Q&A: Hasidism – Catholic Christianity?
Hasidism – Catholic Christianity?
Question
Hello Rabbi,
Am I the only one who sees the connection and similarity between Hasidism and Catholic Christianity? It really seems like a copy-paste with some pseudo-Torah seasoning added.
Best regards,
Answer
There is a certain similarity, but that similarity is entirely legitimate. In itself, it does not constitute a claim that something is invalid. There is also similarity to all of Judaism, since both believe in God, in the Bible, and in the giving of the Torah. Both pray to God. Both believe in the messiah.
Therefore, if one wants to criticize a phenomenon or a worldview, one should raise substantive arguments against it, and not rely on its similarity to something else. By way of analogy, the Nazis accused Einstein's theory of relativity of being Jewish physics. It does have such dimensions—does that alone suffice to disqualify it? That is not a substantive criticism.