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...
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 eighteen...
This is an exploration of the relationship between Jews and magnates in the Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth, in which Rosman shows the influence of the Jews on economic, social and political life in the Polish, Ukranian and Belorussian territories. Rosman focuses on two questions: What were the principal spheres of interaction between the Jews and the nobility? What was the significance of this interaction for both parties?
This is an exploration of the relationship between Jews and magnates in the Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth, in which Rosman shows the influence of the...
