Baal Shem Tov

Baal Shem Tov (c. 1700–1760) the popular name of Israel ben Eliezer He was a Ukrainian Jew whom many consider to have founded HASIDISM. "Baal Shem Tov" means "Master of the Good Name." It refers to the miraculous powers that Israel ben Eliezer allegedly possessed. He is also known as the "Besht." This term is an acronym, made from the fi rst letters of Baal Shem Tov. Little is actually known about the Baal Shem Tov's life. He is said to have worked wonders such as healing through a special name of GOD. The Baal Shem Tov is important today because of the religious movement he is said to have started. In his day normative JUDAISM in eastern Europe stressed a detailed study of TORAH and a strict observance of Jewish RITUALS and a Jewish way of life. For the Baal Shem Tov, this form of practice distracted people from their highest purpose, communion with God. God's light, he said, was all-pervasive. Therefore, communion with God could and should be had in all of life. The means to such communion included singing, dancing, and emotion-fi lled prayer. From these roots Hasidism grew.