A Passion for Truth

A Passion for Truth (1973)

This book was published posthumously and is significantly autobiographical. It compares and contrasts the life and thought of the enigmatic Hasidic Rebbe Menahem Mendl of Kotzk with that of the Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard. A secondary contrast that is that between the Baal Shem Tov (considered the founder of Hasidism) and the Kotzker Rebbe, a duality that Heschel maps onto the mind and soul.

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In my previous religious life, praying for me was about technique, but without intention. Heschel changed my attitude in prayer. Sefi Dahan Commemorative Issue of Conservative Judaism If I wanted to be credible in my work toward societal justice, then it was essential that I make him one of my mentors. Rabbi Jack Moline