As a Jew : reclaiming our story from those who blame, shame, and try to erase us / Sarah Hurwitz.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Hurwitz, Sarah, author.

Contributor:

Shield, Nina, editor.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Hurwitz, Sarah--Religion.

Hurwitz, Sarah.

Jews--United States--Identity.

Jews.

Jews--Cultural assimilation--United States.

Antisemitism.

antisemitism.

Jews--Identity.

United States.

Genre:

Biographies.

Personal narratives.

Autobiographies.

Physical Description:

308 pages ; 24 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Other Title:

Reclaiming our story from those who blame, shame, and try to erase us

Place of Publication:

New York, NY : HarperOne, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, [2025]

Summary:

"At thirty-six, Sarah Hurwitz was a typical lapsed Jew. On a whim, she attended an introduction to Judaism class and was astonished by what she discovered: thousands of years of wisdom from her ancestors about what it means to be human. That class sparked a journey of discovery that transformed her life. Years later, as Hurwitz wrestled with what it means to be Jewish at a time of rising antisemitism, she wondered: Where had the Judaism she discovered as an adult been all her life? Why hadn't she seen the beauty and depth of her tradition in those dull synagogue services and Hebrew school classes she'd endured as a kid? And why had her Jewish identity consisted of a series of caveats and apologies: I'm Jewish, but not that Jewish . . . I'm just a cultural Jew . . . I'm just like everyone else but with a fun ethnic twist-a dash of neurosis, a touch of gallows humor-a little different, but not in a way that would make anyone uncomfortable. Seeking answers, she went back through time to discover how hateful myths about Jewish power, depravity, and conspiracy have worn a neural groove deep into the world's psyche, shaping not just how others think about Jews, but how Jews think about themselves. She soon realized that the Jewish identity she'd thought was freely chosen was actually the result of thousands of years of antisemitism and two centuries of Jews erasing parts of themselves and their tradition in the hope of being accepted and safe. In As a Jew, Hurwitz documents her quest to take back her Jewish identity, how she stripped away the layers of antisemitic lies that made her recoil from her own birthright and unearthed the treasures of Jewish tradition. With antisemitism raging worldwide, Hurwitz's defiant account of reclaiming the Jewish story and learning to live as a Jew, without apology, has never been timelier or more necessary"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Author note

Introduction: Waking up to my humiliating Jewish identity

Discovering Jewish keys

The least mysterious story ever

Fooled once

Shame on me

My search for Israel's original sin

Climbing out of rabbit holes that lead to the same old place

Unowned Jew reclaiming my tradition

Conclusion: Being uncool, knowing Jews

Acknowledgments

Notes.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 291-308).

Local Notes:

Athenaeum copy: Schneidman Fund bookplate.

Other Format:

Online version Hurwitz, Sarah As a jew

ISBN:

9780063374973

0063374978

9780063374959

0063374951

OCLC:

1481473268

Publisher Number:

CIPO000271511