Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of Hasidic Judaism, a sub-group of Haredi Judaism that adheres to the historical traditions of Eastern European Jews, including communicating in Yiddish.
Hasidic
The Latest
-
Life This Hasidic Educator Teaches Secular Subjects To Boys — Despite Violent Opposition
Menachem Bombach is waiting behind the gate outside his school building on a dusty hilltop: long black coat, short beard, thin-rimmed glasses, the look of a refined yeshiva student, hands folded in front of him. He smiles and says, “Welcome, welcome!” It’s hard to believe that this gentleman’s home has become the site of frequent…
-
Fast Forward Israeli Police Halt Wedding Of 14-Year-Old Hasidic Girl
JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israel Police halted a Hasidic wedding in the central Israel city of Lod because the bride was 14 years old. The groom, reported to be in his 20s, and the girl’s father were arrested on Monday night prior to the ceremony, Israel’s Channel 2 first reported. The men later were released to…
-
Fast Forward Ultra-Orthodox Ambulance Service Faces Scrutiny After 7-Year-Old Girl Drowns
Hatzolah, private ambulance service run by ultra-Orthodox Jews, is being accused of failing to notify police after a 7-year-old girl drowned in New York’s Rockland County. Responders from Hatzolah took the girl, who drowned in a private pool in Pomona, New York, to a local medical center. Police have ruled the death an accident. Police…
-
Fast Forward WATCH: Hasidic Performers Rock Out To An Amazing Hebrew Rendition Of ‘Despacito’
The music video for “Despacito” recently became the most watched video in YouTube’s history, with 3.3 billion views and, as someone who listens to that song seven times in a row twice a day, I can definitively say it deserves the accolade. But I can also definitively say that the video below, of Hasidic performers…
-
Life This Hasidic Picture Book Teaches Children About Sexual Abuse
If you walk into Monsey’s Evergreen kosher supermarket, somewhere among the extensive schnitzel varieties and Shabbos candy treats, you’ll see a single children’s book for sale. Zai Gezunt! is the Yiddish translation of Artscroll’s Let’s Stay Safe, written by Bracha Goetz and illustrated by Tova Leff, a picture book that talks about children’s safety of…
-
Life Orthodox Resistance to Trump Grows — In Secret Social Media Groups
Ever since the election, as an ultra-Orthodox Jewish woman, I was beginning to feel more and more isolated. In my politically conservative community, too few around me took issue with the saga unfolding in Washington, the racist slogans and shocking vulgarity to emerge from the White House. A few family members (all Hasidim) were my…
-
Opinion Is It Wrong To Want Ultra-Orthodox Jews To Stay Out Of Your Town?
Recently, residents of Mahwah, New Jersey, noticed utility trucks driving around town, attaching strange-looking PVC piping to telephone poles. Soon they learned their purpose: the establishment of an eruv, a mysterious boundary that makes it possible for Torah-observant Jews to carry objects on the Sabbath. It’s a crucial step in making a neighborhood inviting to…
-
Life How the Term ‘Ultra-Orthodox’ Is An Overgeneralization — And Why It Matters
One of my biggest pet peeves about how the media often portrays Orthodox Jews is its use of the overarching term, “ultra-Orthodox.” The photos that accompany articles about “ultra-Orthodox” Jews are typically of women in thick stockings, short wigs and little hats pushing strollers in busy intersections in places that look like Boro Park. Men…
Explore
Most Popular
- 1
Fast Forward Why neo-Nazis marched in Ohio this weekend, and almost every weekend in the US
- 2
Opinion The group behind Project 2025 has a plan to protect Jews. It will do the opposite.
- 3
Opinion Just about every interpretation of Trump’s narrow election victory is wrong
- 4
News Texas schools want to add Queen Esther to the curriculum. Here’s why Jews (and many Christians) are opposed.
In Case You Missed It
-
Fast Forward Three arrested in murder of rabbi in United Arab Emirates; Israel denounces ‘despicable antisemitic act’
-
News Trump promised peace in the Middle East. Will his 2020 plan be the blueprint?
-
Fast Forward Rep. Ritchie Torres, outspoken pro-Israel advocate, is dropping hints that he could run for NY governor
-
Fast Forward Ursula Haverbeck, infamous German Holocaust denier known as ‘Nazi grandma,’ dies at 96
-
Shop the Forward Store
100% of profits support our journalism
