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The Gerer Hassidim of Paris

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This ethnographic study examines the religious community and cultural practices of Gerer Hassidim residing in Paris during the 1960s. Based on participant observation conducted during a year-long Fulbright fellowship, the research employed qualitative methodology including direct immersion in community life, attendance at religious services, and extensive informal interviews with community members. The study documents the daily religious practices, educational traditions, and social structures of this Hassidic community, particularly focusing on their modest stibel on Passage Kuszner in the twentieth arrondissement. Key findings reveal a vibrant religious community that maintained traditional Jewish observance while adapting to French urban life, including multilingual education for children and successful integration into local commerce. The research highlights the community's remarkable resilience, documenting survival narratives from Holocaust experiences and subsequent reconstruction of religious life in exile. The study demonstrates how this Hassidic community preserved authentic religious traditions, including distinctive musical practices (nigunim), Talmudic study circles, and ceremonial observances, while maintaining connections to their spiritual leadership in Israel. The findings contribute to understanding diaspora Jewish communities and the persistence of traditional religious practices in modern European urban contexts, illustrating how sacred time and ritual create continuity across geographical displacement.

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  • Publication Information

    Published 1967

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  • Publication Credits

    Arbie Orenstein