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This path-breaking study peels away many layers of mystery surrounding the beliefs, practices, leaders, and history of the Kabbalah Center - a movement rooted in Jewish mysticism, but now broadly universal and heavily New Age. Myers shows how the Kabbalah Center fits into the panoply of American religion, where it engenders controversy, and why it appeals to Christians like Madonna. A valuable and illuminating contribution. - Jonathan D. Sarna, Joseph H. & Belle R. Braun Professor of American Jewish History, Brandeis University, author of American Judaism: A History

The first comprehensive, book-length examination of the Kabbalah Centre's founders, philosophy and methods... Lots of folks aren't going to appreciate such a rare, temperate treatment of a trend that has caused concern for the Jewish establishment. But complaining about it has not derailed the movement. Myers' book reflects the reality: The Kabbalah Centre continues to thrive because it directly addresses difficult life situations and satisfies a hunger for a faith system that promises tangible results. - Toronto Star Though much has been written about it in the popular press, this is the first scholarly study of the Kabbalah Centre, utilizing both historical and ethnographic methodologies...This is an important study that is of great value to anyone interested in new religious movements in general and the Kabbalah Centre in particular. - Religious Studies Review Myers presents an interesting investigation of a highly controversial subject: the Kabbalah Centre in America. Created by Rabbi Philip Berg, these centers are dedicated to popularizing, in a highly revised form, traditional Jewish mysticism known as kabbalah among both Jews and non-Jews. The justification for such dissemination lies in a belief in the unusual mission of kabbalah. Berg and his colleagues have had considerable success. In most large US cities one finds all sorts of individuals, including most famously Madonna, espousing kabbalistic doctrines. Myers was sufficiently intrigued to undertake the first serious, surprisingly sympathetic study of this phenomenon. She sees it as a syncretistic new religious movement that attracts upwardly mobile Western urbanites, disappointed by organized religion yet looking for a spiritual and ethical outlook with religious roots. Her description of the movement covers its roots, popularization in the US, main teachings, and value in spiritual healing, and a survey-profile of some of its adherents. Her methodological approach is primarily sociological and psychological and stresses the functional character of the movement. Even if one is more critical of the Kabbalah Centre, as this reviewer is, this is a valuable study for libraries serving religious studies programs. Recommended. Lower-level undergraduates and above. - Choice Jody Myers's excellent debunking of The Kabbalah Centre...is marked by scholarly rigor, objectivity and depth of analysis that is absent among the center's usual promoters and detractors. It's a must-read for those interested in the truth and hucksterism behind the red strings and expensive bottles of water. - Forward.com

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Jody Myers is Professor of Religious Studies at California State University, Northridge and author of Seeking Zion: Modernity and Messianic Activism in the Writings of Tsevi Hirsch Kalischer, and many other journal articles and book chapters.

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