Author's introduction to Moses the Heretic
We live at a time when cynicism masquerades as wisdom and fundamentalism as religiosity. For that, I offer my second novel as an antidote. It's a tale about two men named Moses. One may you know as Moshe Rabbenu, Judaism's greatest prophet. The other, the title character, is a contemporary rabbi named Moses Levine. Levine is a heretic, who not only has enemies but skeletons in his closet. Yet he sees himself as a modern day Moshe Rabbenu, and he earns himself a Nobel Prize for peace.
Moses the Heretic, like The Creed Room, is a "what if" book. It asks the questions, WHAT IF we had a man in our midst worthy of the name Moses? How would he embrace tradition, and how might he buck it? How would he change history? And what can he teach us about the hot-button issues Jews face today -- issues concerning the existence of God, personal immortality, interfaith marriage, and the Arab-Israeli conflict? Believe me, this isn't just a story book; it can be a real springboard for dialogue among people with an interest in religion.
Moses the Heretic expresses a philosophy of Judaism. But this book was not written solely for Jews. In fact, rather than being a book primarily about Judaism, I'd like to think of it as an ecumenical work that strives to shed light on all of the Abrahamic faiths. Moses Levine, for example, is a student of Islam who came to adopt a belief in God largely through his study of that religion. Islamic monotheism is explored at some length in this book. To be sure, Moses the Heretic also discusses Islamic fanaticism, but I try to get beyond that and examine what we can learn from Islam that is unique and beautiful.
My goal as an author was to portray a Jewish prophet in an authentic way. We're all familiar with hearing about religious prophets as if they're close to perfect. Well, I see Judaism as a more down-to-earth religion, so I've depicted Moses Levine as one of us -- someone who's emotionally vulnerable and has very human needs. Yet he's also exceptionally warm, honest, courageous, and obsessed with tikkun olam. In short, he's a mensch. Through all the twists and turns in plot, I try to show the reader what that word means.
Moses the Heretic, like The Creed Room, is a "what if" book. It asks the questions, WHAT IF we had a man in our midst worthy of the name Moses? How would he embrace tradition, and how might he buck it? How would he change history? And what can he teach us about the hot-button issues Jews face today -- issues concerning the existence of God, personal immortality, interfaith marriage, and the Arab-Israeli conflict? Believe me, this isn't just a story book; it can be a real springboard for dialogue among people with an interest in religion.
Moses the Heretic expresses a philosophy of Judaism. But this book was not written solely for Jews. In fact, rather than being a book primarily about Judaism, I'd like to think of it as an ecumenical work that strives to shed light on all of the Abrahamic faiths. Moses Levine, for example, is a student of Islam who came to adopt a belief in God largely through his study of that religion. Islamic monotheism is explored at some length in this book. To be sure, Moses the Heretic also discusses Islamic fanaticism, but I try to get beyond that and examine what we can learn from Islam that is unique and beautiful.
My goal as an author was to portray a Jewish prophet in an authentic way. We're all familiar with hearing about religious prophets as if they're close to perfect. Well, I see Judaism as a more down-to-earth religion, so I've depicted Moses Levine as one of us -- someone who's emotionally vulnerable and has very human needs. Yet he's also exceptionally warm, honest, courageous, and obsessed with tikkun olam. In short, he's a mensch. Through all the twists and turns in plot, I try to show the reader what that word means.