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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Jennifer Rataj Telephone: (802) 457-4000 Fax: (802) 457-4004 [email protected] EVERY AGE HAS ITS PHARAOH In February 2011, the world watched as tens of thousands of Egyptians stood their ground against President Hosni Mubarak, a modern-day Pharaoh, in a fight for independence from greed, arrogance and power run amok. The struggle of the Egyptians and other current struggles for freedom—from the climate crisis, environmental destruction and corporate greed—parallel the ancient biblical tale of the Hebrews’ liberation from Pharaoh. How does the story of the Exodus echo in our own generation and in our own lives? “We are not the first generation that is living through Pharaoh once again and searching once again for our Sinai and our ‘promised land’—suffering through a transformation that gives birth to both tyranny and new forms of community,” write Rabbi Arthur O. Waskow and Rabbi Phyllis O. Berman in FREEDOM JOURNEYS: The Tale of Exodus and Wilderness across Millennia (Jewish Lights / March 2011 / Hardcover / $24.99). “In this book, we have brought together some examinations of several crucial moments when the story of Exodus, Sinai, and Wilderness was central to new bursts of religious community.” The story Jews retell on Passover is about rising up against tyranny, about the triumph of the God who sides with the despised against a resplendent emperor. Exploring how this tale applies to our own time enriches the ancient account—and it expands and transforms the community for which Exodus is a collective family story. Exodus is not only the saga of the escape from slavery, but also a story of courage, celebration, rebirth and community from which people of all faith traditions have learned and can continue to learn. Calling us to relearn and rethink the Passover story, Rabbi Waskow and Rabbi Berman share: • The enduring spiritual resonance of the Hebrews’ journey for our own time • Social justice, ecological and feminist perspectives on the Exodus • How the Passover story has been adapted and used by African American, Christian and Muslim communities to provide insight and inspiration ### Rabbi Arthur O. Waskow, an innovative and inspiring spiritual leader and frequent speaker on the topics of Jewish life, community and social justice, is director of The Shalom Center and author of Godwrestling—Round 2: Ancient Wisdom, Future Paths; Torah of the Earth: Exploring 4,000 Years of Ecology in Jewish Thought; Down-to-Earth Judaism and other books. Rabbi Phyllis O. Berman is co-author, with Rabbi Waskow, of A Time for Every Purpose Under Heaven: The Jewish Life-Spiral as a Spiritual Path. FREEDOM JOURNEYS The Tale of Exodus and Wilderness across Millennia By Rabbi Arthur O. Waskow and Rabbi Phyllis O. Berman Jewish Lights (Woodstock, VT); www.jewishlights.com; 800-962-4544 Hardcover / $24.99 / 288 pages / March 2011 / ISBN 978-1-58023-445-0 Praise for FREEDOM JOURNEYS The Tale of Exodus and Wilderness across Millennia By Rabbi Arthur O. Waskow and Rabbi Phyllis O. Berman “Fresh, bold, insightful interpretations … eloquently invite us to remember and to rethink how our ancient mission addresses the most urgent crises humanity faces today.” —Rabbi David Saperstein, director, Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism “Show[s] how others see [the Exodus] as an archetype for similar stories in Christianity, Islam, and the southern freedom movement…. Informative and inspiring for those involved in current movements for justice.” —Jim Wallis, president, Sojourners; author, Rediscovering Values “A powerful retracing of the Exodus story that reminds us all of our obligation to move against oppression and toward freedom in our own lives and in our own time.” —Ruth W. Messinger, president, American Jewish World Service “One of the most exciting interpretations of Exodus in contemporary Jewish literature…. Should be used at every Seder and in every synagogue in America.” —Rabbi Michael Lerner, editor, Tikkun Magazine, www.tikkun.org “It was the Exodus story that undergirded the civil rights movement; but as Arthur Waskow and Phyllis Berman demonstrate in this fascinating book, even Martin Luther King didn’t plumb the entire story, which we need now more than ever.” —Bill McKibben, author, Eaarth; founder, 350.org “The story of Moses, Pharaoh, and the Exodus is familiar to Jews, Christians, and Muslims, but the familiarity is often superficial. Freedom Journeys encourages us to consider the deeper meanings of this story, and challenges us to apply the understanding we gain to transform and heal our broken relationships with each other and with the rest of creation.” —Sheila Musaji, editor, The American Muslim “Many of the Hasidim saw the world as God, wrapped in robes of God so as