Ebook: Here all along: finding meaning, spirituality, and a deeper connection to life--in Judaism (after finally choosing to look there)

Introduction: Why bother with Judaism -- In the beginning and in the image: the Torah -- The process of Judaism: questioning, debating, interpreting, iterating -- Freeing God from "His" human-shaped cage in the sky -- Mitzvot and the spirituality of doing -- Being a good person: self-restraint and self-transcendence -- Prayer and more: finding the primal in Jewish spiritual practice -- Giving Shabbat a chance -- Jewish holidays and the power of a well-placed banana -- Life cycle rituals (well, mainly just death) -- Conclusion: (Though hopefully also a beginning) -- again, why bother with Judaism.;"After a decade as a political speechwriter for leaders like Hillary Clinton and President Barack Obama, and as head speechwriter for First Lady Michelle Obama, Sarah Hurwitz decided to apply her skills as a communicator to writing a book...about Judaism. And no one is more surprised than she is. Hurwitz was the quintessential lapsed Jew - until, at age thirty-six, after a tough break-up, she happened upon an advertisement for a beginner's class on Judaism. She attended on a whim, but was blown-away by what she found: beautiful rituals, helpful guidance on living an ethical life, conceptions of God beyond the judgy bearded man in the sky - none of which she had learned in Hebrew school or during the two synagogue services she grudgingly attended each year. That class led to a challenging, moving - and ultimately life-transforming - journey. Hurwitz visited the offices of rabbis, attended Jewish meditation retreats, sat at the Shabbat tables of Orthodox families, and read hundreds of books about Judaism--all in dogged pursuit of answers to her biggest life questions"--