Author: Marcin Wodzinski
Publisher: Rutgers University Press
ISBN: 1978804237
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 315
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Book Description
Hasidism, a Jewish religious movement that originated in Poland in the eighteenth century, today counts over 700,000 adherents, primarily in the U.S., Israel, and the UK. Popular and scholarly interest in Hasidic Judaism and Hasidic Jews is growing, but there is no textbook dedicated to research methods in the field, nor sources for the history of Hasidism have been properly recognized. Studying Hasidism, edited by Marcin Wodziński, an internationally recognized historian of Hasidism, aims to remedy this gap. The work’s thirteen chapters each draws upon a set of different sources, many of them previously untapped, including folklore, music, big data, and material culture to demonstrate what is still to be achieved in the study of Hasidism. Ultimately, this textbook presents research methods that can decentralize the role community leaders play in the current literature and reclaim the everyday lives of Hasidic Jews.
Author: Shaul Magid
Publisher: Stanford University Press
ISBN: 0804793468
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 289
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Book Description
Hasidism Incarnate contends that much of modern Judaism in the West developed in reaction to Christianity and in defense of Judaism as a unique tradition. Ironically enough, this occurred even as modern Judaism increasingly dovetailed with Christianity with regard to its ethos, aesthetics, and attitude toward ritual and faith. Shaul Magid argues that the Hasidic movement in Eastern Europe constitutes an alternative "modernity," one that opens a new window on Jewish theological history. Unlike Judaism in German lands, Hasidism did not develop under a "Christian gaze" and had no need to be apologetic of its positions. Unburdened by an apologetic agenda (at least toward Christianity), it offered a particular reading of medieval Jewish Kabbalah filtered through a focus on the charismatic leader that resulted in a religious worldview that has much in common with Christianity. It is not that Hasidic masters knew about Christianity; rather, the basic tenets of Christianity remained present, albeit often in veiled form, in much kabbalistic teaching that Hasidism took up in its portrayal of the charismatic figure of the zaddik, whom it often described in supernatural terms.
Author: Zalman Schachter-Shalomi
Publisher: Jason Aronson
ISBN:
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 432
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Book Description
To find more information on Rowman & Littlefield titles, please visit us at www.rowmanlittlefield.com.
Author: David Biale
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 0691202443
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 890
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Book Description
A must-read book for understanding this vibrant and influential modern Jewish movement Hasidism originated in southeastern Poland, in mystical circles centered on the figure of Israel Ba’al Shem Tov, but it was only after his death in 1760 that a movement began to spread. Today, Hasidism is witnessing a remarkable renaissance around the world. This book provides the first comprehensive history of the pietistic movement that shaped modern Judaism. Written by an international team of scholars, its unique blend of intellectual, religious, and social history demonstrates that, far from being a throwback to the Middle Ages, Hasidism is a product of modernity that forged its identity as a radical alternative to the secular world.
Author: Moshe Rosman
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 9780520916760
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 324
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Book Description
This book goes farther than any previous work in uncovering the historical Israel ben Eliezer--known as the Ba'al Shem Tov, or the Besht--the eighteenth-century Polish-Jewish mystic who profoundly influenced the shape of modern Judaism. As the progenitor of Hasidism, the Ba'al Shem Tov is one of the key figures in Jewish history; to understand him is to understand an essential element of modern Jewish life and religion. Because evidence about his life is scanty and equivocal, the Besht has long eluded historians and biographers. Much of what is believed about him is based on stories compiled more than a generation after his death, many of which serve to mythologize rather than describe their subject. Rosman's study casts a bright new light on the traditional stories about the Besht, confirming and augmenting some, challenging others. By concentrating on accounts attributable directly to the Besht or to contemporary eyewitnesses, Rosman provides a portrait drawn from life rather than myth. In addition, documents in Polish and Hebrew discovered by Rosman during the research for this book enable him to give the first detailed description of the cultural, social, economic, and political context of the Ba'al Shem Tov's life. This book goes farther than any previous work in uncovering the historical Israel ben Eliezer--known as the Ba'al Shem Tov, or the Besht--the eighteenth-century Polish-Jewish mystic who profoundly influenced the shape of modern Judaism. As the progenitor of
Author: Gershon David Hundert
Publisher: NYU Press
ISBN: 0814734693
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 559
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Book Description
Author: Marcin Wodziński
