Moses: A Stranger Among Us

In Moses: A Stranger among Us Rabbi Maurice Harris leads us to look beyond familiar and popular portrayals of Moses so that we can discover the Moses whose lesser-known attributes and experiences provide us with surprisingly fresh ethical and spiritual guidance. Harris offers many angles on his subject interweaving traditional religious interpretations academic Bible scholarship psychological and sociological analysis feminist readings and more. Combining deep respect for the biblical text with a willingness to question received tradition Harris reveals a complex Moses whose life story gives us important tools for better understanding issues like religious fundamentalism intermarriage identity confusion civil disobedience gay and lesbian equality and the nature of sacred mythic storytelling. Written in a refreshing plainspoken voice for people of all faiths or none the result is a volume of creative thought-provoking and exciting readings of the Bible. Moses is one of the most famous personalities among the Abrahamic religions but how well do we really know the biblical Moses? In this wonderfully engaging book Harris lifts the veil of centuries of interpretation to show us Moses in a new light. Harris has succeeded in doing what few others can-he has brought Moses into the twenty-first century! --S. Tamar Kamionkowski PhD Associate Professor of Bible Reconstructionist Rabbinical College Wyncote Pennsylvania Moses will never be the same again! Jewish insiders and outsiders alike have much to learn from this energetic exploration of the man Moses. Each chapter brings new delights in turn inspiring challenging consoling. Rabbi Harris is both pastoral and prophetic. Above all he is a consummate storyteller. Not only will you meet Moses in multiple new ways you will also have a glimpse of the twenty-first-century rabbinate at its most caring and creative best. --Rabbi Nancy Fuchs Kreimer PhD Associate Professor of Religious Studies Reconstructionist Rabbinical College Moses: A Stranger among Us challenges its readers to read the Bible with new eyes. The book combines insights from contemporary Bible scholarship traditional commentaries and Harriss own fresh readings of Exodus to respond to moral and religious challenges-both contemporary and eternal ones. People comfortable with the world as it is and their religious and moral lives as they are will not enjoy reading this book. Anyone who takes the Bible seriously but not literally and is concerned with the opportunities and challenges facing Judaism and Christianity will find this book thought provoking and refreshing. --Rabbi David A. Teutsch PhD Wiener Professor of Contemporary Jewish Civilization Reconstructionist Rabbinical College Author of A Guide to Jewish Practice: Everyday Living (2011) Writing for a wide range of readers Rabbi Harris mines the Moses saga in the Bible and unearths its relevance to many contemporary issues. Throughout this fresh and thought-provoking study models engagement with the text that responsibly bridges its ancient and modern contexts. Moses (re)emerges as one of the Bibles most fascinating figures! --Jacob L. Wright PhD Professor of Hebrew Bible Candler School of Theology Emory University Atlanta Georgia Maurice Harris is a rabbi and writer living in Eugene Oregon. A graduate of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College he has worked as a congregational rabbi and religious educator.