So Long as Jews Keep Discussing Their Purpose as a People, the World Will Be Better Off

The idea that the Jews have a special role in God’s plan for the universe is one that goes back to the Bible itself, and looms large in the thinking of the major medieval Jewish philosophers. But it is also one that has persisted into the modern era, capturing the imaginations of the theologians of Reform Judaism, of secular Zionists such as Theodor Herzl and David Ben-Gurion, and many others. It is the modern thinkers that are the main concern of Adam Sutcliffe’s recent book, What Are Jews For?, along with the non-Jewish writers and intellectuals who tackled the same question. Allan Arkush writes in his review: