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| The Pledge of Allegiance to R. Chaim Vital effectively making him the keeper of the secrets of the Ari Zal. |
From
around the sixteenth century, rabbinic leadership experienced a dramatic
change. No longer were the credentials of leadership solely based on knowledge
and erudition. Now leadership became largely defined by personal charisma.
This
does not mean that knowledge played no role at all, but it does mean that it was
no longer the main criterion.
In
this article, based extensively on the work by Professor Morris Faierstein[1], we shall explore some of the effects of
this change in the style of rabbinic leadership.
