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The Home We Build Together: Recreating Society by Sacks, Jonathan(June 2, 2009) Paperback
"Multiculturalism has run its course, and it is time to move on." So begins Jonathan Sacks' new book on the future of British society and the dangers facing liberal democracy.Arguing that global communications have fragmented national cultures and that multiculturalism, intended to reduce social frictions, is today reinforcing them, Sacks argues for a new approach to national identity. We cannot stay with current policies that are producing a society of conflicting ghettoes and non-intersecting lives, turning religious bodies into pressure groups rather than society-building forces. Britain, he argues, will have to construct a national narrative as a basis for identity, reinvigorate the concept of the common good, and identify shared interests among currently conflicting groups. It must restore a culture of civility, protect "neutral spaces" from politicization, and find ways of moving beyond an adversarial culture in which the loudest voice wins. He argues for a responsibility- rather than rights-based model of citizenship that connects the ideas of giving and belonging.Offering a new paradigm to replace previous models of assimilation on the one hand, multiculturalism on the other, he argues that we should see society as "the home we build together," bringing the distinctive gifts of different groups to the common good. Sacks warns of the hazards free and open societies face in the twenty-first century, and offers an unusual religious defence of liberal democracy and the nation state.
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First published December 30, 2007
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About the author
Jonathan Sacks
231 books442 followersRabbi Lord Jonathan Henry Sacks was the Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the Commonwealth. His Hebrew name was Yaakov Zvi.
Serving as the chief rabbi in the United Kingdom from 1991 to 2013, Sacks gained fame both in the secular world and in Jewish circles. He was a sought-after voice on issues of war and peace, religious fundamentalism, ethics, and the relationship between science and religion, among other topics. Sacks wrote more than 20 books.
Rabbi Sacks died November 2020 after a short bout with cancer. He was 72.
Serving as the chief rabbi in the United Kingdom from 1991 to 2013, Sacks gained fame both in the secular world and in Jewish circles. He was a sought-after voice on issues of war and peace, religious fundamentalism, ethics, and the relationship between science and religion, among other topics. Sacks wrote more than 20 books.
Rabbi Sacks died November 2020 after a short bout with cancer. He was 72.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
June 14, 2008
I'm a youngish, female, American atheist. He's an oldish, male, British rabbi. But if you want to get who I am, read this book.
It's about the fact that as human beings, we all share the same fate and as such share the same basic rights AND responsibilities. He talks about the bible not in terms of faith but as an ancient political text akin to other historical political works he also discusses.
We are what we make of ourselves, and in our individualistic world, we can't make a whole lot on our own.
It's about the fact that as human beings, we all share the same fate and as such share the same basic rights AND responsibilities. He talks about the bible not in terms of faith but as an ancient political text akin to other historical political works he also discusses.
We are what we make of ourselves, and in our individualistic world, we can't make a whole lot on our own.
August 12, 2024
As I have been working my way through much of the body of work from the late Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, I was given this book as a place where Jewish wisdom meets socio-political experience in our modern world. It is certainly true that I don’t share all of the Rabbi’s tastes or conclusions for society and/or politics, but I found the book wonderfully thought-provoking and I grew substantially from reading it. A few items of importance about this book would be:
ITS PLACE IN TIME: Sacks published this work in 2007. A lot has changed since then, and it was helpful to remember this while reading. I don’t think it impacts its value negatively much at all; if anything, it was eerie to consider how true some of his points proved to be over the next couple of decades.
ITS PLACE IN ADDRESS: Sacks was in Britain and his conversation was not focused on the American experience, even though Sacks would reference American society and politics often. This was relevant, because language and references don’t mean necessarily what your typical American reader might assume. Terms like “liberal democracy” should be considered in light of the author’s assumptions. Everything from the Overton window in a more European context to the political experience in the last century impacts what is being referenced.
ITS AUDIENCE: Again, Sacks isn’t writing this book for Christians or Americans. He was a Jewish Rabbi living in a European context. His concerns and convictions about building a new society are directed at a much wider context than my immediate one; at times you hear his love for Britain ringing loud and clear. Yet there was still so much to learn and consider for me as a Christian in America.
If one is interested in considering what it means to build (rebuild?) a society, the difference between contract and covenant, integration and assimilation — this is a thought-provoking read.
