The Hasidic Community of Williamsburg: A Study in the Sociology of Religion

How is it the Hasidim, who separate themselves not only from non-Jews and “unreligious” Jews but also from “religious” Orthodox Jews whose religious ideology, intensity and frequency of traditional religious behavior do not meet Hasidic standards, creating a sociological wall between themselves and others whom they do not consider traditionally ‘religious,” are able to survive, indeed thrive, well into the twenty-first century while maintaining their social isolation and avoiding assimilation into the...