Alan Morinis

Alan Morinis (born December 8, 1949) is a Canadian anthropologist, filmmaker, and writer who has been a leading figure in the contemporary revival of the Musar movement, a Jewish ethical movement.

Alan Morinis
BornDecember 8, 1949
NationalityCanadian
Notable workEveryday Holiness
SpouseDr. Beverly Spring
ChildrenDr. Julia Orkin, Dr. Leora Morinis
Theological work
LanguageEnglish
Tradition or movementMusar Movement

Early life and secular education

Morinis was born into a left-wing secular Jewish home in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He completed his Ph.D. in Social Anthropology at Oxford University, which he attended on a Rhodes Scholarship (Ontario 1972). Morinis studied religious pilgrimages, especially in Hinduism, and authored the book Pilgrimage in the Hindu Tradition: A Case Study of West Bengal as well as edited Sacred Journeys: the anthropology of pilgrimage.[1]

Mussar education

After pioneering work in academia, and a successful career television production, Morinis experienced a major professional failure that sent him reeling. He began to search Jewish tradition for spiritual guidance and came across the Mussar Movement. He began to study musar under the tutelage of Rabbi Yechiel Yitzchok Perr. Morinis has described his early Mussar education in his book Climbing Jacob's Ladder.[2][3]

Revival of the Mussar movement

In 2004, Morinis founded the Mussar Institute, based in Vancouver, British Columbia. He sought to revive the Musar movement, which he saw as having largely died off after the Holocaust.[4]

Morinis has been credited as being, along with Rabbi Ira F. Stone, the leading figure in the contemporary revival of the Musar movement among non-Orthodox Jews.[5]

Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat of the web site Spirituality & Practice have described Morinis's teachings as offering "a treasure trove of spiritual practices," "explications of the practical spiritual tradition of Mussar," and "insights into how to change your behavior and bring out your soul."[6] Geoffrey Claussen of Elon University has described Morinis as emphasizing "the honesty, humility, patience, and discipline that doing Musar requires" but as giving less attention to the importance of "traditional liturgy and community."[5]

Books

Morinis's books include:

  • Climbing Jacob's Ladder: One Man's Journey to Rediscover a Jewish Spiritual Tradition (2007)
  • Everyday Holiness: The Jewish Spiritual Path of Mussar (2008)
  • Every Day, Holy Day: 365 Days of Teachings and Practices from the Jewish Tradition of Mussar (2010)
  • With Heart in Mind: Mussar Teachings to Transform Your Life (2014)

References
  1. "Reviews of Climbing Jacob's Ladder". mussarinstitute.org. Retrieved 2019-05-20.
  2. Himmelstein, Drew (2015-03-27). "Study more, be a better person the way of Mussar". J. Retrieved 2019-05-20.
  3. "JUF News : 'Feeding the soul' through the Mussar practice". JUF News. Retrieved 2019-05-20.
  4. Ellenson, Ruth Andrew (23 March 2002). "An Assimilated Jew's Connection With an Old Tradition". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 10 January 2011.
  5. Geoffrey Claussen, "The American Jewish Revival of Musar Archived 2011-02-03 at the Wayback Machine," The Hedgehog Review. Retrieved 10 January 2011.
  6. Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat, "Living Spiritual Teachers Project: Alan Morinis". Retrieved 10 January 2011.
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