ITS PLACE IN TIME: Sacks published this work in 2007. A lot has changed since then, and it was helpful to remember this while reading. I don’t think it impacts its value negatively much at all; if anything, it was eerie to consider how true some of his points proved to be over the next couple of decades.
ITS PLACE IN ADDRESS: Sacks was in Britain and his conversation was not focused on the American experience, even though Sacks would reference American society and politics often. This was relevant, because language and references don’t mean necessarily what your typical American reader might assume. Terms like “liberal democracy” should be considered in light of the author’s assumptions. Everything from the Overton window in a more European context to the political experience in the last century impacts what is being referenced.
ITS AUDIENCE: Again, Sacks isn’t writing this book for Christians or Americans. He was a Jewish Rabbi living in a European context. His concerns and convictions about building a new society are directed at a much wider context than my immediate one; at times you hear his love for Britain ringing loud and clear. Yet there was still so much to learn and consider for me as a Christian in America.
If one is interested in considering what it means to build (rebuild?) a society, the difference between contract and covenant, integration and assimilation — this is a thought-provoking read.
September 18, 2011
My book club read this together, and the consensus was that we were disappointed in this book, especially considering how good Rabbi Sacks' other books are. His premise, that if a group of people work cooperatively to create something, they will exhibit ownership in it. This is fairly obvious, but the way that he applies this to modern multiculturalism is novel. He insists that multiculturalism has failed, and is steadily creating identities which are more and more fragmented and segregated from each other. Rather, he says, we should endeavor to create a synthetic society based on the contributions of the disparate elements. This is a striking premise, especially taken in light of modern politics and the rioting occurring across England. Rabbi Sacks could be projected as saying that the lack of ownership which many people have in the modern welfare state would lead to a widespread lack of respect and consideration, leading to wanton destruction.
Sacks presents a compelling argument based on the Torah, which I will summarize. The Jews experienced oodles of miracles in the book of Exodus - they saw the plagues on the Egyptians, the splitting of the Red Sea, the food falling from heaven, to name but a few. Even with all that, they continued to rebel again and again. It was not until all of them worked collaboratively on building the mishkan (the portable sanctuary), that they stopped rebelling, and this was because they all had ownership in the society under the aegis of God.
So that is the good part - the bad part is that the book reads like a series of magazine articles on this topic. By that I mean that there is a tremendous amount of repetition, and the use of the book's title as a catchphrase becomes grating after the first few times. Additionally, this is a 20 chapter book where about 4 would have sufficed to thoroughly explore the topic.
Sacks presents a compelling argument based on the Torah, which I will summarize. The Jews experienced oodles of miracles in the book of Exodus - they saw the plagues on the Egyptians, the splitting of the Red Sea, the food falling from heaven, to name but a few. Even with all that, they continued to rebel again and again. It was not until all of them worked collaboratively on building the mishkan (the portable sanctuary), that they stopped rebelling, and this was because they all had ownership in the society under the aegis of God.
So that is the good part - the bad part is that the book reads like a series of magazine articles on this topic. By that I mean that there is a tremendous amount of repetition, and the use of the book's title as a catchphrase becomes grating after the first few times. Additionally, this is a 20 chapter book where about 4 would have sufficed to thoroughly explore the topic.
August 12, 2011
Taking the concept of Covenant as the central theme the Rabbi demonstrates how the Biblical ideal of a society is still relevant and workable today in our own society, which he warns, and shows, is on the point of collapse. A pity that this will largely be ignored by those who would see this as a 'religious' book for Jews, it is in fact a superb defence of, and apology for, liberal democracy which our political leaders would do well to study. I would have given it 5 stars but by the end I still couldn't quite grasp the subtleties of the differences between toleration and tolerance, and I did find the structure of the argument a little confusing at times. However I will be recommending it, and will read it again one day soon!
May 20, 2017
"Multiculturalism has run its course, and it is time to move on" sounds like the beginning of a right-wing editorial, not what you'd expect from a rabbi. Which is exactly why the book is well worth reading - a nuanced discussion of the Bible as a political document, and interesting ideas about the need for (and absence of) a shared social narrative to serve as a countervailing force to the politics of difference. In a way, the book is a lengthy unpacking of an idea which can be expressed as follows: there is an implicit moral code, a shared set of social practices, that defines every society. It is, in a way, what gives society its 'texture', and which is not captured by typical political philosophy (which focuses on the relationship between the individual and the state). However, these norms do not simply emerged - they are sustained (through collective storytelling, for example), and can disappear. (See, for example, the famous experiment where people who were late had to pay a fine; the introduction of money into the equation dissolved a social norm - don't be late! - and replaced it with - just how much is being late worth to me? http://freakonomics.com/2013/10/23/wh...)
