The last several years have witnessed a flourishing of scholarship on Hasidism. As many readers of East European Jewish Affairs are already aware, one title in particular, Hasidism: A New History, has sparked impassioned critique and debate, particularly in regard to gender Studies and the status of female scholars in Jewish Studies.Footnote1 The present review forum seeks to broaden the scope of discussion by highlighting additional works of scholarship. The titles under review explore new sources, new interpretive approaches, and new research tools, including digital humanities and GIS. Due to space limitations, this forum cannot address every deserving work of scholarship produced in recent years. EEJA therefore offers this collection of reviews as the starting point for an ongoing conversation about new approaches to Hasidism.
Another goal of the forum was to highlight the pioneering work of Ada Rapoport-Albert (1945–2020), who was actively involved in discussions and preparations leading to the publication of Hasidism: A New History. The tragic loss of Dr. Rapoport-Albert in June of this year is being mourned by the entire Jewish studies community. EEJA thanks Dr. Wojciech Tworek for agreeing on short notice to write a tribute to his mentor, which concludes the forum. Readers will also find two reviews devoted to Dr. Rapoport-Albert’s collected works, one published in Hebrew in 2015 and the other published in English in 2018. Those fluent in Hebrew may also read the preface to the 2015 Hebrew edition, along with a tribute by Dr. David Assaf, at https://onegshabbat.blogspot.com/2020/06/blog-post_22.html?.
We are deeply grateful to forum contributors for their close readings and thoughtful engagement with the works under review. EEJA hopes that this forum will inspire continued attention to new publications on Hasidism in the coming years.
Notes
1 See, for example, Susannah Heschel and Sarah Imhoff, “Where are all the women in Jewish Studies?” in The Forward, July 3, 2018, https://forward.com/culture/404416/where-are-all-the-women-in-jewish-studies/, a response by Marcin Wodziński, “Where are all the Others in Jewish Studies?”, January 16, 2020, https://forward.com/culture/books/438320/where-are-all-the-others-in-jewish-studies/ and a letter to the Editor of The Forward by Heschel and Imhoff “Yes, exclusion of women in Jewish Studies is still a problem,” January 22, 2020, https://forward.com/culture/books/438591/yes-exclusion-of-women-in-jewish-studies-is-still-a-problem/; and a forum dedicated exclusively to Hasidism: A New History in Marginalia: Los Angeles Review of Books in April 2020 https://marginalia.lareviewofbooks.org/hasidism-forum-a-new-history/.