The Oxford Dictionary of the Jewish Religion
The 2400 entries in this dictionary include unsigned but revised articles from the editors' Encyclopedia of the Jewish Religion (1966. o.p.), as well as many new signed articles covering significant elements and biographies related to the Jewish religion and interfaith relations. In Oxford fashion, this is by far the most academic one-volume work available on the subject because of the caliber of the contributing scholars and the bibliographies. The timeliness of the work is evidenced by entries on such topics as feminism, women, and "Technology and Halakhah." It also satisfactorily represents the variety of Jewish traditions (including Bene Israel and Beta Israel) plus such innovations as Havurot, confirmations, and the Bat Mitzvah. The two articles defining the temple clearly show its balanced portrayal. Access is alphabetical, with good cross-referencing of subject headings?especially helpful with Hebrew terms, so that "Kaddish" is referred to "Quaddish." Cross references within the articles are less consistent. While The Encyclopedia Judaica (1972; 16 vols., plus supplements, due out this year on CD-ROM) will remain a standard for questions on Jewish culture and history, librarians and patrons alike will find the ODJR to be their best ready-reference access point to the Jewish religion, supplanting Geoffrey Wigoder's Encyclopedia of Judaism (Macmillan, 1989).?Andrew B. Wertheimer, Spertus Inst. of Jewish Studies, ChicagoCopyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.