Sarah Yehudit Schneider: ‘Jewish mysticism is not so different from any mysticism’

Sarah Yehudit Schneider believes meditation is the entryway to understanding mysticism. She highlights that traditional Kabbalah often focuses on mystical realms associated with the masculine, and in her current work, she is actively exploring and articulating the Kabbalah of the feminine. Sarah Yehudit Schneider is the founding director of A Still Small Voice, a correspondence school that provides weekly teachings in Jewish wisdom to subscribers around the world. She is the author of several books, most recently Dark Matters of the Soul: The Kabbalah of Shame (2024). Here, she joins us to answer 18 questions on Jewish mysticism, including growth through joy in the Messianic era and how to reconcile God’s all-knowingness with free will. Here are our questions: What is Jewish mysticism? How were you introduced to Jewish mysticism? In an ideal world, would all Jews be mystics? What do you think of when you think of God? What is the purpose of the Jewish people? How does prayer work? What is the goal of Torah study? Does Jewish mysticism view men and women the same? Should Judaism be hard or easy? Why did God create the world? Can humans do something that is against God’s will? What do you think of when you think about Moshiach? Is the State of Israel part of the final redemption? What is the greatest challenge facing the world today? How has modernity changed Jewish mysticism? What differentiates Jewish mysticism from the mysticism of other religions? Does one need to be religious to study Jewish mysticism? Can mysticism be dangerous? How has Jewish mysticism affected your relationships with yourself and with others? What is a Jewish teaching that you always take with you?