Aaron, David 1957–

(David Wilenski)

PERSONAL:

Original surname, Wilenski; name changed; born 1957; married; wife's name Chana; children: seven. Education: Israel Torah Research Institute.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Jerusalem, Israel. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Rabbi. Founder and dean, Isralight, 1986—.

WRITINGS:

Endless Light: The Ancient Path of the Kabbalah to Love, Spiritual Growth, and Personal Power, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 1997.

Seeing God: Ten Life-Changing Lessons of the Kabbalah, Jeremy P. Tarcher/Putnam (New York, NY), 2001.

The Secret Life of God: Discovering the Divine within You, Shambhala Publications (Boston, MA), 2004.

Inviting God In: Celebrating the Soul-Meaning of the Jewish Holy Days, Trumpeter (Boston, MA), 2006.

Living a Joyous Life: The True Spirit of Jewish Practice, Trumpeter (Boston, MA), 2007.

SIDELIGHTS:

David Aaron is a rabbi who founded Isralight, an international organization that focuses on spiritual education. He is also an expert on the Kabbalah (or Kabbala), which is a set of mystical or esoteric beliefs and practices that supplement traditional Jewish interpretations of the Torah. Aaron is the author of several books that focus on the spiritual basics of life and explore the modern trend away from spirituality, as well as the author's belief that the spiritual path should be a part of everyday life. A biography of the author on his Web site noted: ‘Rabbi Aaron believes that the spiritual basics of life are the most profound and yet the most neglected in contemporary education. For the past eighteen years, he has dedicated himself to sharing the ancient wisdom of Torah and Jewish mysticism and inspiring others to embrace a joyous life-long process of personal transformation, empowerment and love."

In his first book, Endless Light: The Ancient Path of the Kabbalah to Love, Spiritual Growth, and Personal Power, the author draws from the Kabbalah to provide guidance on living a more spiritual life exemplified by love and power. The author includes illustrations from various Jewish writings and anecdotes from his personal life as he discusses how individuals can undergo a personal transformation. Noting that the author relies heavily on the Kabbalah for his inspirational teaching, a Publishers Weekly contributor also wrote that ‘Aaron's meditations … are generic enough … to appeal to a broad audience."

Seeing God: Ten Life-Changing Lessons of the Kabbalah is another interpretation of Jewish mystical doctrines presented in the Kabbalah with an emphasis on how God should be perceived. Noting the difficulty that many people have in perceiving of a God who is invisible and infinite, the author goes on to focus on a central theme in the Kabbalah concerning the manner in which God is revealed to the individual. In the process, Aaron discusses topics such as kindness, justice, community consciousness, will, logical thinking, and awareness. Writing in Publishers Weekly, a contributor noted that the author ‘succeeds in presenting one of Kabbalah's most perplexing notions in plain language that can be readily grasped.’ The reviewer went on to write: ‘This is a major achievement."

According to Catholic Insight contributor Kathline Nitsch, The Secret Life of God: Discovering the Divine within You ‘provides food for thought for everyone seeking a wider understanding of God and our relationship to him, as well as comfort and resolution to the ‘theophobic.’’ In the book, Aaron discusses the biblical scriptures of the Old Testament and presents his case that mystical insight—not just reading of the scriptures alone—is necessary for a person to divine the true nature of God. Aaron also writes about what he calls ‘theophobia,’ a type of fear of God as an entity that is not very likable considering his stern judgments of human beings. Nevertheless, the author writes about the perfection of God in an attempt to help people to develop a new consciousness and understanding of God and, in the process, help those who have difficulty with what they see as the master-slave relationship between God and people. Graham Christian, writing in the Library Journal, noted that some of the book is esoteric and difficult to follow, but he added that ‘many will find the journey fascinating.’ Writing in Catholic Insight, Nitsch commented: ‘Aside from the main thesis of this book, the Rabbi supplies the reader with many metaphors and analogies to calm the nagging insistence for answers to common questions, such as why a good God permits evil and how free will is reconcilable with God's foreknowledge of our choices and actions."

Inviting God In: Celebrating the Soul-Meaning of the Jewish Holy Days focuses on Jewish ritual practice during Jewish holidays, including Passover, Shauvuot, Tisha B'Av, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, and Purim. In each chapter, the author discusses the ‘soul meaning’ of each holiday, primarily focusing on the unconditional love provided by God that is, according to the author, the unifying theme of these holidays. For example, he discusses the treatises of the order of Mo'ed, which concern ritual practices and beliefs associated with various Jewish holidays, such as the idea of a fixed time or date that enables people to recall God's loving presence. ‘Most Jewish readers will enjoy this charming and thoughtful book,’ according to Christian in another review for Library Journal. A Publishers Weekly contributor felt that the author's ‘accessible explanations make difficult mystical concepts easy to understand, especially when he offers clever, offbeat analogies."

Aaron addresses common questions about the Jewish religion in Living a Joyous Life: The True Spirit of Jewish Practice. Focusing on uncommon answers to various theological questions, such as ‘Why pray?,’ the author forms his answers with a focus on a better understanding of the Jewish religion and the importance of its traditions in spiritual practices. In addition to God, chapters focus on Jewish theological topics such as the Torah, prayer, Shabbat, and kashrut. A Publishers Weekly contributor concluded that the author's ‘empathic insights strike a note resonant enough to reawaken the spiritual taste buds."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Catholic Insight, September, 2004, Kathline Nitsch, review of The Secret Life of God: Discovering the Divine within You, p. 44.

Library Journal, May 1, 2004, Graham Christian, review of The Secret Life of God, p. 115; October 1, 2006, Graham Christian, review of Inviting God In: Celebrating the Soul-Meaning of the Jewish Holy Days, p. 78.

Publishers Weekly, August 25, 1997, review of Endless Light: The Ancient Path of the Kabbalah to Love, Spiritual Growth, and Personal Power, p. 64; January 15, 2001, review of Seeing God: Ten Life-Changing Lessons of the Kabbalah, p. 69; June 12, 2006, review of Inviting God In, p. 48; May 28, 2007, review of Living a Joyous Life: The True Spirit of Jewish Practice, p. 51.

ONLINE

David Aaron Home Page,http://www.rabbidavidaaron.com (October 17, 2007).

Spirituality & Practice: Living Spiritual Teachers Project,http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/teachers/ (October 17, 2007), Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, ‘Living Spiritual Teachers Project: David Aaron."