Michael Strassfeld, coauthor of the historic Jewish Catalogs, provides a fresh, innovative guide to recapturing Jewish spirituality. For all the cycles of life—from waking in the morning to retiring at night, from the weekdays to the Sabbath and holidays, from the beginning of the year to its close, from birth to death—Rabbi Strassfeld presents traditional Jewish teachings as a guide to behavior and values. Where the tradition is replete with rituals (for example, the Sabbath), he describes them and shows us how they can enrich our spiritual life. Where rituals are sparse or nonexistent (for example, returning home at the end of the workday), he suggests new ones gleaned from his own study and experience.

Rabbi Strassfeld also brings the principles of “insight meditation” to Jewish life, using this practice to recover and reconstruct Judaism’s spiritual dimension. He describes a Judaism that encourages within us a spiritual awareness as we participate in both traditional Jewish practices and the mundane activities of daily life. By engaging with Jewish tradition in ways that recapture its original kavanah, or intention, we will, Rabbi Strassfeld maintains, achieve the two fundamental goals of Judaism, which are to make us better human beings and place us in the presence of God.