The invasions of Poland by the
Swedes after 1654 helped to decimate
the Jewish population further, result-
ing in a decline of Jewish learning in
Poland and a shift of the intellectual
center of Jewish life to Lithuania.
The catastrophes paved the way for
false messiahs, such as Shabbetai Tzvi
and Jacob Frank, to gain acceptance
among the oppressed Jewish populace,
but they were quickly exposed as
frauds. Both converted — Tzvi to
Islam; Frank to Christianity — within
their lifetimes.
The Baal Shem Tov, in contrast,
did not declare himself a messiah, and
in contrast to the Jewish intelligentsia,
embraced the downtrodden — those
who did not have access to the centers
of higher learning. He made it his goal
to bring wisdom to the people.
'At the time of this great confusion
and degradation to all of Europe —
the Black Plague also struck Europe at
this time — the Jew provided a handy
scapegoat for the ills of society," said
Rabbi Haim Horowitz, former rabbi
at Philadelphia's Conservative Temple
Beth Emeth and a member of the Jew-
ish Theological Seminary's Board of
Rabbis. "In the midst of this power-
lessness, the Baal Shem Tov intro-
duced a re-spiritualization of the Jew-
ish world."
Similarly, Rabbi Paul Yedwab of
6/5
1998
84
Temple Israel regards him as a pivotal
historical figure in Jewish history.
"The Baal Shem Tov breathed new
life into Judaism. The scholarly elite
were becoming bogged down in legal-
istic minutiae. The Baal Shem Tov
instilled a reawakened sense of spiritu-
ally," he said. The Temple Israel sid-
dur, which Yedwab edited, incorpo-
rates teachings of the Baal Shem Tov,
along with thoughts and inspirations
from Chasidic sources.
One of Yedwab's favorites: "Just as a
hand held before the face can hide a
great mountain, so too the everyday
trials can obscure the essence of life's
inner meaning."
Even though the Baal Shem Tov
(1698-1760) lived a relatively short
time ago, little is known about his
personal life. What is known comes to
us via tales and parables. The Baal
Shem Tov left few writings, aside from
some quite remarkable letters, such as
the one pictured in this story.
Addressed to a disciple, Yaakov Josef
of Polnoye, it talks about the impor-
tance of serving God with joy, a cor-
nerstone of Chasidic belief.
The Baal Shem Tov's life began as
Israel ben Eliezer, in the Carpathian
Mountain region of what was then
Poland, now the Ukraine. His mother
died shortly after his birth and his
father passed away when he was 5. It
is reported that, on his deathbed, his
father's last words to him were, "Yis-
roelik, you should only be afraid of
the Almighty."
At age 18, Yisroel married Perl, sis-
ter of the illustrious scholar Gershon
Kitover. He supported himself as a
nistar, a hidden mystic, by taking on
menial jobs — first as a porter, then as
a teacher's aide, then as burner of
lime.
During his early days, the Baal
Shem Tov became closely acquainted
with the physical and spiritual poverty
of Jewish life and with the need for
more widespread education of the
masses. He also became acquainted
with kabbalistic texts and kabbalists
who, because of the heresy of Shabbe-
tai Tzvi, had gone underground,
according to Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan in
his book, Chasidic Masters.
After the death of his teacher, Reb
Adam Bal Shem, the Baal Shem Toy
became the leader of a secret group of
mystics.
By age 36, the Baal Shem Tov was
recognized as a spiritual master and
leader and announced he was going to
start what later became known as
Chasidus. He established his perma-
nent residence in the village of
Mezhibuz, in Ukraine, and immedi-
ately began to draw a large following
of students and disciples.
From the outset, the Baal Shem Toyy,
had a strong nucleus of followers in `---\
various communities throughout East-
ern Europe who prepared the ground
for the Chasidic movement, including
many outstanding and renowned
scholars of the day, such as Dovber the
Maggid of Mezeritch and Yaakov Yosef
of Polnoye.
The Baal Shem Tov, however,
remained a popular teacher, never los-
ing contact with the masses. For this
reason, he made ample use of parables,
metaphors and aphorisms, whereby he
was able to convey many profound
doctrines in simple terms.
His legacy is in the doctrines that
form the substance of Chasidus.
"Every Jew, even those who consider
themselves far from their Judaism,
have a unique relationship with their
Creator. Chasidus asks us to look
beyond our Judaism and asks us how
[we] can make that relationship rele-
vant," said Rabbi Menachem Gold-
berger, spiritual leader of Congrega-
tion Teferus Yisroel of Baltimore and a
disciple of Rabbi Shlomo Twersky, a
direct descendant of the Baal Shem
Tov.
The Baal Shem Toy taught that it is
everyone's duty to serve the Creator,
and that this duty embraces every
aspect of one's daily life. One of the
more popular sayings of the Baal
Shem Toy is that "everything a person
sees or hears in the course of their day
must be utilized in their service to the
Almighty."
He also emphasized prayer and
obedience to the law over the study of
the law if such study degenerated into
a mere intellectual pursuit.
The Baal Shem Tov also taught that
divine providence affects every aspect
of the creation, even the inanimate.
And he emphasized that merely feeling
the holiness of the words was enough
for even the most illiterate to express
their desire to come closer to the
Almighty.
According to Rabbi Shemtov of the
Lubavitch Foundation, the Baal Shem
Tov believed all Jews are equal, that
even the simplest of people, because of
the spark of godliness within them, is
indeed a gadoh a great personality. He
also preached the reverse: However
great and spiritual a person is, he
could and should strive for teshuva, or (-/
repentance, and come closer to God.
"The Baal Shem Tov emphasized
the holiness of every Jew and stressed
that everyone can serve God no matter
what his background or endowments.
Furthermore, he taught the deepest