Jewish Orthodoxy and Its Discontents

Marta F. Topel is an anthropologist, researcher, and lecturer in the Program for Jewish Studies at the University of São Paulo. She is the author of Jerusalem and São Paulo: the New Jewish Orthodox in Focus and has written several articles on Jewish orthodoxy, modern Judaism, and religious fundamentalism in Brazil.

• IntroductionAcknowledgmentsChapter 1: The Disenchantment of the World and the Dismantlement of Rabbinical JudaismChapter 2: Religion and Religious Coercion in the State of IsraelChapter 3: Religious Dissidents, the New Marranos and the Discontented; or, Of a Certain Unrest in the Orthodox Universe Chapter 4: Separation: In Search of QuestionsChapter 5: In the Margin of the MarginsChapter 6: Incorporation: A Limited Number of Answers to a Great Many QuestionsGlossary Bibliography Index

This is an accessible and engaging study of ultra-orthodox Jewish dissidents in contemporary Israel. The relationship between the ultra-orthodox and secular enclaves of society rarely leaves Israeli media and has not made international headlines. For example, there is a raging debate about the conscription of ultra-orthodox Jews into the army. Yet, despite the importance of this issue, there is a lack of sociological research and little data on the issue of dissent; Marta Topel’s book is an important work that helps to fill this gap in the literature. . . .Given its wide lens of analysis, Jewish Orthodoxy and its Discontents is useful for anyone who wants to learn about the ultra-orthodox or the relationship between the different enclaves of Israeli society by approaching them through the issue of religious dissidents; the book will be helpful to both academics and non specialists with an interest in the issue. This is a fascinating book which I recommend highly.