cover image Connecting to God: Ancient Kabbalah and Modern Psychology

Connecting to God: Ancient Kabbalah and Modern Psychology

Abner Weiss, . . Bell Tower, $24 (316pp) ISBN 978-1-4000-8334-3

Armed with advance degrees in Jewish philosophy and psychology, as well as decades of work as both a licensed therapist and a congregational rabbi, Weiss thoughtfully shares the fruits of 40 years of Kabbalah study. He merges psychological analysis with a keen awareness of kabbalistic relationships as illustrated by the 10 sefirot (or spiritual roots) of the Tree of Life. In sharing his findings, he gracefully tempers his academic approach with dozens of examples (taken from patients and congregants, as well as the Bible) that illustrate the links between common and rare psychological disorders and imbalances within the development of what he has termed the "spiritual genomes" within all of us. Not for the red-string, pop culture set, this serious examination of psychology and spirituality includes references to and discussions of the ancient and contemporary Jewish sages—including Rabbi Akiva, Rabbi Elijah, the Vilna Gaon, Maimonides, Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan and Rabbi Schneur Zalman—and a wide array of luminaries in philosophy and psychology, such as Hegel and Jung. Those looking for a more intellectually rigorous approach to spiritual self-help and those in the fields of philosophy and psychology will find this a valuable read. (Sept.)