Reading the Bible and rabbinic literature to reimagine the bonds between animals.
 
Moving beyond debates about the ethics of animal consumption to focus on animals' intimate lives, Beth A. Berkowitz examines the contribution of religious traditions and sacred texts to contemporary conversations about animals. Reading the four "animal family" laws of the Bible alongside their rabbinic interpretations from ancient times to today, she examines the bonds that animals form with each other and reimagines family to include new forms of life and alternative modes of kinship.
 
Humanitarian politics—and biblical law—tend to take for granted that human interests supersede animal interests and that our moral obligation extends only to avoiding unnecessary suffering, but necessity is determined by humans. What Animals Teach Us About Families looks at animal emotions, animal agency, family diversity, and human response to reconsider the obligations and opportunities the animal family presents.

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"The writing is crisp, entertaining, informative and above all very thorough."

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"It's the rare book of Jewish scholarship that cites ‘Bambi’ and ‘Finding Nemo’ alongside the Babylonian Talmud and the first-century philosopher Philo, and that includes a chapter on what readers can do to ensure that animals are treated more humanely."

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“In What Animals Teach Us About Families, Beth A. Berkowitz offers a compelling and innovative contribution to the intersecting fields of biblical studies, rabbinic literature, and animal studies.”