* 1902 – Menachem Mendel Schneerson, Russian-French rabbi and Hasidic Judaism leader ( d. 1994 )

The Chabad-Lubavitch branch of Hasidic Judaism has been an exception to this non-proselytizing standard, since in recent decades it has been actively promoting Noahide Laws for Gentiles as an alternative to Christianity.

Hasidic Judaism or Hasidism, from the — () in Sephardi Hebrew, () in Ashkenazi Hebrew and Yiddish, meaning " piety " ( or " loving kindness "), is a branch of Orthodox Judaism that promotes spirituality through the popularisation and internalisation of Jewish mysticism as the fundamental aspects of the Jewish faith.

Each Hasidic dynasty follows its own principles ; thus Hasidic Judaism is not one movement, but a collection of separate individual groups with some commonality.

The particular Hasidic emphasis and interpretation of this earlier Jewish and Kabbalistic concept, became one of the ideas that singled it out from non-Hasidic Judaism.

The Hasidic concept of a Rebbe also combines their role as a teacher of Judaism and as a charismatic spiritual example.

To their followers they teach Hasidic mysticism and interpretations of Biblical and Rabbinic Judaism.

* Hasidic Judaism, the popular following, mystical revival movement of 18th century Eastern Europe until today

Subsets of Haredi Judaism include: Hasidic Judaism, which is rooted in the Kabbalah and distinguished by reliance on a Rebbe or religious teacher ; and Sephardic Haredi Judaism, which emerged among Sephardic ( Asian and North African ) Jews in Israel.

Hasidic Judaism was founded by Yisroel ben Eliezer ( 1700 – 1760 ), also known as the Ba ' al Shem Tov ( or Besht ).

Hasidic Judaism eventually became the way of life for many Jews in Europe.

Some of the reasons for the rejection of Hasidic Judaism were the overwhelming exuberance of Hasidic worship, its untraditional ascriptions of infallibility and alleged miracle-working to their leaders, and the concern that it might become a messianic sect.

These four new days are not accepted as religious holidays by all forms of Haredi Judaism, including Hasidic Judaism.

It was popularised in the form of Hasidic Judaism from the 18th century onwards.

There are monist pantheists and panentheists in Zoroastrianism, Hinduism ( particularly in Advaita and Vishistadvaita ), Judaism ( monistic panentheism is especially found in Kabbalah and Hasidic philosophy ), and in Islam ( among the Sufis, especially the Bektashi ).

These groups, broadly, comprise Modern Orthodox Judaism and Haredi Judaism, with most Hasidic Jewish groups falling into the latter category.

Some Essene rituals, such as daily immersion in the mikveh, coincide with contemporary Hasidic practices ; some historians had also suggested, that name " Essene " is a Hellenized form of the word " Hasidim " or " Hasid " (" pious ones ").

A few instances of gematria in Arabic, Spanish and Greek, spelled with the Hebrew letters, are mentioned in the works of Rabbi Abraham Abulafia ; some Hasidic Rabbis also used it, though rarely, for Yiddish.

Opposite to this, Hasidic teachings cherished the sincerity and concealed holiness of the unlettered common folk, and their equality with the scholarly elite.

Though there is no one version of Hasidism, individual Hasidic groups often share with each other underlying philosophy, worship practices, dress ( borrowed from local cultures ), and songs ( borrowed from local cultures ).

His scholarship became popularly honored with the formal title of " Genius ", while amongst the Hasidic movement's leadership, despite his fierce opposition, he was respecfully referred to as " The Gaon, the Hasid from Vilna ".

Among many Hasidic Jews, only hand-made shmurah matzah may be used, in accord with the opinion of Rabbi Chaim Halberstam of Sanz, who ruled that machine-made matzoth were chametz.

Agudah unites many rabbinic leaders from the Hasidic Judaism wing with those of the non-Hasidic " yeshiva " world.

It is an anti-Zionist, Haredi organization, closely aligned with the Satmar Hasidic group, which has about 100, 000 adherents ( an unknown number of which are rabbis ), and like-minded Haredi groups.

* Rice, often with saffron or raisins – Nearly all Sephardi Jews and many Mizrachi Jews consider rice to be an essential food for the Passover table ; Ashkenazi Jews and Hasidic Jews do not eat rice during Passover as a matter of minhag.

Most notably the Chabad Lubavitch Hasidic movement embraced outreach with a passion, conducting nationwide campaigns to introduce Chabad Judaism to unaffiliated Jews, as well as to Jews of other affiliations.

For instance, with the rise of Hasidism, Rabbi Elijah of Vilna declared that his followers must not marry Hasidic Jews ( the ruling was never put into practice ).

