- but the reviews questioning her sincerity and honesty are way, way, way out of line. She is a deeply spiritual person, with a strong sense of humor and warmth. I got the impression of a very human, but learned, spiritual and caring woman who still has many journeys ahead of her.

Admittedly, as a Renewal lay leader I would be biased towards Rabbi Firestone. But there are some Renewal books and teachers who do not "spark" me at all, and I don't post reviews about them, positive or negative.

I have shared Rabbi Firestone's book with members of my Renewal women's havurah on several occasions, and it has always interested them. They have always been truthful with me about books that they liked and didn't like, which I regard as the acid test of a book!



Rating:
Summary: Firestone Reveals the Dark Side of Orthodox Judaism
Review: I was amazed at this book. It should be required reading for all Jewish Sunday School students (and maybe non-Jewish, as well!) Like the author, I am also a Jewish woman, and I was raised with a tremendous exposure to Orthodox Judaism. I also have Modern Orthodox and Ultra Orthodox relatives on both sides of my family. And also, like Firestone, I left Orthodoxy and explored the "New Age". What astounded me most about her book is that it is the first attempt I have seen in non-fiction to show the dark side of the Orthodox World; that, like all rigid aspects of religion, it can be quite closed and unforgiving to those who stray beyond its bounds. My heart was pounding when I read about her romance to her soon-to-be husband, a non-Jew and a Minister, no less. I knew so well, from my own experience, that she would be surgically excised from her family for this. And when her mother treated her like dirt when they ran into each other in an airport, I began crying; that kind of pain is so renching. Also, her family would also never accept any spiritual searching outside of Orthodox Judaism. She was smashing all the carefully constructed codes of conduct. I admire her tremendously for the courage it took to follow her spiritual heart as an individual, to look deep into what she needed, instead of what her family had laid out for her. As she points out, many Jews (and non-Jews) are doing this. We are not all blindly following the religious roads our parents took. This book is an excellent example of that, and I hope there will be many others. Highly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Familiar and foreign, all at once
Review: I was born into a family of Holocaust survivors who had the "misfortune" (their perspective) to be born Jews at a time (pre-WW I) and place (Austro-Hungarian Empire) when anti-Semitism was official policy. They regarded Jewishness as a handicap - not to be denied but certainly not to be practiced or celebrated. My parents were raised as "Christmas-Tree Jews" ("It's for the maid, of course") and raised us the same way. I didn't set foot into a synagogue until I was well into my 40s.

After an intense relationship foundered on the rocks of religious differences, I decided to explore this religion that was getting me into trouble without any knowledge or effort on my part. (Coincidentally, my older sister embarked on the same search at about the same time, and independently of one another, we have wound up in the same place.) While my spiritual needs are nowhere near as intense as Rabbi Firestone's, and it never occurred to me to seriously explore other faiths, our individual searches led us both to the Jewish Renewal movement.

I approached this book expecting to read of a journey similar to mine, and was quite surprised to see how radically different it was! We both began with Judaism and wound up back there, but her search took her to places far beyond anything I ever seriously considered for myself. I was surprised to read of her search through the entire supermarket of New Age belief systems, and gratified to see how open she was to the influences of other faiths. I believe that there is something of value in every religion, and have tried to find a way to synthesize a practice that incorporates it all - hence the attractiveness of the Renewal movement, which I believe does so better than any other form of religious practice. And it's especially gratifying to know that this intelligent seeker came home again and found her place within Judaism. I hope our paths cross some day.

I found the book fascinating reading - she is articulate, insightful, and honest. That said, I must also say that I do not share her adherence to Jungian precepts, and found those passages slow going. But here again, she demonstrates her ability to assimilate what she needs and incorporate it into a system that works for her within the greater context of Judaism. That's nothing but good, and I am encouraged that she - and maybe also I - will continue to seek and find and create a belief system that meets her needs within the flexible framework of Jewish practice. I recommend this book to anyone with an interest in the general subject of spiritual searching.

Rating:
Summary: Familiar and foreign, all at once
Review: I was born into a family of Holocaust survivors who had the "misfortune" (their perspective) to be born Jews at a time (pre-WW I) and place (Austro-Hungarian Empire) when anti-Semitism was official policy. They regarded Jewishness as a handicap - not to be denied but certainly not to be practiced or celebrated. My parents were raised as "Christmas-Tree Jews" ("It's for the maid, of course") and raised us the same way. I didn't set foot into a synagogue until I was well into my 40s.