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400889561
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 279
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Book Description
The first cartographic reference book on one of today’s most important religious movements Historical Atlas of Hasidism is the very first cartographic reference book on one of the modern era's most vibrant and important mystical movements. Featuring sixty-one large-format maps and a wealth of illustrations, charts, and tables, this one-of-a-kind atlas charts Hasidism's emergence and expansion; its dynasties, courts, and prayer houses; its spread to the New World; the crisis of the two world wars and the Holocaust; and Hasidism's remarkable postwar rebirth. Historical Atlas of Hasidism demonstrates how geography has influenced not only the social organization of Hasidism but also its spiritual life, types of religious leadership, and cultural articulation. It focuses not only on Hasidic leaders but also on their thousands of followers living far from Hasidic centers. It examines Hasidism in its historical entirety, from its beginnings in the eighteenth century until today, and draws on extensive GIS-processed databases of historical and contemporary records to present the most complete picture yet of this thriving and diverse religious movement. Historical Atlas of Hasidism is visually stunning and easy to use, a magnificent resource for anyone seeking to understand Hasidism's spatial and spiritual dimensions, or indeed anybody interested in geographies of religious movements past and present. Provides the first cartographic interpretation of Hasidism Features sixty-one maps and numerous illustrations Covers Hasidism in its historical entirety, from its eighteenth-century origins to today Charts Hasidism's emergence and expansion, courts and prayer houses, modern resurgence, and much more Offers the first in-depth analysis of Hasidism's egalitarian--not elitist—dimensions Draws on extensive GIS-processed databases of historical and contemporary records
Author: Yūrō Teshima
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 216
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Book Description
In this work Jacob Yuroh Teshima juxtaposes two religions whose origins are completely different: Zen Buddhism and Hasidic Judaism. The purpose of this comparative study is not to determine which religion is superior, but rather to compare their functional equivalents. After presenting backgrounds of the two religions, Dr. Teshima examines the Zen Buddhist practice of zazen and Hasidism's devequth, or meditation on God. He then discusses how each religion comes to terms with the major obstacle in the practice of comtemplation: distracting thoughts. Teshima compares conceptions of man offered by the two religions, making clear their fundamental differences concerning the nature of selfhood and source of fulfillment. The study concludes with an examination of how the two religions come to terms with the insecurity of life and what it is that gives life meaning and significance. Contents: Introduction to Zen Buddhism and Hasidism; Zazen and Devequth; The Problem of "Strange Thoughts"; Annihilating Selfhood and Attaining Ecstasy; The Concept of Man; Insecurity of Life: The Hasidic Approach to Exile and the Zen Approach to Birth and Death.
Author: Joseph George Weiss
Publisher: Littman Library of Jewish Civilization
ISBN:
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 304
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Book Description
A classic text for all those interested in Jewish religious developments in eastern Europe, this paperback has a new introduction locating Weiss's work in the context of contemporary scholarship and the current resurgence of hasidism.
Author: Ariel Evan Mayse
Publisher: Brandeis University Press
ISBN: 168458017X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 336
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Book Description
Hasidism has attracted, repelled, and bewildered philosophers, historians, and theologians since its inception in the eighteenth century. In Hasidism: Writings on Devotion, Community, and Life in the Modern World, Ariel Evan Mayse and Sam Berrin Shonkoff present students and scholars with a vibrant and polyphonic set of Hasidic confrontations with the modern world. In this collection, they show that the modern Hasid marks not only another example of a Jewish pietist, but someone who is committed to an ethos of seeking wisdom, joy, and intimacy with the divine. While this volume focuses on Hasidism, it wrestles with a core set of questions that permeate modern Jewish thought and religious thought more generally: What is the relationship between God and the world? What is the relationship between God and the human being? But Hasidic thought is cast with mystical, psychological, and even magical accents, and offers radically different answers to core issues of modern concern. The editors draw selections from an array of genres including women’s supplications; sermons and homilies; personal diaries and memoirs; correspondence; stories; polemics; legal codes; and rabbinic response. These selections consciously move between everyday lived experience and the most ineffable mystical secrets, reflecting the multidimensional nature of this unusual religious and social movement. The editors include canonical texts from the first generation of Hasidic leaders up through present-day ultra-orthodox, as well as neo-Hasidic voices and, in so doing, demonstrate the unfolding of a rich and complex phenomenon that continues to evolve today.
