The basic teachings of the Baal Shem Tov will be included in the Online Midrash Study Program.
Here is an orientation to the Baal Shem Tov and a short reading list for those who want to go deeper. Without the midrashic orientation, knowing the connections between the teachings and the Torah can be difficult even for the most avid student to establish. However, these books can give a quick boost to those who are completely new to the life of the Baal Shem Tov and to the Chasidic world which sprung up from his teachings and inspiration.
Somewhere a Master by Elie Wiesel
The Story of the Baal Shem by J.L. Snitzer, Abraham Burstein
Tales of the Hasidim by Martin Buber
The Great Chasidic Masters by Avraham Yaakov Finkel
I Asked for Wonder – A Spiritual Anthology by Abraham Joshua Heschel
The teachings in KabbalaHebrew are inspired by the Baal Shem Tov. My journey has been motivated by the example and the brash forward thinking of this amazing master teacher.
The Baal Shem Tov taught in the lineage of the master – disciple traditions. This is why this course is restricted to students who are in congregations, religious institutions, and various places of “learning through community.”
The Midrash remains the one ongoing connecting literature for any study of Jewish spiritual principles, and this includes any study of the ascribed teaches of the Baal Shem Tov. Therefore, the Online Midrash Study program offered by KabbalaHebrew.com provides a solid basis for reclaiming a form of Torah Study that can be meaningful even for those of us who are not orthodox in practice or in thought.