Books by Maurice D. Harris

Leviticus has been called "irrelevant," "primitive," and "a backwater" of the Bible, even by scholars and people of faith who treasure Scripture. Many find it alienating, or, at minimum, confusing. In Leviticus: You Have No Idea Rabbi Maurice D. Harris offers readers surprising new ways of looking at the Bible's least popular (and least understood) book. Grounded in his progressive religious values and beliefs, Rabbi Harris approaches the various laws, rituals, and stories of Leviticus with an open-minded curiosity about what we can learn today about life, ethics, God, and higher meaning by studying this text. Taking the Bible seriously but not literally, Harris uses a plain-spoken, accessible style to explain confusing elements of Leviticus. He explores topics that matter to many of us in contemporary society, including LGBT equality, the dangers of religious fundamentalism, the impacts of childhood trauma, criminal justice reform, and more. With this book, the author invites us into an ancient text that, read with care, challenges us to be better people and help repair this broken world.

In Moses: A Stranger among Us, Rabbi Maurice Harris leads us to look beyond familiar and popular portrayals of Moses so that we can discover the Moses whose lesser-known attributes and experiences provide us with surprisingly fresh ethical and spiritual guidance. Harris offers many angles on his subject, interweaving traditional religious interpretations, academic Bible scholarship, psychological and sociological analysis, feminist readings, and more. Combining deep respect for the biblical text with a willingness to question received tradition, Harris reveals a complex Moses whose life story gives us important tools for better understanding issues like religious fundamentalism, intermarriage, identity confusion, civil disobedience, gay and lesbian equality, and the nature of sacred mythic storytelling. Written in a refreshing, plainspoken voice for people of all faiths or none, the result is a volume of creative, thought-provoking, and exciting readings of the Bible.