{"product_id":"surprised-by-god-isbn-9780807010693","title":"Surprised by God","description":"At thirteen, Danya Ruttenberg decided she was an atheist. As a young adult, she immersed herself in the rhinestone-bedazzled wonderland of late 1990s San Francisco-drinking smuggled absinthe with wealthy geeks and plotting the revolution with feminist zinemakers. But she found herself yearning for something she would eventually call God.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eSurprised by God\u003c\/i\u003e is a memoir of a young woman's spiritual awakening and eventual path to the rabbinate, a story of integrating life on the edge of the twenty-first century into the discipline of traditional Judaism, without sacrificing either. It's also an unflinchingly honest guide to the kind of work that goes into developing a spiritual practice-and it shows why, perhaps, doing this in today's world requires more effort than ever.Compelling . . . illuminating . . . thought-provoking.—Jessica Jernigan, \u003ci\u003eBitch\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"[A] thoughtful and articulate memoir . . . seeking a truth that transcends doctrine.\"—Laura Stokes, \u003ci\u003eBust\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"At every point, Ruttenberg is sharp in her insights about the world and about herself.\"—\u003ci\u003eTikkun\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"[Ruttenberg's] decription of her growing awareness of the power of ritual, the support of community, and religion as relationship will resonate with all sorts of spiritual seekers.\"—\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"You don't have to be religious to enjoy Ruttenberg's thoughts and words. Her discussions about feminism, community, spirituality, identity, and family are thoughts that can inspire and attract anyone. . . . \u003ci\u003eSurprised by God\u003c\/i\u003e is an honest memoir about a beautifully complex woman finding her own way through spiritual practice.\"—Chelsey Clammer, \u003ci\u003eFeminist Review\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Ruttenberg's memoir . . . is indicative of a whole generation of young, unaffiliated American Jews yearning to learn more about their Judaism, but apprehensive about compromising who they have come to be.\"—Matthew Wagner, \u003ci\u003eThe Jerusalem Post\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"[A] beautiful memoir . . . it's entirely relatable, which in my experience, is unusual for a religious text. It's young. It's hip. And it's still profoundly serious.\"—Courtney Martin, feministing.com\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"In \u003ci\u003eSurprised by God,\u003c\/i\u003e [Ruttenberg] narrates her own spiritual journey, in which feminism is a given and the value of self-expression a non-negotiable. . . . Gently, Ruttenberg lets the reader in on the surprising lesson of her journey: practicing a religion may change you-and this is not a bad thing!\"—Ann Braude, \u003ci\u003eWomen's Review of Books\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Ruttenberg's story shows the ways religious practice is complicated yet valuable for its complexity.\"—Mandy Van Deven, Religion Dispatches\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"[A] frank and well-written book . . . This remarkable odyssey of radical change is candidly described with extraordinary wit and noteworthy introspection. All readers will learn from this powerful book, regardless of whether or not they are religious.\"—Morton I. Teicher, \u003ci\u003eJewish Journal\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"A revealing and thought provoking glimpse inside the mind of a young seeker.\"—JP, \u003ci\u003eJewish Book World\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Danya Ruttenberg's memoir . . . is really fantastic: well-written, engaging, skating that line between the personal and the universal with surprising grace.\"—Andrea Useem, \u003ci\u003eReligion Writer\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"A tremendously satisfying memoir of spiritual awakening.\"—\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Danya Ruttenberg shares the story of her journey toward embracing observant Judaism. What makes this story fascinating and urgent is that Ruttenberg never stops thinking and asking hard questions. She reminds us that loving religion is a matter of heart and soul-and brain. And that it something to which I say, \u003ci\u003eAmen.\u003c\/i\u003e\"—Leora Tanenbaum, author of \u003ci\u003eTaking Back God: American Women Rising Up for Religious Equality\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Danya Ruttenberg marshals beautiful writing and a prodigious intellect, and, leavening it all with a hefty dose of wit, tells a compelling story that has something to teach everyone who picks it up, regardless of how spiritual or religious (or not) they are.\"—Lisa Jervis, cofounder of \u003ci\u003eBitch\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Ruttenberg's honesty, depth, wit, and eloquence light up every page.\"—Carol Lee Flinders, author of \u003ci\u003eEnduring Lives: Portraits of Women and Faith in Action\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"The philosopher in me loves the unfettered and deep intellectual challenges to which Ruttenberg subjects religion in general and Judaism in particular. The rabbi in me appreciates how she wrestles with Judaism in as intense a way as Jacob wrestled with the angel. The person in me loves her unmitigated integrity and honesty. All in all, \u003ci\u003eSurprised by God\u003c\/i\u003e is truly a treat!\"—Rabbi Elliot Dorff, Ph.D., author of \u003ci\u003eKnowing God: Jewish Journeys to the Unknowable\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"[\u003ci\u003eSurprised by God\u003c\/i\u003e] is refreshingly mature in a world of religious fundamentalism and extremism. Ruttenberg's search for meaning in an often superficial American culture should inspire readers to embark on their own spiritual paths, and Ruttenberg herself is living proof that discovering God and even religion does not necessarily mean losing one's inner core.\"—Rabbi Haviva Ner-David, Ph.D., author of \u003ci\u003eLife on the Fringes: A Feminist Journey Toward Traditional Rabbinic Ordination\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003eRabbi Danya Ruttenberg\u003c\/b\u003e is the author of \u003ci\u003eSuprised by God: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Religion\u003c\/i\u003e and 2016 National Jewish Book Award finalist \u003ci\u003eNurture the Now: Finding Spirituality in the Frustration, Boredom, Tears, Poop, Desperation, Wonder, and Radical Amazement of Parenting\u003c\/i\u003e and editor of several books including \u003ci\u003eYentl's Revenge: The Next Wave of Jewish Feminism.\u003c\/i\u003e She has been published in a wide variety of books and periodicals, including \u003ci\u003eEncyclopedia Judaica\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBest Jewish Writing 2002\u003c\/i\u003e, the \u003ci\u003eSan Francisco Chronicle\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eSalon\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eBitchfest\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eThe Women's Movement Today: An Encyclopedia of Third-Wave Feminism\u003c\/i\u003e. A contributing editor to both \u003ci\u003eLilith\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eWomen in Judaism\u003c\/i\u003e, Ruttenberg received rabbinic ordination from the Zeigler School of Rabbinic Studies in Los Angeles in 2008. Find her online at www.danyaruttenberg.net.","brand":"Beacon Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46304877052133,"sku":"NP9780807010693","price":18.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780807010693.jpg?v=1767737621","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/surprised-by-god-isbn-9780807010693","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}