Gershom Scholem was the master builder of historical studies of the Kabbalah. When he began to work on this neglected field; the few who studied these texts were either amateurs who were looking for occult wisdom; or old-style Kabbalists who were seeking guidance on their spiritual journeys. His work broke with the outlook of the scholars of the previous century in Judaica—die Wissenschaft des Judentums; the Science of Judaism—whose orientation he rejected; calling their “disregard for the most vital aspects of the Jewish people as a collective entity: a form of “censorship of the Jewish past.†The major founders of modern Jewish historical studies in the nineteenth century; Leopold Zunz and Abraham Geiger; had ignored the Kabbalah; it did not fit into their account of the Jewish religion as rational and worthy of respect by “enlightened†minds. The only exception was the historian Heinrich Graetz. He had paid substantial attention to its texts and to their most explosive exponent; the false Messiah Sabbatai Zevi; but Graetz had depicted the Kabbalah and all that flowed from it as an unworthy revolt from the underground of Jewish life against its reasonable; law-abiding; and learned mainstream. Scholem conducted a continuing polemic with Zunz; Geiger; and Graetz by bringing into view a Jewish past more varied; more vital; and more interesting than any idealized portrait could reveal.—from the Foreword by Arthur Hertzberg; 1995
#49546 in Books Holt Paperbacks 2005-05-01 2005-04-14Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 8.27 x 21.08 x 5.45l; .76 #File Name: 0805079335415 pagesGreat product!
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0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Race Relations in the Early 20th CenturyBy Rebecca S DobrinskiIn Arc of Justice; Kevin Boyle examines the volatile nature of race relations in early twentieth century Detroit through the lens of the experiences of Dr. Ossian Sweet. The majority of readers are most likely unaware of Dr. Sweet and his life. This narrative provides a unique and personal perspective on race relations and the infiltration of the Ku Klux Klan into a northern city; especially when people consider the Klan as a southern affectation.Boyle took the reader on a literal and figurative journey from Bartow; Florida; to Detroit; Michigan; with stops along the way in Xenia; Ohio; and Washington; D.C. Ossian Sweet was raised in Bartow; on the other “side of the tracks.†The eldest surviving child of former slaves Henry and Dora Sweet; Ossian learned early the value of hard work as well as the lesson of the cruelty of his fellow human beings. Early on; the Sweets knew they wanted more for their children than sharecropping in the South. In his early teens Ossian began attending Wilberforce University in Xenia. There he received an extensive education resulting in a bachelor’s degree; which led him to medical school at Howard University in Washington. While at Wilberforce; Ossian spent summers working in Detroit and; after graduating from Howard; opted to return to Detroit to start practicing medicine.While the Sweets – Ossian; his wife Gladys; and brothers Otis and Henry – are at the center of the story; Boyle showed that it was about more than the people involved. Once Ossian and Gladys returned from a year-long trip through Europe; one that enhanced Ossian’s medical education and allowed him to study under Anton von Eiselsberg in Vienna and Marie Curie in Paris; the couple stayed with Gladys’s parents in order to save the down payment for a home of their own. Gladys fell in love with a house on Garland Avenue; a house in a traditionally white part of town. It was the house on Garland Avenue that began the Sweets’ legal troubles.The legal plight of the Sweet brothers compels readers to examine a wide variety of issues urban areas had to deal with after the Civil War. Migration and integration are at the forefront of the changes Detroit and many other northern cities dealt with in the early 1900s. African Americans from the former Confederate states continued to migrate north with hopes of earning money and respect. At the same time; southern Europeans migrated into the United States looking for a better life than they experienced. Both groups lured by stories of fortunes being made in the automobile industry and tried to integrate themselves into life in the city.People need places to live; and those migrating to Detroit were no exception. Unfortunately; especially for African Americans; there were few options. Although not mandated by law; segregation was enforced by tradition and more often by violence. This violence; organized by local “Improvement Associations;†was apparent throughout Detroit. It was through these Improvement Associations that the Ku Klux Klan made their inroads into northern cities.Not surprisingly; the Sweets did not escape this violence when they moved to Garland Avenue. Ossian Sweet; filled with memories of violence at the hands of southern white supremacists; organized a group of men to help him defend his home. This group included friends; former classmates; and his brothers. Once the white mob began throwing stones and inflicting damage to the Sweet house; the men opened fire; killing one white man and injuring another. That same night; the Sweets and their friends were arrested and their plight became national news; even attracting the attention of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and renowned attorney Clarence Darrow.Boyle used the Epilogue to describe the affects the Sweet cases had on the plight of urban race relations. The NAACP continued to fight Jim Crow laws and practices in the courts; from local venues to the US Supreme Court. Frank Murphy propelled himself from judge to mayor and eventually to the Supreme Court as well. Some attorneys went back to their usual practices; others continued to fight for justice. The Sweet brothers endured their share of ups and downs. Gladys contracted tuberculosis while incarcerated and later infected their daughter; who died shortly after her second birthday. Gladys also passed away at a young age. Henry earned his law degree and worked with the NAACP; but also died early from tuberculosis contracted in prison. Ossian became the financial success he always dreamed. However; that success did not last and he never really had a satisfying personal life again either. On the eve of the Civil Rights movement in 1960; Ossian committed suicide.The story of the Sweets' struggles in Detroit contributes to the historiography of urban race relations in both the North and the South. However; Boyle could have provided more analysis of the influences this trial had on race relations both in Detroit as well as other northern cities. He mentioned what seemed to be a common origin of organized violence; the local “Improvement Association;†but does not expound on whether or not this was a frequent phenomenon. The majority of Boyle’s analysis comes in the Prologue and adding additional context would have helped instill the importance of the Sweets’ cases on Civil Rights history.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Exellent ReadBy IddshepherdWould recommend. Very eye opening; shocking; and detailed in ways history books cannot be. It has given me a better understanding as to what the fight for civil rights really looked like.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Maybe the best way to fully understand a given time and place ...By MJM-DaytonMaybe the best way to fully understand a given time and place is to see it through the experience of one individual life. Early 20th century housing discrimination could not have been better portrayed than in the story of Ossian Sweet. Boyle's work presents a powerful picture of what fear and intense bigotry begot in the city of Detroit. As a native Detroiter; it helped me understand the racial bitterness that lingers; to some degree; well into our present day. A tragic tale of a past Detroit with implications very much alive today - a splendid read!
