The Baal Shem Tov, or Besht —  the founder of Chasidism — 
met the soul of the Messiah during an ascent to heaven. 
The Besht asked him, "When will the Master come?" 
The Messiah answered, "When your wellsprings break forth to the outside!" 
(from a letter written by the Besht to his brother-in-law about one of his soul ascents) 

NeoHasid.org is dedicated to the memory of Maidi Katz, a Talmud scholar and teacher at Drisha Institute and a devoted participant in the first Chasidic Egalitarian minyan. Maidi came to our minyan as an Orthodox woman committed to her religious path but equally committed to opening doors between communities. From her quiet perch, she was an inspiring and grounding presence. Her commitment gave me the hope to believe that davening in new ways could create new and better realities for the Jewish people. May her memory and her Torah be a blessing to all.

Rabbi David Seidenberg

Here is an article about Maidi from The Jewish Week posted to the Drisha site. A memorial page for Maidi that used to be found on the Union for Traditional Judaism website is no longer. If anyone has something to share about Maidi please send it so I can post it here.

Design in progress © Rabbi David Mevorach Seidenberg 2006