The Messiah Of Brooklyn: Understanding Lubavitch Hasidism Past And Present

Through investigation of Habad in the middle to late 20th century, this study seeks better understanding of how religious ideas are disseminated in the modern world and the dynamics of leadership and discipleship. Ehrlich, a philosopher of religion and Jewish social and political thought and theology (he’s affiliated with Cambridge U. and the U. of Shandong, China), looks in detail at the particulars of the Habad movement and the life and death of its leader, Rabbi Schneerson. Without offering comparisons, he examines Habad in sociological, ideological, and methodological terms and models, which are applicable to other movements, he points out in his preface, among them Scientology, the Unification Church, and Hare Krishna. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)