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The Triumph of Life: A Narrative Theology of Judaism
The Triumph of Life is Rabbi Irving Greenberg’s magnum opus—a narrative of the relationship between God and humanity expressed in the Jewish journey through modernity, the Holocaust, the creation of Israel, and the birth of Judaism’s next era.
398 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 1, 2024
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March 24, 2025
If you’ve ever read one of the many “I am Jewish, here’s why Judaism is great, here’s how it can be used to make the world a better place” type of modern sefers, a salient question to ask before diving into The Triumph of Life is how is this book any different? For those who have read similar books such as and certainly not limited to a Letter in the Scroll by Rabbi Sachs and the very under-rated Spiritual Integrity by Rabbi Cohen, there may not be much to gain here.
BUT—and a big one—this is one unlike the others. Calling Rabbi Irving Greenberg a living legend may only be scratching the surface and if there’s one rabbi who deserves to pen a victory lap where in one volume he summarizes everything he loves about Judaism, but also includes well-intended criticisms, and also a guide for the future of humanity, it’s him.
Separated into three parts, in a way we get three different books each with their pro’s and con’s. An issue the last paragraph below will dive into is one of repetitiveness. Early on more so than later, we get a lot of material those who have read these types of books—what I and surely others call ‘Sefer L’chaims’—may find a bit too similar. Things improve as we continue onward and even in spite of some familiar sights, the well-done footnotes introduce curious readers to a wealth of other material that zeroes in more specifically on subjects Rabbi Greenberg may only quickly brush upon.
The last part of the book, entitled “The Covenant in the Third Era”, is for me at least something of a Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde in that it contains the best aspects, but also aspects that come off as more far-fetched. What’s more, it may be that my mind is already pretty much set after reading “Soloveitchik's Children: Irving Greenberg, David Hartman, Jonathan Sacks, and the Future of Jewish Theology in America” published just a year earlier, but the author of that book’s viewpoint on the concept of Tzimzum (God (periodically) reducing Himself to make room for everything else basically) I feel is more appropriate: it probably only happened once and if more than once and if humans are made in the image of God, why are two instances beyond the first only linked to Jewish events? That the third Tzimtzum (Holocaust onward) as the book progresses becomes a lodestar to Rabbi Greenberg, this become a theological sticking point I just could not look over.
The last chapter—the book’s longest—in particular in a way is mini-sections where Rabbi Greenberg sounds off on how he thinks various world and religious issues ranging from safer farming practices to the status of women and LGBTQ+’s in Judaism should be better but never dives deep enough into how these things should be done.
Given that this book, as noted above, is supposed to serve as a capstone to his career (though a shrewd reader may have noticed in a footnote an indication he’s still working on more books!) and an immense one at that, leeway should be given. He also drops some beliefs that coming from an Orthodox point of view would raise a few eyebrows: women in Orthodox (Haredi, mostly) society are separate and not equal, everyone including those not heterosexual are created in God’s image and should not be discriminated against, Reform and Conservative are just as Jewish as Orthodox, and female rabbis—why not?
A salient question: who is this book for? If you’ve read other “Sefer L'chaim” books (this is Judaism, this is our people’s history, here’s some things it may get wrong, but here’s why it’ll all be OK in the end), going into this one may not lead to too many surprises. At the same time, this one’s by a living legend who has talked the talk and walked the walk probably more so than any other living rabbi. Thus, it puts me in a weird place on how to rank it. A good chunk seems similar to things already out there, but Rabbi Greenberg has earned the ability to write out his magnum opus on life. Thus for that, this is a great book, but for those who have already read similar, “Soloveitchik's Children” which is about the philosophies of the Rav, Rabbis Greenberg, Hartman, and Sachs is the better choice if one can take only one book with them to a deserted island.
---Notable Highlights---
An Orthodox rabbi acknowledging evolution:
“The fact that Creation has been carried out over billions of years makes abusing it for the sake of one particular generation all the more outrageous: a desecration of the sacred.”
And then there’s this:
“God is not male.”
‘We like being in charge and we doubt the intellect and fortitude of our community.’
“In a similar spirit, Rabbi Akiva Eiger, a towering Torah giant of nineteenth-century Germany, wrote to Napoleon asking him not to emancipate the Jews, because modernization led Jews to betray the oath they had taken at Sinai. These Orthodox leaders, precursors of the ultra-Orthodox movement that would later be called haredim, saw modernity as highly addictive: in any conversation that admitted the axioms and terms of modernity, premodern ideas and practices would lose.”
If his Adudath Israel card was not already revoked…
“That summer institute taught me that the Conservative and Reform movements were valid interpretations of Judaism, channels to connect and partner with God.”
