Non­fic­tion

From Ene­my to Friend: Jew­ish Wis­dom and the Pur­suit of Peace

  • From the Publisher
May 22, 2014

From Ene­my to Friend: Jew­ish Wis­dom and the Pur­suit of Peace blends ancient Jew­ish sacred texts on peace­build­ing, real life descrip­tions of con­flict engage­ment — inter­per­son­al, inter­re­li­gious, intra-com­mu­nal, and inter­na­tion­al — and con­tem­po­rary con­flict the­o­ry. The inter­weav­ing of per­son­al sto­ry, sacred text, and the­o­ry demon­strates how rela­tion­ships can move from estrange­ment and wound­ing, entrenched big­otry and fear, to pos­i­tive, engaged encounter. What emerges is a por­trait of peace­mak­ing as a spir­i­tu­al prac­tice that can guide the lives of faith­ful peo­ple seek­ing peace in their lives and in the world. After explor­ing this theme in the con­texts of inter­re­li­gious dia­logue, strug­gle with­in the Jew­ish com­mu­ni­ty itself, and the Israeli-Pales­tin­ian con­flict, From Ene­my to Friend con­cludes with prac­ti­cal dis­ci­plines to cul­ti­vate the qual­i­ties of soul essen­tial to the art of pur­su­ing peace.

Discussion Questions