Abraham Isaac Kook: The Lights of Penitence, The Moral Principles, Lights of Holiness, Essays, Letters, and Poems

Abraham Isaac Kook

Jan 1978 · Paulist Press

About this eBook

"Precisely the dimension of our heritage that most needs to be recovered....I cannot imagine a more timely publishing venture." Huston Smith Thomas J. Watson Professor of Religion and Adjunct Professor of Philosophy, Syracuse University ABRAHAM ISAAC KOOK-THE LIGHTS OF PENITENCE, LIGHTS OF HOLINESS, THE MORAL PRINCIPLES, ESSAYS, LETTERS, AND POEMS, translation and introduction by Ben Zion Bokser, preface by Rivka Schatz and Jacob Agus Confirm me not in cages Of substance or of spirit I am lovesick. I thirst, I thirst for God. More than the deer for water brooks. I am bound to the world, to life, All creatures are my brothers. But how can I share with them my light? Abraham Isaac Kook (1865-1935) A spiritual master of our own times, Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook was the Chief Rabbi of Palestine prior to the establishment of the State of Israel. Rabbi Kook represents the most significant renewal of the Jewish mystical tradition in modern times. This volume presents to the English reader the major expressions of his thought, and a biographical sketch sums up his basic teachings. Ben Zion Bokser observes that, "Rabbi Kook's thought was dominated by two primary concepts, particularity and universality...Born into the restricted world of the Jewish ghetto in Eastern Europe, he was in constant rebellion against all that restricts and narrows the human spirit...In Rabbi Kook's world of thought, the love of God carried with it a love for all God's creatures, an openness to all ideas, and a continued passion to perfect life through reconciliation, harmony, and peace..." Rivka Schatz, Associate Professor in the Department of Jewish Philosophy and Kabbalah at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, and Rabbi Jacob Agus, author of eight books, including Banner of Jerusalem, have both contributed prefatory statements to this volume. +

Ratings and reviews

As an orthodox Jew who studied for years in traditional yeshivas, I was blown away by the content in this book. Rabbi Kook is so incredibly deep and original that it is hard to imagine how anyone could dispute his ideas. Personally, this book and other writings I have read of his have given me a whole new outlook on Torah and the world. I am eternally greatful to Ben Zion Bokser for devoting himself to spreading Rav Kook's teachings to the English speaking Jewish world. I'm much better because of him.

Rav Kook was an illuminated soul with extraordinary knowledge and understanding.