BUT—and a big one—this is one unlike the others. Calling Rabbi Irving Greenberg a living legend may only be scratching the surface and if there’s one rabbi who deserves to pen a victory lap where in one volume he summarizes everything he loves about Judaism, but also includes well-intended criticisms, and also a guide for the future of humanity, it’s him.
Separated into three parts, in a way we get three different books each with their pro’s and con’s. An issue the last paragraph below will dive into is one of repetitiveness. Early on more so than later, we get a lot of material those who have read these types of books—what I and surely others call ‘Sefer L’chaims’—may find a bit too similar. Things improve as we continue onward and even in spite of some familiar sights, the well-done footnotes introduce curious readers to a wealth of other material that zeroes in more specifically on subjects Rabbi Greenberg may only quickly brush upon.
The last part of the book, entitled “The Covenant in the Third Era”, is for me at least something of a Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde in that it contains the best aspects, but also aspects that come off as more far-fetched. What’s more, it may be that my mind is already pretty much set after reading “Soloveitchik's Children: Irving Greenberg, David Hartman, Jonathan Sacks, and the Future of Jewish Theology in America” published just a year earlier, but the author of that book’s viewpoint on the concept of Tzimzum (God (periodically) reducing Himself to make room for everything else basically) I feel is more appropriate: it probably only happened once and if more than once and if humans are made in the image of God, why are two instances beyond the first only linked to Jewish events? That the third Tzimtzum (Holocaust onward) as the book progresses becomes a lodestar to Rabbi Greenberg, this become a theological sticking point I just could not look over.
The last chapter—the book’s longest—in particular in a way is mini-sections where Rabbi Greenberg sounds off on how he thinks various world and religious issues ranging from safer farming practices to the status of women and LGBTQ+’s in Judaism should be better but never dives deep enough into how these things should be done.
Given that this book, as noted above, is supposed to serve as a capstone to his career (though a shrewd reader may have noticed in a footnote an indication he’s still working on more books!) and an immense one at that, leeway should be given. He also drops some beliefs that coming from an Orthodox point of view would raise a few eyebrows: women in Orthodox (Haredi, mostly) society are separate and not equal, everyone including those not heterosexual are created in God’s image and should not be discriminated against, Reform and Conservative are just as Jewish as Orthodox, and female rabbis—why not?
A salient question: who is this book for? If you’ve read other “Sefer L'chaim” books (this is Judaism, this is our people’s history, here’s some things it may get wrong, but here’s why it’ll all be OK in the end), going into this one may not lead to too many surprises. At the same time, this one’s by a living legend who has talked the talk and walked the walk probably more so than any other living rabbi. Thus, it puts me in a weird place on how to rank it. A good chunk seems similar to things already out there, but Rabbi Greenberg has earned the ability to write out his magnum opus on life. Thus for that, this is a great book, but for those who have already read similar, “Soloveitchik's Children” which is about the philosophies of the Rav, Rabbis Greenberg, Hartman, and Sachs is the better choice if one can take only one book with them to a deserted island.
---Notable Highlights---
An Orthodox rabbi acknowledging evolution:
“The fact that Creation has been carried out over billions of years makes abusing it for the sake of one particular generation all the more outrageous: a desecration of the sacred.”
And then there’s this:
“God is not male.”
‘We like being in charge and we doubt the intellect and fortitude of our community.’
“In a similar spirit, Rabbi Akiva Eiger, a towering Torah giant of nineteenth-century Germany, wrote to Napoleon asking him not to emancipate the Jews, because modernization led Jews to betray the oath they had taken at Sinai. These Orthodox leaders, precursors of the ultra-Orthodox movement that would later be called haredim, saw modernity as highly addictive: in any conversation that admitted the axioms and terms of modernity, premodern ideas and practices would lose.”
If his Adudath Israel card was not already revoked…
“That summer institute taught me that the Conservative and Reform movements were valid interpretations of Judaism, channels to connect and partner with God.”
November 18, 2024
I first read Rabbi Greenberg over thirty-five years ago, in my initial stage of studying Judaism. Now, in returning to this topic, I'm amazed he's still at it, after easily six decades of prolific publishing. He excels at articulating a nuanced, inclusive, tolerant, and pluralistic application from within 'halakha' (Jewish law) even as he critiques the closed mindedness of the haredi, the ultra-Orthodox, fringes.
