Uriel Gellman
Bar-Ilan University, Jewish History, Faculty Member
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Research Interests: Religion, Comparative Religion, Sociology of Religion, Eastern European Studies, Russian Studies, and 42 morePhilosophy Of Religion, Jewish Studies, Theology, History of Religion, Israel Studies, Polish History, Yiddish, Jewish Mysticism, Magic, Eastern European and Russian Jewish History, Jewish History, Jewish Thought, Jewish Philosophy, Religious Geography, Jewish historiography, Kabbalah, Judaism, Hasidism, Jewish Messianism, Modern Jewish History, Hasidic Music, Jewish Cultural Studies, Jews in Poland, Religious Studies, Modern Jewish Thought, Russian Jewish history and culture, Jewish Mysticism, Hasidism, American Jewish History, Mistycism, Polish Jewish history, Hasidim and Mitnagdim, Hasidic Women, Hasidic Tales, Religious Studies /Indology, Hasidic Yiddish, Modern European Jewish History, Polish Hasidism, Lubavitch Hasidism, Neo Hasidism, Hasidic Hagiography, Intellectual History of Hasidism, and Hasidic Ethnography
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This article delves into human responses to pandemics, with a specific focus on the religious practices and folk rituals employed by various social groups in Poland and the western regions of the Russian Empire throughout the nineteenth... more
This article delves into human responses to pandemics, with a specific focus on the religious practices and folk rituals employed by various social groups in Poland and the western regions of the Russian Empire throughout the nineteenth century. Employing a unique microhistorical case study, it unveils the intricate relationship between these popular religious traditions and the ongoing processes of modernization. Through this example, alongside examinations of rituals practiced within both Jewish and Christian communities, this research sheds light on the dynamic interactions and mutual influences between these groups. Additionally, it highlights the pivotal role of women in revitalizing folk rituals, offering broader insights into cultural transformations during tumultuous and challenging times. This exploration encompasses cross-cultural encounters with magical practices and folk beliefs, providing a nuanced examination of how these practices contributed to the delineation of social boundaries and the ever-evolving landscape of cultural diversification amid the rapid currents of modernization.
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Marital strategies are of significant importance in socio-religious movements with dynastic leadership. This article investigates marital strategies among the leaders of Hasidism, arguably the most prominent socio-religious movement of... more
Marital strategies are of significant importance in socio-religious
movements with dynastic leadership. This article investigates
marital strategies among the leaders of Hasidism, arguably the
most prominent socio-religious movement of modern Jewry. The
study is based on complete documentation records of all
marriages by Hasidic leaders from the inception of Hasidism in
the 1700s until today: 2,375 marital unions, mostly in 122
dynasties. The data demonstrate a tendency among Hasidic
leaders to marry off their children to other Hasidic dynasties,
thereby forming a pattern of inter-dynastic connections. We also
demonstrate that Hasidic leaders have avoided upward mobility
and preferred to marry their children to dynasties with a similar
social status. Most importantly, the ultimate gain of such
marriages is not material or political gain but rather the
maintenance of religious charisma. These findings explain how
Hasidic dynasties emerged, expanded, eroded, and negotiated
their status within the network of dynasties.
movements with dynastic leadership. This article investigates
marital strategies among the leaders of Hasidism, arguably the
most prominent socio-religious movement of modern Jewry. The
study is based on complete documentation records of all
marriages by Hasidic leaders from the inception of Hasidism in
the 1700s until today: 2,375 marital unions, mostly in 122
dynasties. The data demonstrate a tendency among Hasidic
leaders to marry off their children to other Hasidic dynasties,
thereby forming a pattern of inter-dynastic connections. We also
demonstrate that Hasidic leaders have avoided upward mobility
and preferred to marry their children to dynasties with a similar
social status. Most importantly, the ultimate gain of such
marriages is not material or political gain but rather the
maintenance of religious charisma. These findings explain how
Hasidic dynasties emerged, expanded, eroded, and negotiated
their status within the network of dynasties.
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This article contributes to recent discussions regarding the reliability and modes of historical usability of Shivḥei ha-Beshṭ-the earliest Ḥasidic hagiography about the Baʿal Shem Ṭov, the alleged founder of Ḥasidism, and his circle. It... more
This article contributes to recent discussions regarding the reliability and modes of historical usability of Shivḥei ha-Beshṭ-the earliest Ḥasidic hagiography about the Baʿal Shem Ṭov, the alleged founder of Ḥasidism, and his circle. It considers the biographical portrayal of one of the members of the Beshṭ's circle as an example for the narrative construction of early Ḥasidism. An unknown text is then presented as external evidence for one of the legends, enabling insight into the prolonged formation of this hagiographical compendium from the recounted events until its publication in 1814. This test case contributes to inquiries such as the place of historical events in sacred narratives, the cultural contexts for the composition of such legends, and the significance of their apparent reliability as the narrator's agendas towards audience's appreciation.
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Research Interests: Print Culture, Book History, Preaching, Jewish History, Jews in Poland, and 6 moreGerman-Jewish Studies, Print Culture, Book History and the History of Reading, Modern History of German Jews and Judaism, The Jewish Enlightenment movement. HasKalah, Jews of Central and Eastern Europe, and Jewish Preaching
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Research Interests: Jewish Studies, Jewish Mysticism, Jewish History, Holocaust Studies, Jewish Thought, and 13 moreHassidism, Philosophy of Human Suffering, Hasidism, Modern Jewish History, Jewish Cultural Studies, Theology of Suffering and Evil, Holocaust Literature, Holocaust, Modern Jewish Thought, Holocaust and Genocide Studies, Warsaw Ghetto, Holocaust Shoah, and Human Suffering
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Research Interests: Jewish Studies, Early Modern History, Polish History, Jewish Mysticism, Eastern European and Russian Jewish History, and 20 moreJewish - Christian Relations, Jewish Thought, Hasidism, Poland, Modern Jewish History, Poland 1939-45, History of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, Jews in Poland, jews of Poland, Polish Jewry, Modern Jewish Thought, Polish Interwar History, history of Poland, Shoah, Holocaust Shoah, Polish-Jewish Relations, History of Poland in twentieth century, Early modern Poland, Early Modern Poland-Lithuania, and Jews in interwar Poland
Haskalah and Hasidism present two vital ideological trends that shaped Jewish culture in modern Europe. Classical historiography defined these two movements as the initiators of the rift in traditional society, with Haskalah representing... more
Haskalah and Hasidism present two vital ideological trends that shaped Jewish culture in modern Europe. Classical historiography defined these two movements as the initiators of the rift in traditional society, with Haskalah representing modernity and Hasidism promoting traditionalism. The cultural struggle between Haskalah and Hasidism was indeed dramatic and comprehensive, and it was expressed through polemics, sarcastic satire, political competition, and social tensions, which fashioned the character and self-perception of both groups. Contemporary discourse on this cultural clash portrays more complex narratives and identifies both factions as intrinsic representatives of modernisation processes within European Jewry-also with regard to sceptical approaches, especially in the field of theosophy and its philosophical transformations. In our workshop, we will discuss whether lower forms of scepticism are superseded at some stage by mystical metaphysics or vice versa and which particular strategies are developed regarding doubt.