JBU Reads: Freshman Summer Reading Program

Background to The Chosen

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, over a million European Jews immigrated to the U.S., either fleeing persecution in the Old World or pursuing economic opportunity in the New World.  Many of them settled in New York City.  Here are some important terms that are used in the novel about these Jewish communities:

Historical Timeline

The events of the 1940s—namely World War II and the founding of the modern nation of Israel—are crucial to the plot of the novel:

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

• What image of Hasidic Jews, and Danny in particular, does the author convey through the baseball game?
• Why do you think the author spends so much time on events in the hospital? How do the characters and events of this section illustrate Tony Savo’s remark: “Crazy world. Cockeyed.”?
• What more do we learn about Danny later in Book One? What is his destiny in life? His passion?

Book Two (pp. 93-203)

• Why did Hasidism develop? What are the movement’s positive and negative features?
• What do you think of Reb Saunders’ method of testing Danny and Reuven? Is this a healthy use of scholarship?
• Why is Reb Saunders worried about his son visiting the library? Should Danny learn German and read thinkers like Freud, or should he avoid these topics? Why/why not?
• What does Reb Saunders mean when he exclaims to Reuven: “You will not make a goy out of my son (167)?”

Book Three (pp. 205-291)

• Why is Danny frustrated with education at Hirsch Seminary?  Which approach to knowledge do you tend to favor—Danny’s or his professor’s? What does he learn from the experience?
• What is the effect of Zionism on the college? On Danny’s and Reuven’s relationship? Why?
• How does Reuven explain the difficult textual passage in his Talmud class? How would his father have solved the problem? What do you think the author is trying to communicate about religion and scientific criticism in this section?
• What does Danny learn from his father’s silence? Do you think Reb Saunders’ way of raising his son is justified? Why/why not?

Questions for Application:

• Danny’s life is deeply impacted by his family’s history and expectations for him. How does your family legacy affect your decision to attend college? How might your expectations for college be the same or different from those of your family?
• Reuven’s father says of Rabbi Saunders: “It is a pity he occupies his mind only with Talmud.…He lives only in his own world.” What should be the purpose of education at JBU? How should a college prepare students to deal with a “cockeyed” world?
• Reb Saunders exclaims of his son: “What it is to be a mind without a soul (286).” Despite his amazing intellect, Danny develops a soul that learns to grieve with the sufferings of the world.  How do we at a Christian college educate the soul as well as the mind? To what end?
• At the end of the book, Danny plans to shave his beard and earlocks, but remain an “observer of the commandments.” In other words, he “owns” his religious faith, but not necessarily in his father’s form. Is it possible to distinguish between the essentials of Christianity and the “earlocks” of one’s particular faith background?  What role might a Christian college play in that process?
• While Danny recognizes that his purpose in life is to obey God, he also exclaims, “Sometimes I’m not sure I know what God wants though (80).” How might JBU help you determine your particular path of obedience in life?