Why does he do this? His thesis, developed as he struggled to keep his faith while grappling with the absence of God during the Shoah, is that for the third era in Jewish history, the Divine Presence has chosen to withdraw from active intervention in human affairs. Following the revelations at Sinai, by gradual diminishing, God stepped back so that people had to stand up and fulfill their fair share of the covenant. After the fall of the Second Temple, in the diaspora, the Jewish nation transformed itself by accepting a more active role in shifting from rituals based in Israel to the home, family, and trusted community as well as Torah study which spread the teachings to ordinary folks, stabilizing continuity.
With modernity, this equilibrium, despite the inherent opposition to Jewish security under both the Muslim and Christian hegemonies, weakened. Greenberg sketches deftly how Zionism, communism, liberalism, secularism, and assimilation all divided the loyalties of Jews as they abandoned their past traditions and limited opportunities. He limns also how the reactionaries who rejected any truck with modern advances wound up preventing religion or conviction of having any say in subsequent change.
His notion of the kabbalistic "tzimtzum," the primordial contraction of the universal energy, as a more mature model upon which to build the 'tikkun olam,' the repair of the broken world of creation, offers a wider embrace of all humanity. Greenberg conveys a welcoming of technology and science able to better our lives, heal the earth, and bring about a more modest, less grandiose fulfillment of a messianic age grounded in humbler comprehension of humans determined to improve the lot of their sisters and brothers across any barriers of belief, creed, or orientation. He champions a renewed way of acting out the nobler principles of Judaism, inviting women and others marginalized by prejudice, to join with the rest of our planet's peoples to focus on righteousness rather than outmoded fealty.
Why does he do this? His thesis, developed as he struggled to keep his faith while grappling with the absence of God during the Shoah, is that for the third era in Jewish history, the Divine Presence has chosen to withdraw from active intervention in human affairs. Following the revelations at Sinai, by gradual diminishing, God stepped back so that people had to stand up and fulfill their fair share of the covenant. After the fall of the Second Temple, in the diaspora, the Jewish nation transformed itself by accepting a more active role in shifting from rituals based in Israel to the home, family, and trusted community as well as Torah study which spread the teachings to ordinary folks, stabilizing continuity.
With modernity, this equilibrium, despite the inherent opposition to Jewish security under both the Muslim and Christian hegemonies, weakened. Greenberg sketches deftly how Zionism, communism, liberalism, secularism, and assimilation all divided the loyalties of Jews as they abandoned their past traditions and limited opportunities. He limns also how the reactionaries who rejected any truck with modern advances wound up preventing religion or conviction of having any say in subsequent change.
His notion of the kabbalistic "tzimtzum," the primordial contraction of the universal energy, as a more mature model upon which to build the 'tikkun olam,' the repair of the broken world of creation, offers a wider embrace of all humanity. Greenberg conveys a welcoming of technology and science able to better our lives, heal the earth, and bring about a more modest, less grandiose fulfillment of a messianic age grounded in humbler comprehension of humans determined to improve the lot of their sisters and brothers across any barriers of belief, creed, or orientation. He champions a renewed way of acting out the nobler principles of Judaism, inviting women and others marginalized by prejudice, to join with the rest of our planet's peoples to focus on righteousness rather than outmoded fealty.
May 21, 2025
This is the work which expresses in the fullest way the thought of Rabbi Greenberg. It is the culmination of a lifetime of devotion to understanding and teaching Jewish history and religious thought. Its focus is on the idea that the God of Israel is a God of Life whose covenant with the Jewish people and humanity calls for creating generation by generation a world with less poverty, disease violence and evil. This book is not only deep in its understanding of the past but is above all a lesson of hope for the future. No one that I know of has shown greater caring and devotion to the Jewish people than Rabbi Greenberg. I personally feel great gratitude for the important part he has played in my life, and I am very happy that he was able with such devotion and persistence to realize his dream of writing the work which most completely expresses the learning and wisdom of a lifetime.
I believe all of humanity could learn from the moral teaching of Rabbi Greenberg. He teaches the values Humanity needs to repair itself and the world.
I believe all of humanity could learn from the moral teaching of Rabbi Greenberg. He teaches the values Humanity needs to repair itself and the world.
November 3, 2025
Rabbi Dr. Irving Yitzchak Greenberg, also known as “Yitz Greenberg,” was born on May 16, 1933. He is an American Modern Orthodox rabbi, historian, theologian, and author. He was ordained as a rabbi in 1953 by Yeshiva Beis Yosef in Brooklyn, where he said, “The Yeshiva taught that the Torah’s goal was to make a person into a mensch.” He earned a B.A. in History at Brooklyn College, and an M.A. and Ph.D. in American History from Harvard University. His Ph.D. work focused on American history. He is widely recognized as one of the most influential Jewish thinkers of the past half-century. In “The Triumph of Life,” he gives readers the culmination of his lifetime of reflections. It is his magnum opus. He tells us that his understanding of Judaism as “a world religion shaped my thinking for life.” I know Rabbi Greenberg. I agree with his views about Judaism, and I think we should all agree with him.
