Rediscover the radical vision of an ancient text. For too long, conservative or literalist voices have used the Bible to exclude, shame, and silence, leading many of us to disregard the text altogether. But the Bible is still speaking to us, if we know where to look. In The Torah Is an Open Book, Rabbi Caryn Broitman offers a powerful alternative: a return to the ancient Jewish tradition of midrash--a creative, questioning, and often radical form of interpretation--to show that Scripture isn't meant to be read literally or rigidly. It's meant to be wrestled with. This book invites readers of all backgrounds--religious, secular, spiritual but not religious--to engage with the Bible as a living conversation. Drawing on centuries of Jewish commentary and her own experience as a congregational rabbi, Broitman shows how even the most difficult or obscure passages can become sources of insight, justice, and connection when read through the lens of midrash. You don't need to believe every verse or accept a rigid theology to find meaning in Scripture. You just need to bring your full self to the text--your doubts, your values, your lived experience. Because in Judaism, the Torah isn't a closed book handed down from on high. It's an open scroll, still unfolding, and you're invited to be part of the story. With warmth, clarity, and a fresh look at Jewish tradition, The Torah Is an Open Book reclaims sacred text as a space for dialogue, transformation, and moral courage, where questioning, wrestling, and interpreting are not only allowed--they're sacred.
Rabbi Caryn Broitman has served as rabbi of the Martha's Vineyard Hebrew Center since 2003. She is a graduate of Harvard University in the Comparative Study of Religion, and received her Rabbinical Ordination from the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College. She has been a Senior Educators Fellow at the Melton Centre of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and a Daniel Jeremy Silver Fellow at the Center for Jewish Studies, Harvard University. She is a regular contributor to Moment Magazine and a sought-after speaker on multi-faith topics, and her work has been featured on NPR and WMVY Radio. She lives on Martha's Vineyard.
Preface Introduction Chapter 1: When Interpretation is Not Enough: What Do We Do with Biblical Texts That Are Offensive to Core Values? Chapter 2: But Is It True? Surviving the Belly of the Whale and Reading for Meaning Chapter 3: But I Don't Believe That: Reading the Bible with Authenticity and Integrity when You Don't Believe in the "God in the Sky" Chapter 4: The Boring Parts: Getting through the Beget-ing and Begat-ing with Insight and Inspiration Chapter 5: Sodom and Gomorrah Has Nothing to Do with Sex: Liberating the Bible from Right Wing Culture Warriors Chapter 6: What's Mine is Mine? Not in the Bible!: The Religious and Progressive Values of Biblical Economics Chapter 7: The Vision of the Hebrew Bible Acknowledgments Notes
"Rabbi Caryn Broitman leads us to a Torah that isn't fixed and static, but alive with fresh meanings that may only be discovered in the light of our own experiences. This book is a persuasive argument that we each have not just a right, but a duty, to add to the work of interpretation that has engaged human minds for millennia." --Geraldine Brooks, author of People of the Book and The Secret Chord "Rabbi Caryn Broitman's book is brilliant and meaningful, especially because it addresses the difficult (even horrendous) passages in ancient Torah. I hope, pray, and believe it will speak to many, many lovers of Torah and many, many who have given up on understanding ancient Torah. It poses a deep question even to those who think they can skip the horrendous parts of ancient Torah." --Rabbi Arthur Ocean Waskow, author/editor of Handbook for Heretics and Prophets: A New Torah for a New World "This book is for any Jew who has ever found Judaism boring, esoteric, or downright offensive. Rabbi Caryn Broitman is a lover of Torah but not an apologist for it. Through beautiful and sometimes radical acts of interpretation, she shows that Jewish texts belong to all of us--and that we can embrace them without leaving our deepest values behind." --Peter Beinart, author of Being Jewish After the Destruction of Gaza "In this brave and wise book, Rabbi Caryn Broitman invites us to read the Hebrew Bible as an inspiring work for our troubled times. Relying on her deep knowledge of rabbinic commentaries as well as on her familiarity with modernist masterpieces, she shows us that the Bible, like all great works of literature, is open to multiple, ever-evolving interpretations. Unlike fundamentalists who would pin a single, literal meaning on the sacred text, Caryn Broitman sees the Bible as an ongoing source of personal meaning that offers a hopeful message of justice and compassion toward others, especially toward the 'strangers' among us. The Torah Is an Open Book is a much-needed call for dialogue and community to today's readers, both the religious and the secular." --Susan Rubin Suleiman, author of Daughter of History: Traces of an Immigrant Girlhood "In her deeply engaging work, Broitman provocatively asks: What does Torah mean if it can contradict my most dearly held values--which also have a foundation in Torah? Essential reading for spiritual seekers alienated by fundamentalism, progressives reclaiming their tradition, interfaith readers curious about Jewish approaches to Scripture, and all who seek a sincere, compassionate, holy dialogue that bridges sacred tradition and lived experience. This book will help you live with the Hebrew Bible." --Dr. Jeremy Benstein, educator, activist, and author of Hebrew Roots, Jewish Routes: A Tribal Language in a Global World and The Way into Judaism and the Environment "Steeped in Jewish tradition and values, Rabbi Caryn Broitman draws on decades of experience in teaching Torah to engage some of the Bible's most challenging questions. With clarity, warmth, and wisdom, she provides friendly guidance that is both intellectually satisfying and deeply meaningful." --Edward L. Greenstein, professor of Bible (emeritus), Bar-Ilan University, Israel, and author of Job: A New Translation