Sacks discusses the difficulty of maintaining a sense of society (the focus is on Britain, but not exclusively) over and beyond the individual cohesion of the groups that constitute it. My only objection would be the repetitive refrain of 'building things together creates bridges between people'. That might be true, but it's not really helping me reach out to my Burqa-clad West London neighbours.
Similarly, Sacks notes how Gordon Brown was once derided for quoting Orwell's 'old maids bicycling to communion' in an attempt to define British values, but there are times when Sacks' own rhetoric has, to my ears, a similarly antiquarian/effusive tone which is jarring to (post)modern ears. But maybe that only goes to show the scale of the problem, and why getting the millennials to shift their allegiance from the 'Kingdom of Whatever' to uplifting national narratives is a much trickier task than would seem.
Sacks discusses the difficulty of maintaining a sense of society (the focus is on Britain, but not exclusively) over and beyond the individual cohesion of the groups that constitute it. My only objection would be the repetitive refrain of 'building things together creates bridges between people'. That might be true, but it's not really helping me reach out to my Burqa-clad West London neighbours.
Similarly, Sacks notes how Gordon Brown was once derided for quoting Orwell's 'old maids bicycling to communion' in an attempt to define British values, but there are times when Sacks' own rhetoric has, to my ears, a similarly antiquarian/effusive tone which is jarring to (post)modern ears. But maybe that only goes to show the scale of the problem, and why getting the millennials to shift their allegiance from the 'Kingdom of Whatever' to uplifting national narratives is a much trickier task than would seem.
August 11, 2018
if you only read one chapter in this book read the chapter on families. the personal stories are heartbreaking and real. we need a society that is committed to providing homes for children. not hotels, not country houses, but real homes.
February 25, 2023
Interesting take on multiculturalism in the 21st century, linking it to technological change, acknowledging we need a new social model moving forward, 4 stars for carrying my uni diss
August 2, 2024
Brilliant!
January 22, 2024
Jonathan Sacks - the late great Rabbi - has written a number of excellent books. His oeuvre is substantial and each work is well considered. He's also a great writer, who can weave together many topics for the reader's edification.
In this book, centred on recreating society, he provides an illuminating critique of modern idols such as 'nationalism' and 'multiculturalism' from a liberal democratic perspective. This is the best effort I have seen to that end. He shows how catastrophic nationalism can be for true patriotism and how 'multiculturalism' is really a bland top-down monoculturalism that has the unintended consequence of pitting different groups against one another. He offers another way, by recommending a rebirth of society, outside of the machinations of the market or the modern nation state. This is of immense importance, and he draws upon a litany of rich sociological and psychological research to show why.
As much as I love a great deal of the substance and style of Rabbi Sacks's book, at times I vehemently disagree. As a Christian and a voluntaryist, I would question the state and secularism more fundamentally.
The fact that he was happy to let the state look after education and healthcare is a major weakness in my view and Ivan Illich fills in those blind spots. Both are corrupted forms of voluntary association, drawn from the Christian faith for the most part. Systems that have destroyed the charity and personal character that gave rise to them. "The corruption of the best is the worst", as Illich says.
Rabbi Sacks wouldn't have seen as much of this at the time of the book's release, to be fair, but this corruption has only intensified since.
He underestimated the imperialist desires of the state. A therapeutic managerial state (Paul Gottfried) that calls abortion 'healthcare' and 'sex education' for primary school children, 'education'.
By failing to see the closed-mindedness of Popper's 'open society' and darker sides of liberalism (R.R. Reno) he could only provide half the story. He also failed to see the potential for democracy to turn into oligarchy, and how this lends itself to the 'total state'. (Auron MacIntyre)
However, I appreciate the Rabbi's nuance in many places and he's a welcome ally in many ways. Even where folks like myself will disagree with him, we'll come away richer after reading his take. Plus, much of what he says can be recalibrated by voluntaryists, libertarians, Classical liberals, and limited government conservatives.