His 326-page book has 14 chapters that discuss a wide range of essential subjects, including creation, the dignity of life, humanity imitating God, tikkun olam (repairing and perfecting the world), the struggle of life against death, the lesson of the Holocaust, and much more. These subjects help readers understand what it means to be human, to be Jewish, and what is expected of us.
Greenberg tells us that Judaism is a religion of life, one that calls people to actively side with the forces of creation and compassion against death, oppression, and despair.
What distinguishes The Triumph of Life from other theological works is Greenberg’s insistence on optimism and hope. In discussing the devastation of the Holocaust, for example, he neither retreats into silence nor seeks easy consolation. Instead, he reframes the catastrophe as a moment that both tests and deepens our responsibility. Humanity’s power—scientific, political, and moral—has never been greater, and Greenberg urges that it be directed toward eradicating poverty, healing inequality, and transforming violence into partnership.
His book balances accessibility with intellectual depth. He writes with clarity and warmth, weaving together biblical exegesis, historical insight, and ethical reflection. His narrative invites readers—Jewish and non-Jewish alike—to view religion not as an unchangeable doctrine but as a living, creating, and evolving relationship aimed at the flourishing and improving of creation.
He achieves something rare in The Triumph of Life: a theology that is both deeply Jewish and profoundly universal. His call for an “ethic of power” and his vision of the triumph of life speak urgently to an age of ecological peril, social fracture, and technological changes. This is not only a summation of one thinker’s journey but a moral guidebook for humanity in search of purpose –a goal that God desires.
Rabbi Greenberg believes that Jews have specific responsibilities, but this does not belittle –not even a little bit –God’s love for all people. He writes that his father taught him that “Torah must be applied to make life better for human beings”-and this means not only Jews. He has been a pioneer in advocating positive relationships between Judaism and Christianity, moving beyond conflict toward mutual understanding. He co-founded and led institutions aimed at leadership development in the Jewish community, including pluralistic intra-Jewish education.
He is known for his theology of the Holocaust, called Shoah in Hebrew. He states that it challenges our understanding. The Nazis used it to harness power, destroying moral concepts. It raises the fundamental question of why God allowed Jews to suffer such an atrocious fate. Yet, it is a transformational event in Jewish history, requiring all people to rethink their religious views, such as the human relationship to God, God's hiddenness, and how we should act in modern times after seeing what occurred in the past. We need to emphasize our human responsibility and ethical use of power.
He explains that our relationship to God must be performed by tikkun olam, world repair and perfection, achieved through human growth in thinking, responsibility, and morality. ‘The present state of the world and the powers-that-be in it do not do justice to the uniqueness of every human being –and often deny or crush it. Therefore, the divine wants a perfected world for beloved humanity and other forms of life to live in.” Religion must not be passive belief but active collaboration with the divine to improve the conditions on earth for all humans and to enhance further what God created.
(Although unmentioned by Greenberg, this important idea that we must work to improve the world can be seen in the command that Jewish males circumcise the foreskin of their penis to enter the covenant with God. Some mistakenly think that this is done because the foreskin is a defect. Actually, the command to enter the covenant – which means, do what God desires – is a symbolic act that reminds people to improve what God created. This is also the meaning of Genesis 2:3: “God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it because God ceased creating on that day to do.” The final Hebrew word laasot, “to do,” requires humans to continue improving the creation.)
All of humanity must learn to work together to improve creation. Then, the future state –the repaired world –will result in equality, and “the uniqueness of every person will be honored and upheld in all the material conditions and spiritual interactions of daily life.”
Why do I respect Yitz Greenberg?
Because of his friendly attitude, intelligence, and rationality. He respects and helps all people, shuns passive piety, and encourages everyone to work together actively — as actively as we can — to create an improved world that everyone can enjoy.
November 18, 2025
****.5
The book is divided into 3 main sections: biblical Judaism, Rabbinic (Talmudic) Judaism, and modern times. Throughout, 3 main concepts are used to explore the evolution of ideas and practices: brit (covenant), tzimtzum (contraction), tikkun olam (repairing the world).
