Rating: 
Summary: One of the Best Religous Books that I have read.
Review: I would recommend this to any one either Muslim, Jewish or Christian or from any other faith. This is a must read and will lead one to follow in the right direction in life. Religous concepts are very clearly explained and various examples are given and refernces are made to various pieces of literature in order to explain some point clearly. Must Read...
Rating:
Summary: Poignant
Review: Kushner has written another wonderful book with piercing insights into what life is about and what makes a life matter. He uses the story of Jacob throughout to illustrate his points. Kushner discusses topics of revenge, and what is more satisfying than getting even. I thought this paragraph by the author really eloquent in showing the difference between religious people and Godly people regarding prophecy: "If the words you speak are hard for you to utter and hard for others to hear, if you get no pleasure from speaking them but you feel you must, then you can believe that they come from God. On the other hand, if your words make you popular and win you easy applause, or if people don't like hearing them but you get a certain pleasure from speaking them...then you may have reason to suspect that those are your own thoughts disguising themselves as the Word of God. When I hear politicians and preachers condemning the sinful ways of the society around them, I often agree with their criticisms but I don't hear the pain in their voices. It ought to hurt them more to condemn their neighbors..." This is so eloquent and so true. It shows that there's definitely something wrong when one sees religious people condemning others to hell or some horrible fate and not showing sadness or grief about it. Harold Kushner covers so much ground in his book, so many topics, as to what really matters. So much of it he describes as love - loving others, making a difference in people's lives, making others' lives easier. All of these things make a life that matters. But one of my favorite sections of the book was the afterward, added after the book had been out for a while. This book was originally published a week before the September 11, 2001, attacks in the USA. The author added an afterward that really spoke to my heart. It is very similar in tone to his book, "When Bad Things Happen to Good People." I found it to be very comforting and offer new insights on the attacks, the families who were directly affected, why God allowed them to happen, and more. A very uplifting, very inspiring book well worth adding to your library or at least checking out from the library.
Rating:
Summary: A Book of Life, read SB 1 or God as well
Review: Mr. Kushner is quite surprising, from page one I was taken in. A life that has meaning to me is the ultimate happiness. Harold certainly contributes to showing and convincing me that I do have meaning whether I believe in God or not. This is also a book that helps a person escape pressures and norms of society, to allow free meaningful life. I would like to recommend a book similar that worked for me, SB 1 or God by Karl Mark Maddox
Rating:
Summary: Living a Life That Matters by Kushner
Review: This book helps the reader in the long and sometimes difficult
journey through life. He explains the importance of strong
family bonds, friendships, generosity of spirit and sacrifice
for worthy causes/goals.Specific persons in the Bible are cited as evidence of the aforementioned experiences. Esau was said to
be a man ruled by appetites and excesses. G-d changed Jacob's name to Israel. The author pointed to Milton in reasoning that
personal revenge is sweet in contemplation but bitter to carry out. Jeremiah saved both Christianity and Judaism. After Jacob met an angel, he became "shalem" or whole. This book is perfect
for philosophers, theologians. ethicists and a wide constituency
of scholars in academe. This work would be very helpful for
anyone seeking a challenge in understanding the complexity of the theological issues presented.
Rating: 
Summary: Back to Basics
Review: This was my first book from Mr. Kushner. I picked up this book because I liked the title and was feeling a little down. I read this book in a short period of time, not because I had interest in the solution of Mr. Kushner but because of how he matched all human actions to religion. Felling better about being religious and acting accordingly is different from matching our human to religion to show how our lives are better/matter.
Mr. Kushner thoughts and ideas are not wrong or bad but his idea of "Living a Life That Matters" is more about religion that matches human actions then helping us make our lives better in general.
Happy Reading!
Rating:
Summary: A Golden mind and a kind spirit
Review: When I need to search within myself and better understand my relationship with God, I venture to the part of my bookshelf that holds Rabbi Harold Kushner's books.
We all want to live a life that matters. This is a guide book of suggestions that are helpful in finding purpose in our "every day lives".
Thank You, Rabbi.
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