
Planting Seeds of The Divine
Torah Commentaries to Cultivate Your Spiritual Practice
Jointly published by the University of Nebraska Press (UNP) and the Jewish Publication Society (JPS).
Planting Seeds of the Divine elucidates how Judaism’s sacred texts can provide the foundation for the “end destination” of experiencing intimate encounters with the Divine Presence within—the God-consciousness that so many of us seek and find elusive. Imagining ourselves as spiritual gardeners, we can cultivate our unique gardens with seeds, centered on middot — emotional dispositions, character traits, and spiritual sensitivities. Each seed points to an aspirational Torah verse(s) in the weekly Torah portion, expressing one of the middot. Classical commentaries, teachings of Hasidic and Neo-Hasidic masters and the author’s own interpretation support the highlighted middah. Each section concludes with a step-by-step spiritual practice that helps the reader internalize that Torah portion’s middah. This holistic approach engages the intellectual, emotional, embodied and spiritual dimensions on a journey of self-discovery through Torah — reclaiming a contemplative, experiential-theological language to the heart of religious experience.
