Kabbalah: A Brief Introduction for Christians

God isn't only for Jews and neither is Kabbalah," according to Frankiel. Maintaining that "Kabbalah as a theosophy is primarily about understanding what God is (as far as humans can understand) and who we are as refractions of the divine image," Frankiel delivers a thoughtful overview of the often elusive cornerstone of Jewish mysticism. Her years of experience as a teacher are reflected in the ease of her presentation and in her gentle suggestions for active explorations of thought and practice. Frankiel takes a logical approach to explaining the often confusing map of the divine energies by initially working top down, then bottom up and finally interlacing the energies, encouraging readers to begin building the layers of understanding needed to peel back the layers of the Kabbalah itself. The glossary, diagrams and notes provide a good basic reference for those seeking an overview of Kabbalah, and the smattering of illustrative Talmudic tales adds a bit of flavor. However, despite a few references to Christian concepts and devotions, and a handful of allusions to Buddhism, Sufism and even Jainism in conjunction with Christianity, nothing makes this book particularly "for Christians." (Nov.)