Why David Brooks Is My Rabbi

Is David Brooks becoming a Christian?

That’s the question that some people have been asking about The New York Times’ op-ed columnist, especially in the wake of his new book, The Road to Character.

As Jonathan Merritt wrote, “Brooks claims to have written his latest book ‘to save my soul,’ and he told NPR that reading books by authors such as Christian convert C.S. Lewis has ‘produced a lot of religious upsurge in my heart.’”

Brooks also called St. Augustine “pretty much the most brilliant thinker I’ve ever come across.”

And as Merritt wrote, “At a meeting of The Gathering where Brooks revealed he had joined a Bible study, he exclaimed, ‘There’s something just awesome about seeing somebody stand up and imitate and live the non-negotiable truth of Jesus Christ.’”

Wait a second. Reading C.S. Lewis, St. Augustine? “The non-negotiable truth of Jesus Christ?”

So, yes — David Brooks, a Jew, is certainly sounding Christian these days.

I am in the middle of reading The Road to Character, and I am enjoying it. But, then again, I happen to love David Brooks. Perhaps it is because Brooks is the “liberals’ favorite conservative.” (Full disclosure: I don’t always agree with his political views.)

But I will be the first to admit: Reading Brooks’ book feels like attending an interminable Yom Kippur service. That seems to be what he wants. He advocates identifying your core sin and keeping a journal of how it manifests itself in your life.

What’s the Jewish way of reading The Road to Character?

First, Brooks has done Jews, and his entire reading audience, a precious favor. In the first pages of the book, he introduces us to the writings of Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik, the seminal modern Orthodox thinker, who was known, simply and affectionately, as “the Rav,” the ultimate teacher of his time. Brooks introduces us to the Rav’s greatest philosophical move, and one of the most profound insights of modern Judaism — the notion of Adam I and Adam II. (Read the book; you’ll be profoundly moved.)

And why is this such a big deal? Because it has been many years since someone has introduced the work of a Jewish thinker to the larger reading public. It last happened when Rabbi Harold Kushner opened the book of Job to the American public in When Bad Things Happen to Good People. This is good for the Jews — because it is good for Judaism.

Yes, Brooks brings a lot of Christian thinkers into his work. But this is also good for the Jews. Jews need to know what Christians are saying and thinking. Many of my most powerful intellectual influences have been Christian thinkers and writers. Among them: Reinhold Niebuhr, William Sloan Coffin, Barbara Brown Taylor (one of America’s best preachers) and Professor Tom Long of Candler School of Theology.

As the ancient sages said: “Who is wise? The one who learns from all people.”

Finally, if Brooks’ writing seems too inner-directed, perhaps we need that.

Why? In recent years, many Jewish conversations feel like extended civic lessons — about Israel and anti-Semitism. Our current crises are about peoplehood.

But what about personhood? What, indeed, about the soul?

For Jews, the soul is nurtured in community. The fastest-growing phenomenon in the American synagogue — especially Reform synagogues — is Torah study groups. More than that, many Jews have reclaimed the traditional discipline of “mussar,” intense ethical inquiry and character building. (Check out the work of Alan Morinis.)

Because, like David Brooks, they want to nurture their souls.

Rabbi Jeffrey K. Salkin is the spiritual leader of Temple Beth Am of Bayonne, N.J., and the author of numerous books on Jewish spirituality and ethics, published by Jewish Lights Publishing and Jewish Publication Society. Via RNS.