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The Sacred Chain:

History of the Jews, The
Front Cover
3 Reviews
HarperCollins, Sep 29, 1995 - History - 512 pages
The Sacred Chain is the most comprehensive, readable, up-to-date history of the Jews in the English language. The focus is on how a Jewish identity and consciousness were created, perpetuated, and shaped through three millennia of tumultuous and complex development. Norman F. Cantor sees the Jews as a distinctive ethnic group, rising from anthropological and sociological sources in ancient times. Then, molded in part by interaction with other societies, the Jews developed a unique and persistent culture, behavior pattern, and mind-set. Cantor regards Jewish history as embracing all people regarded by themselves or others as Jews and argues that there is a distinctive Jewish sense and sensibility that are apparent among Jews assimilated to other cultures and converted to other religions, as well as among those who have remained loyal to traditional religion.

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Review: The Sacred Chain: The History of the Jews

User Review  - Kate - Goodreads

Having (finally) completed this important history, I can see why it caused so much controversy in the Jewish community. Beyond challenging long-held myths about Jewish origins with anthropological ... Read full review

Review: The Sacred Chain: The History of the Jews

User Review  - Becky - Goodreads

This book is interesting if you are used to social histories. It is written by a professor who is very much into academics and quotes other professor like the readers should already know who is who ... Read full review

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About the author (1995)

Norman F. Cantor was Emeritus Professor of History, Sociology, and Comparative Literature at New York University. His many books include In the Wake of the Plague, Inventing the Middle Ages, and The Civilization of the Middle Ages, the most widely read narrative of the Middle Ages in the English language. He died in 2004.

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