Hasidism: A New History
- ISBN-10
- 1400889197
- ISBN-13
- 9781400889198
- Series
- Hasidism
- Category
- Religion
- Pages
- 896
- Language
- English
- Published
- 2017-12-04
- Publisher
- Princeton University Press
- Authors
- David Biale, David Assaf, Benjamin Brown
Description
The first comprehensive history of the pietistic movement that shaped modern Judaism This is the first comprehensive history of the pietistic movement that shaped modern Judaism. The book’s unique blend of intellectual, religious, and social history offers perspectives on the movement’s leaders as well as its followers, and 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. 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. Challenging the notion that Hasidism ceased to be a creative movement after the eighteenth century, this book argues that its first golden age was in the nineteenth century, when it conquered new territory, won a mass following, and became a mainstay of Jewish Orthodoxy. World War I, the Russian Revolution, and the Holocaust decimated eastern European Hasidism. But following World War II, the movement enjoyed a second golden age, growing exponentially. Today, it is witnessing a remarkable renaissance in Israel, the United States, and other countries around the world. Written by an international team of scholars, Hasidism is a must-read for anyone seeking to understand this vibrant and influential modern Jewish movement.
Get the book
Other editions
Similar books
-
Hasidism and Modern Man
By Martin BuberFrom the autobiographical "My Way to Hasidism," to "Hasidism and Modern Man," and "Love of God and Love of Neighbor," the essays span nearly half a century and reflect the evolution of Buber’s religious philosophy in relation to the ...
-
Historical Atlas of Hasidism
By Marcin WodzińskiHistorical 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.
-
Hasidism in Israel: A History of the Hasidic Movement and Its Masters in the Holy Land
By Tzvi RabinowiczThe book talks of the Hasidic movement, what it stands for, and what it includes.
-
Tales of the Hasidim
By Martin BuberThese marvelous tales--terse, vigorous, often cryptic--are the true texts of Hasidism. The hasidic masters, of whom these tales are told, are full-bodied personalities, yet their lives seem almost symbolic.
-
Law and Custom in Hasidism
By Aaron Wertheim, Aharon VẹrtḥaimDespite their importance, works of Hasidism tend to ignore the innovative halakhic aspect of the early hasidic movement. Rabbi Wertheim's book is unique for its emphasis on hasidic practices, Hasidism on the ground, so to speak.
-
Ascetic Hasidism in Jerusalem: The Guardian-Of-The-Faithful Community of Mea Shearim
By Daniël MeijersAn anthropologist's view on Hasidic life in Mea Shearim, Jerusalem.
-
Studying Hasidism: Sources, Methods, Perspectives
By Marcin WodzińskiStudying Hasidism, edited by Marcin Wodzinski, an internationally recognized historian of Hasidism, aims to remedy this gap.
-
The Mystical Origins of Hasidism
By Rachel EliorThe words 'hasid' and 'hasidism' have become so familiar to people interested in the Jewish world that little thought is given to understanding exactly what hasidism is or considering its...
-
Hasidism Incarnate: Hasidism, Christianity, and the Construction of Modern Judaism
By Shaul MagidHasidism Incarnate contends that much of modern Judaism in the West developed in reaction to Christianity and in defense of Judaism as a unique tradition.
-
The Rebirth of Hasidism: 1945 to the Present Day
By Jacques GutwirthIn 1945, there were 20,000 Hasidim in the world. Today there are between 350,000 and 400,000, about half of whom are living in Israel. This represents a population explosion that...