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1998, Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Jewish Studies
Journal of Jewish Studies
2021
This paper is an attempt to bring to light the manner in which Hasidism emerged inside the Jewish tradition not just as a climax of previous mystical developments, but also under the direct influence of Hesychasm and Sufism. All of these types of mysticism seem to have met in 18th century Moldova (the Bogdan province of the Ottoman Empire), in the new and revolutionary outlook of an unusual man called Israel ben Eliezer, also known as Baal Shem Tov (“the master of the good name”), who appears to have been born there, although he started preaching only after moving to Poland. Regardless of how much of his story as we know it today is true or legendary, his imprint on the evolution of the oldest monotheistic religion is undeniable and still awaits further scrutiny, despite the number of works written about him so far. Considering that the movement he set in motion, which started as an offshoot of mainstream Judaism meant to solve a religious crisis by straying partially away from the ...
Religious Studies Review, 2008
Jewish Review of Books
In the year 1814 in Kopust, White Russia, a particularly interesting book was published by the name of Sippur Halomot Kets Hapla’ot, alternately titled Meora’ot Tzvi. The book was published by R. Israel Jaffe, an associate of Habad Hasidism, who also published late in that same year the first edition of the book Shivhei haBesht. The title page of Meora’ot Tzvi claims that the book is based on the writings of Moses Hagiz, Jacob Sasportas and the Hacham Tzvi, but it in fact far exceed these three sources. This book was the first Hebrew portrayal of the Sabbatean episode as a narrative and not only a polemic; some scholars have described this as the first Hebrew novel about Sabbateanism. The author remains anonymous but it is clear from the book that he was learned in the secrets of the Sabbatean movement as well as in the history of other religions. The book was published multiple times throughout the nineteenth century, and it seems that for many people it was their primary source of knowledge about Sabbeteanism. Despite the scholarly interest in the book, especially its trustworthiness (or lack thereof) as a historical source, no attempt has yet been made to understand its nature, its sources or its influence. A manuscript of the book was recently discovered (Sefer halomei kets pela’ot) – presented here for the first time – which changes dramatically our understanding of the books and also raises new questions. The manuscript, composed in the last decades of the eighteenth century, is dedicated primarily to convincing Sabbateans who had converted to Islam to return to Judaism. The anonymous author made use of internal Sabbatean traditions (primarily those connected to the Dönme) and presented his own alternative history, in which he reveals an understanding of the secret magic of Sabbateanism. The manuscript was edited repeatedly, with notes and addenda from multiple hands, each with its own focus, until it found its way to Israel Jaffe, who edited it dramatically, removing multiple passages and inserting his own polemics (as on the title page), thereby presenting an entirely new creation befitting his own goals, as he would do with Shivhei haBesht. By investigating the differences between the manuscript and the printed version, we can ascertain the methods by which the image of Sabbateanism was manufactured in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, along with multiple methods for combating it.
Modern Judaism, 2024
In 1927, a small book titled Lebenserinnerungen des Kabbalisten Vital (The Memoires of the Kabbalist Vital) was published in Vienna. Its author was Chajim Bloch (1881–1973), a Rabbi, independent scholar, translator, author, and erstwhile forger. The book includes a German rendition of Sefer ha-Hezyonot (The Book of Visions), the memoirs and dream diary of the famous 16th century Kabbalist Hayyim Vital (1542–1620), along with introductions and postscripts written by Bloch himself, as well as by the esotericist and German nationalist Franz Spunda (1890–1963) and the Jewish-Austrian psychoanalyst Wilhelm Stekel (1868–1944). The Memoires of the Kabbalist Vital sheds interesting light on Vienna’s interwar culture and the revival of interest in Kabbalah and Hasidism in the modern period. However, this intriguing book and its colorful author has received very little scholarly attention until now. This article delves into Bloch’s intellectual biography, with a focus on his rendition of The Book of Visions and its paratexts. It also explores some later accounts given by Bloch regarding the publication of the book. The article examines the various interconnected contexts of the translation and publication of the book, revealing interesting connections between Kabbalah, Western esotericism, psychoanalysis, and antisemitism in Vienna in the interwar period.
Scandinavian Journal of History, 2022
ISPRS Annals of Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, 2020
Jubaedah : Jurnal Pengabdian dan Edukasi Sekolah (Indonesian Journal of Community Services and School Education)
Alonso Bezerra de Carvalho, 2024
La galerie des Glaces: histoire et restauration, 2007
Social Welfare Quarterly, 2011
Manuscrítica: Revista de Crítica Genética, 2024
Toruńskie Studia Bibliologiczne, 2017
2006
Mundos de língua portuguesa – olhares cruzados (V): Africanidades: antropologia, literatura, cinema, história., 2024
Munibe Ciencias Naturales
Procedia Engineering, 2017
Annual Research & Review in Biology, 2018