The ChosenBackground notes

Setting

• Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York• WWII, begins in 1944• Jewish communities• One is Hasidic, a strict, isolated, and closed community• One is more a liberal, open community that teaches religion and other

subjects.

Jewish History

• First Jews came to America in 1654• They were mostly merchants• Lived in Philadelphia, New York, and Charleston mostly• Most were descendants of Jewish families expelled from Spain

• Germanic Jews- from central and eastern Europe• Persecuting in Central Europe in the 18th and 19th centuries• Economic downturns in Europe caused Jewish families to move to America• Anti-Semitism led to boycotts of Jewish businesses in Europe• Some reformation of strict Jewish laws occurred• Hasidic Jews kept the Orthodox (strict) laws

The Hasidic Background• Hasidic = Pious one• Israel Ben Elieser began to preach to Jews in Eastern Europe• 18th century• He felt that the common Jew was alienated by the overemphasis

on text• He was called Ba’al Shem Tov, Master of the Good Name• He preached that the mystical presence of God was in everything.• He preached love, prayer, and happiness• He was the tzaddick – he could issue divine blessings independent

of the Torah• Opposition from non-Hasidic Jews because they felt this was too

exalted for a rabbi

Conflict

• Hasidic Jews consider non-Hasidic Jews to be apikorsim (skeptics) and mitnagdim (a threat to Jewish life).• The rebbe (tzaddik) is the only authority on Jewish matters for Hasidic

culture.• Other Jewish sects seek to integrate into the society. They believe in

community as well as religion.• The Hasidic religion, on the other hand, lives isolated from American

culture and influence.