Sacks's focus on the 'social covenant' versus the 'social contract', and his contrast between 'civil society' and the more ancient Greek & modern French notion of 'civic life', are remarkably insightful.
He offers some practical points, drawing on the wisdom of the Bible and social experiments, in forming communities by both face to face communication and shoulder to shoulder communication. The latter less utopian but as important in cultivating a common good, ensuring 'ways of peace'.
This, and many of his other rich insights, could help us all to restore some semblance of sanity and a better quality of life in our marriages and families, neighbourhoods, schools and across society.
I most appreciate his reflections on those institutions, like marriage and the clarity with which he highlights their continued value.
Overall, it's a great book and he's perhaps the scholar with whom I can disagree most cheerfully.
R.I.P Rabbi.
In this book, centred on recreating society, he provides an illuminating critique of modern idols such as 'nationalism' and 'multiculturalism' from a liberal democratic perspective. This is the best effort I have seen to that end. He shows how catastrophic nationalism can be for true patriotism and how 'multiculturalism' is really a bland top-down monoculturalism that has the unintended consequence of pitting different groups against one another. He offers another way, by recommending a rebirth of society, outside of the machinations of the market or the modern nation state. This is of immense importance, and he draws upon a litany of rich sociological and psychological research to show why.
As much as I love a great deal of the substance and style of Rabbi Sacks's book, at times I vehemently disagree. As a Christian and a voluntaryist, I would question the state and secularism more fundamentally.
The fact that he was happy to let the state look after education and healthcare is a major weakness in my view and Ivan Illich fills in those blind spots. Both are corrupted forms of voluntary association, drawn from the Christian faith for the most part. Systems that have destroyed the charity and personal character that gave rise to them. "The corruption of the best is the worst", as Illich says.
Rabbi Sacks wouldn't have seen as much of this at the time of the book's release, to be fair, but this corruption has only intensified since.
He underestimated the imperialist desires of the state. A therapeutic managerial state (Paul Gottfried) that calls abortion 'healthcare' and 'sex education' for primary school children, 'education'.
By failing to see the closed-mindedness of Popper's 'open society' and darker sides of liberalism (R.R. Reno) he could only provide half the story. He also failed to see the potential for democracy to turn into oligarchy, and how this lends itself to the 'total state'. (Auron MacIntyre)
However, I appreciate the Rabbi's nuance in many places and he's a welcome ally in many ways. Even where folks like myself will disagree with him, we'll come away richer after reading his take. Plus, much of what he says can be recalibrated by voluntaryists, libertarians, Classical liberals, and limited government conservatives.
Sacks's focus on the 'social covenant' versus the 'social contract', and his contrast between 'civil society' and the more ancient Greek & modern French notion of 'civic life', are remarkably insightful.
He offers some practical points, drawing on the wisdom of the Bible and social experiments, in forming communities by both face to face communication and shoulder to shoulder communication. The latter less utopian but as important in cultivating a common good, ensuring 'ways of peace'.
This, and many of his other rich insights, could help us all to restore some semblance of sanity and a better quality of life in our marriages and families, neighbourhoods, schools and across society.
I most appreciate his reflections on those institutions, like marriage and the clarity with which he highlights their continued value.
Overall, it's a great book and he's perhaps the scholar with whom I can disagree most cheerfully.
R.I.P Rabbi.
November 18, 2013
The book tackles a difficult subject - the tension between integration and segregation, multi-culturalism as opposed to integrated societies.
One of the best analysis' of the subject I've come across. Clear and well reasoned.
I didn't give it 5 stars since it contains many ideas from Rabbi Sacks' other books, though obviously it also has original material. Recommended together with the Dignity of Difference, it is a sequel and I think that they compliment each other nicely.
One of the best analysis' of the subject I've come across. Clear and well reasoned.
I didn't give it 5 stars since it contains many ideas from Rabbi Sacks' other books, though obviously it also has original material. Recommended together with the Dignity of Difference, it is a sequel and I think that they compliment each other nicely.
February 28, 2012
A book that every person should read especially those in politics.
June 24, 2012
Great book on cultural impacts on communities/ countries. Definetly not a quick read but thought provoking.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews