I am posting the complete text of my book, because I want to start as many respectful dialogues on the key issues as I can, with the hope that this will help revitalise Judaism and also help shift our imperilled planet onto a sustainable path. ———————- WHO STOLE MY RELIGION? Revitalizing Judaism and Applying Jewish Values to Help Heal Our Imperiled Planet By Richard H. Schwartz with Rabbi Yonassan Gershom and Rabbi Dr. Shmuly Yanklowitz 1 Who Stole My Religion? Revitalizing Judaism and Applying Jewish Values to Help Heal Our Imperiled Planet by Richard H. Schwartz, PhD Foreword by Rabbi Dr. Shmuly Yanklowitz Copyright c 2016 Richard Schwartz All rights reserved No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the copyright owner, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews and articles. Typeset by Ariel Walden Printed in United States of America Second Edition ISBN 978-965-524-234-8 Published by KTAV Publishing House 527 Empire Boulevard Brooklyn, NY 11225 www.ktav.com Urim Publications P.O. Box 52287, Jerusalem 9152102 Israel www.UrimPublications.com 2 CONTENTS Dedication Foreword by Rabbi Dr. Shmuly Yanklowitz Author’s Preface Acknowledgments Chapter 1: Who Stole My Religion? Chapter 2: The Political Shift of Orthodox Jews to the Right and its Effects Chapter 3: Is Judaism a Radical Religion? Chapter 4: Should the Holocaust be a Spur to Activism? Chapter 5: How to Reduce Anti-Semitism Chapter 6: Israeli Policies and Diaspora Jews Chapter 7: Seeking Peace in Israel Chapter 8: Jewish Values and U.S. Foreign Policy Chapter 9: An Economic System Consistent with Jewish Values Chapter 10: How Should Jews Respond to Radical Islamists and to Bias and Hatred Toward Muslims? Chapter 11: Should Jews Be Environmental Activists? Chapter 12: Judaism and Animal Rights Chapter 13: Should Jews Be Vegetarians – or Even Vegans? Chapter 14: How Can Prayer Inspire Activism? Chapter 15: How Can We Revitalize Judaism? Chapter 16: Summary and Conclusions Appendix A: The Making of a Jewish Activist: An Author’s Bio Appendix B: Action Ideas: Putting Jewish Values into Practice Appendix C: Guide to Jewish Activist Organizations Annotated Bibliography What People Are Saying about Who Stole My Religion About the Author and Contributors 3 DEDICATION To Yosef Ben Shlomo Hakohen (Jeff Oboler z”tl), who passed away as this book was being completed. Yosef was the author The Universal Jew, a friend and valuable advisor to me and to many others, a true tsaddik, a bridge between Orthodox and non-Orthodox Jews and between Jews and others, a person dedicated to Torah learning and teaching, and widely spreading Judaism’s universal messages through the work of his Hazon website. We will miss Yosef and his wisdom, joy, and niggunim (tunes), and we must try to apply his insights and nudging to the tasks of outreach and organizing to which he dedicated his too-brief but shining life. To all Jews (and others) working to apply Jewish values toward seeking a more just, compassionate, healthy, peaceful, and environmentally sustainable world, may this book help inspire more people to engage in these vital pursuits and help make their work more effective and accomplished, so that we help shift our imperiled planet onto a sustainable path. 4 FOREWORD By Rabbi Dr. Shmuly Yanklowitz In an age of extremism and self-absorption, Dr. Richard Schwartz’s crucial book Who Stole My Religion? reminds us of our global responsibilities. In a tragic world overflowing with poverty, cruelty, destruction, and war, voices of faith and reason must remind us of our core values. In times of despair, Jewish leadership must unequivocally stand with courage in a fight against oppression and injustice. Dr. Schwartz helps us to remember that the Jewish tradition can be a guide to liberation and healing in our complex, interconnected world. We must work to prevent Jewish thought from being hijacked to the monastic serenity of quiet mountaintops where peace is chosen over truth and the self over the collective. Authentic religion today is lived in the hustle and bustle of the streets, and it is here that Torah can be most transformative for 21st century Jews. We must also call a moratorium on the perpetuation of partisan markers as the primary images of Jewish political identity. In lieu of continuing to construct the monolithic traditional, liberal, and conservative identities that have become so pervasive throughout the Jewish community, we need more radicals! Liberals and Conservatives are too frequently content with bumper stickers, quoting stats at meals and in emails, cultivating animosity for the opposition, and then doing bubkis, doing nothing, from a distance. Radicals, on the other hand, ensure that they win in the streets. It isn’t enough to care and to talk. We must transform. Our theological calling to the public arena is not inherently a political summons. Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel argued in the first half of the twentieth century: “We affirm the principle of separation of church and state. We reject the separation of religion and the human situation.” So too, for religion to matter, it must be deeply responsive to and molded by the society in which we are embedded. As Rabbi Yisrael Salanter once argued, “The physical needs of another are my own spiritual needs.” Spiritual life is embedded in the presence of the crude realities before our eyes, and to neglect them is to resemble a fish unaware of the very water it swims in. Dr. Schwartz reminds us that we must take ownership of our Judaism and stand up courageously to address the greatest moral challenges of our time. We should heed this call! Dr. Schwartz urges us all to step up! Rabbi Dr. Shmuly Yanklowitz is the Executive Director of the Valley Beit Midrash, the Founder & President of Uri L’Tzedek, the Founder and CEO of The Shamayim V’Aretz Institute, and the author of eight books on Jewish ethics. Newsweek named Rav Shmuly one of the top 50 rabbis in America. 5 AUTHOR’S PREFACE In this hour we, the living [post-Holocaust Jews], are “the people of Israel.” … Continue reading The Complete Text of My Latest Book, “Who Stole My Religion? Revitalising Judaism and Applying Jewish Values to Help Heal Our Imperilled Planet”/Please Share