In Because of Eva; an American Jewish woman travels to Eastern Europe and Israel to solve mysteries in her family’s past by delving into World War II and Holocaust history. What began as a seemingly simple search for “Eva;†the elderly relative who had signed Gordon's grandfather's death certificate in New York long ago; became a journey of discovery when Gordon found her in Tel Aviv. There; she heard Eva’s stories of survival during the Holocaust; especially in Nazi-occupied Budapest. Eventually; Gordon would retrace Eva’s steps in Budapest and visit ancestral towns in Ukraine to bear witness to the slaughter of entire populations of Jews. Amid remnants of loss and destruction in the small town where her grandfather was born; Gordon also uncovered details of her family’s world before relatives immigrated to America. Gordon’s journey into her past provided the deep sense of connection and belonging she needed as an adult child of divorce and abuse. Gaining insight about her family’s history; Gordon reconciles issues of betrayal and loyalty; and finally finds her place in Judaism. Part memoir; part detective story; Because of Eva is an intimate tale of one woman’s history within the epic sweep of world events in the twentieth century.
#402557 in Books NYU Press 2005-04-01 2005-04-01Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.25 x .63 x 6.13l; .69 #File Name: 0814797083239 pages
Review
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful. Very informativeBy RachelI purchased this book initially because as a Solitary Eclectic Wiccan I have found precious little material exploring Wiccan theology and wanted to condense my own ideas with the help of some good reference material.This book does help me in that regard; but not as much as I had hoped. I would say the vast majority of the book deals with what Isaac Bonewits referred to as "Mesopaganisms" and their comparison/contrast with "Paleopaganisms"; with Neopaganisms being the extreme minority of the topics under discussion. There; he uses somewhat odd definitions and lumps all of Witchcraft into the same framework as Wicca; which isn't accurate or fair; but may be a useful enough construct to form sweeping theories with. Basically the most of the text is dedicated to creating definitions.That said; the book gave me lots to ponder that wasn't on my original shopping list so to speak; and the final; shortest; chapter DOES handle theology more directly. The presentation is generalizing and nonspecific but still helpful. I was most taken by his idea that the New Age movement; which he characterizes as Gnostic; is essentially at odds with the Witchcraft religions in their basic worldviews (Paganisms envisioning the world; the Gods; and the human race as codependent; while Gnostic philosophy sets apart the idea of the One from all lesser emanations; in the one; Nature is sacred; while in the other; Nature is illusion). He surmises that these two incompatible philosophies form loose alliances due to the shared experience of Christian condemnation.All in all I recommend this book for advancing Neopagans who are looking to help firm up their definitions of broad terms and identify themselves with the religious movements around the world that share common themes with their own.0 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Very far away from any real pagan knowledgeBy PaganusMr. York lives in an academical world completely away from any real contact with any pagan tradition. His mind is full of the complexes that afflict the "modern citizen" away from the depth of any pagan cosmovision. The thesis of paganism as a "world religion" comes from a monotheistic background. Paganism is related to the earth; to holy places; to the sacredness of life; to a certain type of people. Diversity and many paths are the beautiful fruits of paganism. If you want to know about paganism; this is not the book for you. If you are looking for intellectual dry speculations; buy it!26 of 57 people found the following review helpful. Off the mark on paganismBy The Old PhilosopherMichael York includes Buddhism; Hinduism; Shintoism; Yaruba; and just about everything else in his definition of "paganism." From reading the text its pretty clear that the working definition of "paganism" is "everything not Jewish; Christian; or Moslem." At one point he's even lumping Mormons and Adventists; non-main-steam Christians into "paganism." Very few practicing Pagans; Hindus; Buddhists or Mormons would accept that definition. I was left wondering if he has a clue what he's talking about. The back cover promises; "audacious redrawing of traditional religious boundaries;" and York delivers that. So audacious is his redrawing that very few of the groups about which he writes would recognize or accept his audacity. At one point he says that contemporary western neo-paganism is less polytheistic than the Christian trinity. Who is he to redefine the ancient Hindu religion as "pagan"? Or Buddhism? No; I don't think it's scholarly; its not spiritual; and not much of anything else either. For [$$$] it's way over priced.