to seem material. Yet they knew that God’s Own Self was fractured in the world we live in, and so both world and God need our acts of healing. Today, a new paradigm of a Judaism is emerging that is in harmony with tikkun olam and will help heal that brokenness for all humanity and all our planet. Freedom Journeys helps us to bring to birth a new world as God and our forebears did in the Exodus so long ago.” —Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, co-author, Jewish with Feeling and A Heart Afire “This collection is a lush tapestry of visionary, incisive, and inspiring reflections on the Exodus and Wilderness stories. May Arthur’s and Phyllis’s inspired writing move many to work together for liberation from oppressive structures of our own day, both globally and locally.” —Rabbi Amy Eilberg, Jay Phillips Center for Interfaith Learning; first woman ordained by The Jewish Theological Seminary “It is educational to learn of freedom journeys of the past, but awe-inspiring when these authors show how they can be experienced by people of all faiths today.” —Laleh Bakhtiar, PhD, first woman translator of the Qur’an (OVER) “The stories of the Israelites’ journey to freedom have inspired Jews, Christians, and Muslims throughout the centuries. Waskow and Berman retell the tales yet again, weaving in the voices of fellow travellers, ancient and contemporary, from among the children of Abraham. The result testifies to the incredible enduring power of these narratives, their connection to the lives of men and women confronting the challenges of their own times. The authors answer the question ‘Study or action?’ with a resounding ‘Yes!’” —Rabbi Nancy Fuchs Kreimer, associate professor and director of Multifaith Studies and Initiatives, Reconstructionist Rabbinical College “A deep meditation on the timeless—and timely—relevance of the Exodus narrative. In the grand tradition of mystical exegesis, Waskow and Berman reflect upon Exodus not only as an event that happened ‘then’ and ‘there,’ but a paradigm of movement that is happening here and in the now, for all of us, Jew and Muslim, Black and White, male and female. A joyous, wondrous, and profound classic.” —Omid Safi, professor of Islamic studies, University of North Carolina; author, Memories of Muhammad “Provides those who wish to embrace or encounter a liberal reading of the Exodus story the book they have been seeking. In their inimitable words as well as the essays they have collected from Christian, African American, and Muslim writers, Arthur and Phyllis have created a repository of exegesis and interpretation that will offer inventive, very liberal, and innovative pathways to understanding the narratives and midrashim that have been a part of this ongoing and changing story for the past two thousand years.” —Rabbi Steve Gutow, president and CEO, Jewish Council for Public Affairs “Brings the Exodus story freshly and powerfully into our contemporary lives, offering a moving Torah of transformation that will undoubtedly impact many hearts and minds alike.” —Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg, author, Surprised by God: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Religion; editor, The Passionate Torah: Sex and Judaism “A prophetic book for the challenges we face in today’s troubled world. Chapter after chapter contains the biblical foundation for addressing poverty, care of the earth and living in peace together on this fragile planet as brothers and sisters. I recommend this book of universal wisdom to people of all faith traditions.” —Bob Edgar, president, Common Cause; former general secretary, National Council of Churches; former president, Claremont School of Theology; former member, United States House of Representatives “Opens the way to fresh, rich, and challenging readings of biblical tales of exodus and exile, return and reconsecration. Join these wise guides on this spiritual journey and experience the text renewed and illuminated by their brilliant interpretations and deep immersion in stories that cross boundaries and bring together all who value and seek freedom. You will be richly rewarded.” —Rabbi Sue Levi Elwell, PhD, union rabbi and worship specialist, Union for Reform Judaism ### FREEDOM JOURNEYS: The Tale of Exodus and Wilderness across Millennia (6” x 9”, 288 pp, Hardcover, ISBN 9781-58023-445-0, $24.99) is available from Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million, Indigo/Chapters, amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com, and many other booksellers, or directly from Jewish Lights Publishing, P.O. Box 237, Woodstock, VT 05091; Tel: (802) 457-4000; Fax: (802) 457-4004; www.jewishlights.com. For credit card orders, call (800) 962-4544. Add $3.95 shipping and handling for the first book, $2.50 for each additional book. Also available as an e-book.