Hasidic Judaism

Hasidic Judaism was born out of European Orthodox Judaism in the 18th century. Although the specific beliefs differ between the several sects that make up the Hasidim, all share a culture that is distinct from the modern secular world, and from current Orthodox Judaism. The word "Hasidim" is Hebrew for "the pious ones".

Hassidic sects.

Chabad Lubavitch is a vast international educational, outreach, community-building movement of Hasidic Judaism. In over 40 years, they have sent throughout the world about 5,000 young men called Shluchim, who are all accompanied by equally motivated spouses with typically large families, all of whom aim to fulfill their mandate of Jewish outreach, education, and revival. They look for and recruit people who want to join them, and they are major players in, the Teshuva movement, which encourages Jews alienated from their religion to become more Jewishly aware and religiously observant.

The Agudath HaRabonim (Agudas HaRabbonim), also known as the Union of Orthodox Rabbis of the United States and Canada, is a small Haredi-leaning organization that was founded in 1902. It should not be confused with "The Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America" (see above) which is a separate organization. While at one time influential within Orthodox Judaism, the Agudath HaRabonnim in the last several decades it has progressively moved further to the right; its membership has been dropping and it has been relatively inactive. Some of its members are rabbis from Chabad (Lubavitch) Judaism; some are also members of the RCA (see above). It is currently most famous for its 1997 declaration (citing Israeli Chief Rabbi Yitzhak HaLevi Herzog, Lubavitcher Rebbe Menachem Mendel Schneerson, and Modern Orthodox Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik) that the Conservative and Reform movements are "not Judaism at all."

Further reading

• Jerome R Mintz. Hassidic People: A Place in the New World. Harvard University Press. 1992 ISBN 0674381157