The first starts of course with Abraham, but has evolved over time, and our relationship with God has interpreted in quite different ways. Tzimtzum is a concept that became extremely significant with the medieval Kabbalists, but in this book is used to explain the withdrawal of God from day-to-day operations and direct intervention. Hence no prophets or overt miracles, and why the Holocaust was allowed to happen, etc. It also sets the stage for the final and arguably most relevant concept, that of tikkun olam. This is something that became extremely popular with Reform Judaism, largely replacing traditional Halakhah with more universal ideas of social justice. But the author is an orthodox rabbi, and uses it to support adherence to Halakhah as a foundationally integral and vitally inherent part of the process.
The book is largely accessible to a general audience, but it definitely helps to have a good understanding of basic Jewish practice and history. I found a few of the more theoretical theology sections challenging, they require one's full attention/study to get the most of them. But it's also ok to skim through those technical sections to get back to the general discussion.
Towards the end, he provides his own opinions on a number of controversial issues, from the role of women, to LGBTQ inclusion, intermarriage, Israel, Christians, and even sex. Although I don't agree with him about everything, I was surprised at how open he was for change, and even showed more respect for the reform and conservative movements than for the Haredi (ultra-orthodox) attitudes towards these issues.
I'd recommend this book to anyone looking for a deep dive into contemporary Jewish theology, he presented many familiar facts and ideas in a fresh and interested context.
The book is divided into 3 main sections: biblical Judaism, Rabbinic (Talmudic) Judaism, and modern times. Throughout, 3 main concepts are used to explore the evolution of ideas and practices: brit (covenant), tzimtzum (contraction), tikkun olam (repairing the world).
The first starts of course with Abraham, but has evolved over time, and our relationship with God has interpreted in quite different ways. Tzimtzum is a concept that became extremely significant with the medieval Kabbalists, but in this book is used to explain the withdrawal of God from day-to-day operations and direct intervention. Hence no prophets or overt miracles, and why the Holocaust was allowed to happen, etc. It also sets the stage for the final and arguably most relevant concept, that of tikkun olam. This is something that became extremely popular with Reform Judaism, largely replacing traditional Halakhah with more universal ideas of social justice. But the author is an orthodox rabbi, and uses it to support adherence to Halakhah as a foundationally integral and vitally inherent part of the process.
The book is largely accessible to a general audience, but it definitely helps to have a good understanding of basic Jewish practice and history. I found a few of the more theoretical theology sections challenging, they require one's full attention/study to get the most of them. But it's also ok to skim through those technical sections to get back to the general discussion.
Towards the end, he provides his own opinions on a number of controversial issues, from the role of women, to LGBTQ inclusion, intermarriage, Israel, Christians, and even sex. Although I don't agree with him about everything, I was surprised at how open he was for change, and even showed more respect for the reform and conservative movements than for the Haredi (ultra-orthodox) attitudes towards these issues.
I'd recommend this book to anyone looking for a deep dive into contemporary Jewish theology, he presented many familiar facts and ideas in a fresh and interested context.
March 9, 2025
This is truly Rabbi Greenberg's magnum opus, the evolving understanding of God's relationship to humanity, and specifically the covenantal relationship existing between God and the Jews since Sinai. This is a rich and thoughtful book, as one of the most esteemed American religious leaders of the 20th, and now the 21st centuries, at age 93 draws on a lifetime of knowledge, learning and teaching to explore what it means to live a life of tikkun olam, repairing the world, particularly now that we live in a world of the Shoah, October 7, and continuing antisemitism.
This is not a light nor an easy book but it is highly accessible and I can't recommend it enough to people who want to explore 21st c. theology and modern Jewish thought.
(Incidentally, Goodreads doesn't list it, but this book is also in trade paperback)
This is not a light nor an easy book but it is highly accessible and I can't recommend it enough to people who want to explore 21st c. theology and modern Jewish thought.
(Incidentally, Goodreads doesn't list it, but this book is also in trade paperback)
December 25, 2024
This book is both a memoir of how Rabbi Yitz Greenberg has evolved his thinking and an appreciation of how one should view God’s covenants with the Jewish people. Fulfilling the covenantal relationship with God is accomplished by being kind to each other, helping the needy and dealing justly in business. The covenantal regimen requires us to be respectful of our capacities and worthy of our mission. Incremental actions and finite improvements are significant. God has evolved his involvement with man (tzimtzum) to the point where He has self- limited activities and lets man do his own thing. While Yitz thus rationalizes God’s absence from interfering in the tragedy of the Holocaust, this is a difficult stretch for me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 19, 2024
Enjoyed the narrative history of jewish theology. Insightful and enriching. I find his third Era thesis a bit strained.
Read
November 9, 2024Recommended by Laurence Harris after he listened to a podcast with Greenberg and Yossi Klein Halevi.
October 19, 2025
Compelling, heartfelt, and thoughtful.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews