Modern Jewish Movements: Reform, Orthodox and Hasidic

From the 18th century, Jews faced new choices as European states granted civil rights (emancipation) and Enlightenment ideas spread. The Haskalah, or Jewish Enlightenment, associated with Moses Mendelssohn (1729–1786), encouraged secular learning alongside Torah. In Germany, Reform Judaism emerged in the early 19th century, adapting worship to modern life with vernacular prayers and, later, mixed seating, and treating many ritual laws as non-binding.

In response, Orthodox Judaism, articulated by figures such as Samson Raphael Hirsch, insisted on the binding authority of traditional law while engaging with modern society. Conservative (Masorti) Judaism sought a middle path. Separately, in Eastern Europe, Hasidism, founded by the Baal Shem Tov (d. 1760), emphasized joyful, mystical devotion and the leadership of charismatic rebbes. These movements reflect different answers to the same question: how to remain faithful to tradition in a changing world.