> ...equally as scrupulous to include religious views with which you disagree?
Good question. . Even though the Sinagoga conservador/masorti "LaJavura" library could fit in your back pocket, instead of blowing the budget on 5 copies of the same jumash, I bought the Marcos Edery conservative movement jumash, the neutral Katznelson bible, the Daniel Karpuj mostly middle-of-the-road ashquenaci orthodox Pentateuco, the sefardic orthodox HaMercz jumash and the Plaut (in english unfortunately) reform jumash. I bought them so that we could compare translations and commentaries when we read and discussed the parasha ha-shavua. I realize that I am incredibly prejudiced in the selection of any book other than a jumash. In all other respects however, I find I am incredibly prejudiced in my selection of library material. I stay away from anything that depresses me. I will never willing buy a book on the Shoa. The library has 3 classics on the subject but other than those, the subject gives me the creeps and nightmares. Besides that, it seems to be the only subject that is translated into spanish and sold in the bookstores so I figure if anyone really feels the need to dig into it they should go to the local bookstore and have at it. I have copies of a modern orthodox (both ashequnaci and sefardic) sidur and majzor. I even bought the Shuljan Aruj on purpose, but I keep my distance from anything mesianic or kabalistic. The Church pushes these topics and there's not a catholic book store that does not have shelves full of kabala and mesianic tracts. My purpose in life is to promote conservative judaism so when push comes to shove, I will give a nod to the other branches never denying their right to exist and will not speak ill of them but will not promote them, either. I find that I focus on neutral stuff. Things you can not find in any book store around these parts. Music books. Israeli and sefardic cookbooks; I run and hide from any cookbook that has recipes for gefilte fisch or russian borscht. Israeli kiddie books in hebrew for ages 0-6 about new baby brothers and sisters, chicks and ducklings. Modern israeli fiction tanslated into spanish. If I have to choose a subject about Israel I will never pick the conflict part of palestinian-israeli relations. I prefer the Ostrich School of Thought and prefer information on Israeli archeology and agricultural exports. I can not say that it is right of me to be so prejudiced. I have tried to analyse its source. The television here is so lop-sided. I sat at the same study desk, learned spanish and drank tea for 5 years with muslims from all over the mediterranean. I live in a town with 3 mosques. The xenophobic part of the valencian population is prone to paint obscenities on the walls or throw lit torches in through the open doors of the mosques. I think my prejudices are conditioned by where I live. I've noticed that the prejudices that I had 15 years back when I lived in the u.s.a., are either comatose or dead. Sometimes the prejudices in the choice of literature for the synagogue library reflect the tone I consciously or unconsciously want to set from within probably to counter or equilibrate the influence of the attitudes of the weird world outside. A library may not be evenhanded but it does have a tone which reflects the attitudes of the micro-world in which it finds itself. The tone of a public library or a university library is wild and violent (quite pleasant, really) with all those conflicting opinions. The tone of a children's library is all fluffy and innocent and full of missing puzzle pieces. The tone of my library seems to be: Don't worry be happy, have something to eat. Besos de Valencia Alba Toscano Sinagoga conservador/masorti "La Javura" Valencia (Spain) http://www.uscj.org/world/valencia
