American JewBu: Jews, Buddhists, and Religious Change

· Highbridge Audio · Narrated by Rebecca Gibel
Audiobook
8 hr 10 min
Unabridged
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About this audiobook

Today, many Jewish Americans are embracing a dual religious identity, practicing Buddhism while also staying connected to their Jewish roots. This book tells the story of Judaism's encounter with Buddhism in the United States, showing how it has given rise to new contemplative forms within American Judaism—and shaped the way Americans understand and practice Buddhism.



Taking listeners from the nineteenth century to today, Emily Sigalow traces the history of these two traditions in America and explains how they came together. She argues that the distinctive social position of American Jews led them to their unique engagement with Buddhism, and describes how people incorporate aspects of both into their everyday lives. Drawing on a wealth of original in-depth interviews conducted across the nation, Sigalow explores how Jewish American Buddhists experience their dual religious identities. She reveals how Jewish Buddhists confound prevailing expectations of minority religions in America. Rather than simply adapting to the majority religion, Jews and Buddhists have borrowed and integrated elements from each other, and in doing so they have left an enduring mark on the American consciousness.

About the author

Emily Sigalow is a sociologist of contemporary Jewish life and Executive Director of the Impact and Performance Assessment Department at the UJA-Federation of New York, a leading Jewish philanthropic organization. Visit her at emilysigalow.com. Rebecca Gibel, an award-winning stage, television, and voice actress, has worked across the country at theaters such as Trinity Rep, Cleveland Play House, and the Arden Theatre Company. Rebecca has narrated over fifty audiobooks and is facile in a wide variety of genres.

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