Jerusalem – There are 250 years of Hasidic Judaism on display at the “A World Apart Next Door” exhibition in Jerusalem. The exhibit, which opened two months ago, has brought in about 1,300 visitors per day, half of whom are ultra-Orthodox.
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An article today by the Daily Mail quotes the museum’s director, James Snyder, as saying, “It’s a phenomenon – a kind of blockbuster. It’s definitely exceeded expectations. For the ultra-Orthodox, it’s the first opportunity to see their communal culture elevated and celebrated in a museum setting. For everyone else who sees members of the community on the streets, it’s an opportunity to learn about a culture of which you can’t help but be aware, but about which you know little.”
Exhibits are broken down into different segments featuring the lives of men, women, children and rabbis. There are historic and modern-day photos; samples of clothing and head coverings for men and women with accompanying explanations; and videos which depict crowds of religious Jews, holidays, and celebrations. In other videos, a young mother describes the function of women in the community, and a hat maker showcases his talents.
Mr. Snyder said he was concerned there may be some backlash over the exhibit because of tensions between Israeli Jews and the ultra-Orthodox surrounding military service exemptions and other socio-economic issues. So far, his fears have not been realized.
The exhibition will be on display in Jerusalem until December 1, after which it will tour European and North American museums next year.
“Chassidim”, as we know them today, did not even EXIST back then.
Sounds like a wonderful exhibit that even misnagdim could learn from.
Let’s hope the exhibit will bring people together in a new way.
To #8 and #9 , the type of chasid that this exhibition defines is exactly the one with payos and black coats, and not the one that the gemara defines as lifnim meshuras hadin, #8 I know about the baal shem tov as much as you know,
Why does someone who doesn’t have the courage to state his name command so much attention when he says the most RIDICULOUS things? Does every barking dog deserve your reply?
I went to the exhibit and it was terrific. Nice to see Chassidim out at the museum and nice for the chiloni population to see how chassidim live.