cover image Becoming Un-Orthodox: Stories of Ex-Hasidic Jews

Becoming Un-Orthodox: Stories of Ex-Hasidic Jews

Lynn Davidman. Oxford Univ., $27.95 (276p) ISBN 978-0-19-938050-3

Through conversations with 40 “defectors” from different types of Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) Judaism, Davidman (Tradition in a Rootless World) provides a fascinating view of the conflicts, both internal and external, faced by those who leave tightly cohesive and socially restrictive Jewish groups. Davidman argues that the shift away from the Haredi worldview takes place not predominantly through the acceptance or rejection of articles of faith, but through a shift in how the person views and practices the physical ritual acts through which the Jewish worldview is transmitted and made tangible. The book includes a clear introduction explaining the methodology of the interviews, as well as terms potentially confusing to those not familiar with the sociology of religion, such as “tears in the sacred canopy” (an extension of the image connoting worldview, developed by sociologist Peter Berger). This solid book, an important contribution to the body of work on shifts in religious identity and affiliation, also illuminates the force and importance of ritual in Jewish life. (Dec.)