Reading material for a beginner?

[Kevin]

Hi everyone, what would be some good introductory reading material on Judaism? I am looking at some Tanakhs on Amazons site, but not sure which one to get. Would one with commentaries be better? And other than the Tanakh, could anyone give some other good books to read on Judaism? Thanks!

[Sora]

My advice is to start with a Tanakh that has Rashi's commentary. Guess what? There's a free resource online at chabad.org. Just select to view Rashi's commentary inline with their online Tanakh. It's such a wonderful resource!

So there's just one tiny catch with learning to read the Hebrew scriptures from the Jewish perspective, and that is, you really need a teacher on hand to untangle the confusing parts. Trying to interpret this stuff yourself is very ill advised, but until you get that mentor, try asking questions here on this forum to see if anyone knows the answers, or click the "ask the Rabbi" button at the top of Chabad's website.

[Kevin]

Awesome, thanks! I'm going to go to the website you mentioned. I'm going to be ordering a Tanakh soon also.

[Tseruyah]

Kevin, I see you describe yourself as a Noachide, so are you asking for books on Judaism and how to live as a Jewish individual or convert to Judaism or something specifically about being Noachide?

[Donna]

When I started reading books on Judaism a few years ago, one of the first I read was To Be a Jew by Rabbi Hayim Donin. It's a good, comprehensive introduction. From the book's review on Amazon: "The book begins with an overview of Judaism's basic credo (including chapters on Israel's people, land, God, and Torah), moves on to describe the laws governing Jews' daily lives, the Jewish calendar, and 'The Special Occasions of Life' from birth to death and mourning."

If you'd like one person's perspective, Herman Wouk's This is My God is a good overview of Judaism. Joe Lieberman, in his book The Gift of Rest, writes about Shabbos and what it's meant to him and his family.

I came from a religious tradition that didn't emphasize reading the Bible, so when I started reading the parshas each week, there was much I didn't grasp. There is one online at chabad.org which you can read with or without Rashi's commentary. Rashi was a little too advanced for me, so I bought the Soncino Press edition of the Pentateuch and Haftorahs. It has extensive commentary which has helped my understanding of the text.

I hope this helps a little.

[Kevin]

Sept 7, 2015 15:42:12 GMT -6 Tseruyah said:

Kevin, I see you describe yourself as a Noachide, so are you asking for books on Judaism and how to live as a Jewish individual or convert to Judaism or something specifically about being Noachide?

Thanks for the reply. I didn't have a chance to get on here yesterday. I am looking for a little bit of both actually. Right now, it's not really feasible for me at the moment to convert, but I can definitely see myself maybe converting when I'm a lot older. I am interested in learning about judaism just as much as learning about living as a noahchide also. Hope that answers your question a little better. : )

[Kevin]

Sept 8, 2015 11:46:47 GMT -6 Donna said:

When I started reading books on Judaism a few years ago, one of the first I read was To Be a Jew by Rabbi Hayim Donin. It's a good, comprehensive introduction. From the book's review on Amazon: "The book begins with an overview of Judaism's basic credo (including chapters on Israel's people, land, God, and Torah), moves on to describe the laws governing Jews' daily lives, the Jewish calendar, and 'The Special Occasions of Life' from birth to death and mourning."

If you'd like one person's perspective, Herman Wouk's This is My God is a good overview of Judaism. Joe Lieberman, in his book The Gift of Rest, writes about Shabbos and what it's meant to him and his family.

I came from a religious tradition that didn't emphasize reading the Bible, so when I started reading the parshas each week, there was much I didn't grasp. There is one online at chabad.org which you can read with or without Rashi's commentary. Rashi was a little too advanced for me, so I bought the Soncino Press edition of the Pentateuch and Haftorahs. It has extensive commentary which has helped my understanding of the text.

I hope this helps a little.

Thanks, I will check those out. : ) You have been a lot of help!

[jewishrecovery]

Sept 1, 2015 16:42:21 GMT -6 Kevin said:

Hi everyone, what would be some good introductory reading material on Judaism? I am looking at some Tanakhs on Amazons site, but not sure which one to get. Would one with commentaries be better? And other than the Tanakh, could anyone give some other good books to read on Judaism? Thanks!

"The nine questions people ask about Judaism" Dennis Prager & Rabbi Telushkin
it is a great introductory book although some things are a bit dated 

"To be a Jew" & "To Pray as a Jew" - both by Rabbi Donin , these are classics that still hold up, I find his style
to be a little dry but they contain a great introduction and will most likely answer many questions

I would suggest getting a Chumash (the first 5 books) with commentaries , Stone Edition from ArtScroll. The combined Tanakh they sell has much less commentary and footnotes which makes a big difference in comprehension.

Beyond that it kind of depends on what you are looking to understand.

[jewishrecovery]

I would also recommend checking out the daily Torah study cycle videos with Rabbi Gordon (Z'L) on www.chabad.org/multimedia/rabbigordon.htm
he reads the weekly parsha a little bit each day and explains the rashi commentary he is funny and easy to understand. He also reads a daily section of Tanya and Rambam if you want to know more about chassidus and halakha but it is a little advanced

[justingould76]

I am currently reading The Source by James A Michener. It is a historical fiction book that was recommended to me.