Reviews for Climbing Jacob's Ladder: One Man's Journey to Rediscover a Jewish Spiritual Tradition

The average rating for Climbing Jacob's Ladder: One Man's Journey to Rediscover a Jewish Spiritual Tradition based on 2 reviews is 5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2014-11-19 00:00:00 Ray Thomas Climbing Jacob's Ladder combines memoir and how-to guide in an unusual way. This outstanding book details Morinis's pursuit of self-awareness and -improvement through the tools of Mussar, an ancient Jewish strategy for character refinement. Unique among Mussar books, this relatively slim volume assumes little prior knowledge of Judaism, and is usable for non-Jews, secular Jews, and even those Orthodox Jews who are not already thoroughly immersed in the world of Mussar. Among self-awareness literature, Climbing Jacob's Ladder stands out because it is practical, not touchy-feely or new-agey. I also very much appreciated that Jews and non-Jews of all stripes are portrayed with insight, a lack of judgement, and great sensitivity. For those new to Jewish thought and philosophy, this is a must-read.

Review # 2 was written on 2015-12-31 00:00:00 Thomas Ernlund Excellent, accesible way to enter the process of studying Mussar.