After an intense relationship foundered on the rocks of religious differences, I decided to explore this religion that was getting me into trouble without any knowledge or effort on my part. (Coincidentally, my older sister embarked on the same search at about the same time, and independently of one another, we have wound up in the same place.) While my spiritual needs are nowhere near as intense as Rabbi Firestone's, and it never occurred to me to seriously explore other faiths, our individual searches led us both to the Jewish Renewal movement.

I approached this book expecting to read of a journey similar to mine, and was quite surprised to see how radically different it was! We both began with Judaism and wound up back there, but her search took her to places far beyond anything I ever seriously considered for myself. I was surprised to read of her search through the entire supermarket of New Age belief systems, and gratified to see how open she was to the influences of other faiths. I believe that there is something of value in every religion, and have tried to find a way to synthesize a practice that incorporates it all - hence the attractiveness of the Renewal movement, which I believe does so better than any other form of religious practice. And it's especially gratifying to know that this intelligent seeker came home again and found her place within Judaism. I hope our paths cross some day.

I found the book fascinating reading - she is articulate, insightful, and honest. That said, I must also say that I do not share her adherence to Jungian precepts, and found those passages slow going. But here again, she demonstrates her ability to assimilate what she needs and incorporate it into a system that works for her within the greater context of Judaism. That's nothing but good, and I am encouraged that she - and maybe also I - will continue to seek and find and create a belief system that meets her needs within the flexible framework of Jewish practice. I recommend this book to anyone with an interest in the general subject of spiritual searching.

Rating:
Summary: A Kindred Spirit
Review: Rabbi Tirzah Firestone's memoir struck a chord in me, as a fellow Baby Boomer. So many of our generation -- especially
Jews -- are seekers, and have been dissatisfied with the Judaism we grew up with. It felt lacking in spirituality and rather rigid in its expectations and demands. Eastern religion has attracted many of us; witness JuBu's (Jewish Buddhists).
I have been on a similar journey, but without the original Orthodox roots, and without the extensive time spent abroad. I appreciate Tirzah's candor and willingness to open her heart, both in her life and in her book. Her dedication to building a Jewish Renewal community in Boulder, and in educating herself, is truly stunning. What startled me was the fact that her marriage to the minister, Evan, lasted as long as it did. It seemed too good to be true. Having married and divorced two Christians, I feel I can speak to the tremendous challenges and heartbreak inherent in interfaith marriages, especially when at least one person is observant (and fantasizing about having her partner participate). My only regret in the book was that she didn't tell us about her ultimate partner, who is briefly mentioned in the Introduction. Otherwise, I found it an inspiring and riveting book. Definitely recommended!

Rating:
Summary: Mixed feelings
Review: Tirzah Firestone really knows how to write. Her prose is compelling, her stories vivid, and the people she desribes all seem to leap off the page. My first reaction to this book was "Wow! What a deep and meaningful book."

Then I went away and reflected a bit. This book is all about Tirzah, which is what you would expect from a memoir. The problem is that she extrapolates from her experience to make sweeping generalizations about other people's experience. Her spiritual journey was crooked and laboured -- it took her a long time to figure out where she wanted to go and start down the path that would lead her there. She holds this up as a banner, implying that people whose journeys were shorter, or easier, or straighter have less authenticity than she does.

I find that the book works well as an honest description of one person's path to deeper spirituality. I am disappointed that even though she sees others very clearly, she has such a limited view of herself. It's as if she cannot see what she reveals about herself in her prose. This book is the story of a flawed person trying to get closer to G-d. It should be inspirational for the rest of us flawed people trying to do the same. But she thinks she's special, so she offers only a story to read, to watch, not a guidebook or an invitation.

Rating:
Summary: Mixed feelings
Review: Tirzah Firestone really knows how to write. Her prose is compelling, her stories vivid, and the people she desribes all seem to leap off the page. My first reaction to this book was "Wow! What a deep and meaningful book."

Then I went away and reflected a bit. This book is all about Tirzah, which is what you would expect from a memoir. The problem is that she extrapolates from her experience to make sweeping generalizations about other people's experience. Her spiritual journey was crooked and laboured -- it took her a long time to figure out where she wanted to go and start down the path that would lead her there. She holds this up as a banner, implying that people whose journeys were shorter, or easier, or straighter have less authenticity than she does.

I find that the book works well as an honest description of one person's path to deeper spirituality. I am disappointed that even though she sees others very clearly, she has such a limited view of herself. It's as if she cannot see what she reveals about herself in her prose. This book is the story of a flawed person trying to get closer to G-d. It should be inspirational for the rest of us flawed people trying to do the same. But she thinks she's special, so she offers only a story to read, to watch, not a guidebook or an invitation.