THE MYSTICAL COMMUNITY OF SAFED: KABBALAH, MESSIANISM, AND FOLKLORE (IN-PERSON & REMOTE)

 The small town of Safed in the Upper Galilee is ​​​​​​remembered today for the remarkable Jewish mystics who lived there in the sixteenth century, including Rabbis Joseph Karo, Solomon Alkabetz, Moses Cordovero, and Isaac Luria Ashkenazi. This course will explore the origins of the Safed community, the kabbalistic ideas that emerged from it, the messianic expectations associated with its scholars, and the rich folklore that developed around Rabbi Isaac Luria in particular.