Vincent Brook notes that “ Alvy dines with WASP-y Hall family and imagines that they must see him as a Hasidic Jew, complete with payess ( ear locks ) and a large black hat ”.

Kaser is a village with a population consisting almost entirely of Hasidic Jews of the Viznitz sect.

Illustrative of this is Sholom Dovber Schneersohn's wish in establishing the Chabad yeshiva system, that the students should spend a part of the daily curriculum learning Chabad Hasidic texts " with pilpul ".

The idea to learn Hasidic mystical texts with similar logical profundity, derives from the unique approach in the works of the Rebbes of Chabad, initiated by its founder Schneur Zalman of Liadi, to systematically investigate and articulate the " Torah of the Baal Shem Tov " in intellectual forms.

Students learn with each other in whatever language they are most proficient in, with Hasidic students usually learning in Yiddish, Israeli Lithuanian students in Hebrew, and American Lithuanian students in English.

* Ahron's Heart: The Prayers, Teachings and Letters of Ahrele Roth, a Hasidic Reformer ( with Yair Hillel Goelman, 2009 )

* A Heart Afire: Stories and Teaching of the Early Hasidic Masters ( with Netanel Miles-Yepez, 2009 )

Haredi applies to a populace that can be roughly divided into three separate groups along both ethnic and ideological lines: ( 1 ) " Lithuanian " ( non-hasidic ) haredim of Ashkenazic origin ; ( 2 ) Hasidic haredim of Ashkenazic origin ; and ( 3 ) Sephardic haredim.

In a practical sense, what distinguishes Hasidic Judaism from other forms of Haredi Judaism is the close-knit organization of Hasidic communities centered around a Rebbe ( sometimes translated as " Grand Rabbi "), and various customs and modes of dress particular to each community.

Another thing that sets Hasidic Judaism apart from general Haredi Judaism is the strong emphasis placed on speaking Yiddish.

For example, Orthodox, Haredi, and Hasidic rabbis discourage women from wearing a yarmulke, tallit or tefillin.

While some Haredi ( including Hasidic ) yeshivas ( also known as " Talmudical / Rabbinical schools or academies ") do grant official semicha (" ordination ") to many students wishing to become rabbis, most of the students within the yeshivas engage in learning Torah or Talmud without the goal of becoming rabbis or holding any official positions.

The curriculum for obtaining semicha (" ordination ") as rabbis for Haredi and Hasidic scholars is the same as described above for all Orthodox students wishing to obtain the official title of " Rabbi " and to be recognized as such.

Note: A rebbetzin ( a Yiddish usage common among Ashkenazim ) or a rabbanit ( in Hebrew and used among Sephardim ) is the official " title " used for, or by, the wife of any Orthodox, Haredi, or Hasidic rabbi.

Haredi Judaism is not an institutionally cohesive or homogeneous group, but comprises a diversity of spiritual and cultural orientations, generally divided into a broad range of Hasidic sects, Lithuanian-Yeshivish streams from Eastern Europe, and Oriental Sephardic Haredim.

* Hasidic and Haredi Jewish population growth

Agudah serves as a leadership and policy umbrella organization for Haredi Jews in the United States, both those affiliating with the Hasidic and the non-Hasidic Mitnagdim / Lithuanian Jewish camps.

Rabbi Nissim Karelitz, chief Rabbi ( av beis din ) of the Lithuanian Haredi community, heads a beth din of Lithuanian and Hasidic dayanim, called She ' aris Yisroel.

Since then all the sects of Hasidic Judaism have been subsumed theologically into mainstream Orthodox Judaism, particularly Haredi Judaism, although cultural differences persist.

Within Orthodox Judaism there is a spectrum of communities and practices, including Modern Orthodox Judaism, Haredi Judaism, and a variety of movements that have their origins in Hasidic Judaism.

** Weekly before Shabbat, under Hasidic and Haredi customs

In modern Orthodox Judaism, there is a widespread minhag for the laity including men to immerse themselves on the day prior to Yom Kippur and often do so before the three pilgrimage festivals, and before Rosh Hashanah ; some Haredi Jews additionally immerse themselves at least before a Shabbat, and some Hasidic Jews do so daily before morning prayers.

Another reason for this broadening of the term is the fact that many of the leading Israeli Haredi yeshivas ( outside the Hasidic camp ) are successor bodies to the famous yeshivot of Lithuania, though their present-day members may or may not be descended from Lithuanian Jewry.

Bobov, ( or Bobover Hasidism ) ( חסידות באבוב ) is an Hasidic group within Haredi Judaism originating in Bobowa, Galicia in Southern Poland and now headquartered in the neighborhood of Borough Park in Brooklyn, New York.