Hasidim: A Social and Religious Revolution in Modern Judaism

Hasidism  is the pietist mystical movement that arose in Eastern Europe in the  eighteenth century and is today one of the most dynamic movements within  modern Judaism. It is today a pillar of ultra-Orthodoxy, yet the  movement at first heralded a radical re-envisioning of Judaism,  promising a much more direct experience of God. This lecture will survey  the origins of the Hasidic movement, the role of its putative founder  ("the Besht") and his major theological innovations, the spread of  Hasidism under his disciples, and the Tzaddik (or "Rebbe") as a new type of spiritual and social leader.

Joshua Shanes is  Professor of Jewish Studies, and Director of the Arnold Center for  Israel Studies, at the College of Charleston. He has published widely on  modern Jewish history, religion, politics, and antisemitism in both  academic and popular outlets such as the Washington Post, Slate, and  Haaretz. He is currently completing a history of Jewish Orthodoxy from  its German origins until today.

Please note: registrations through the Morton Grove Public Library will open 7/22. Please check back here and at https://www.mgpl.org/events/month/2024/08 after then to get on the list.