Revelation in Strange Clothes: Heresy as Deferred Prophecy in Orthodox Jewish Thought

This article reframes heresy within Orthodox Judaism not as pathology to be eradicated but as a necessary byproduct of authentic theological creativity—a form of “deferred prophecy” that challenges established boundaries while potentially revealing divine truth. Through analysis of the 18th-century Jonathan Eybeschütz controversy alongside six major Orthodox thinkers (Reb Zadok HaKohen, the Netziv, Soloveitchik, Halivni, Lichtenstein, and Magid), this study demonstrates how shifting boundaries of Orthodox thought reflect evolving understandings of divine revelation. The integration of the author’s therapeutic and theological writings from www.jyungar.com reveals how contemporary Orthodox thought has developed “therapeutic orthodoxy”—a methodological approach that operates deliberately at the boundaries between orthodoxy and heresy through practical application of religious concepts to healing practice. This approach, described as “post-modern, post-Orthodox, and post-Hasidic,” maintains essential religious commitment while radically expanding the boundaries of acceptable religious discourse through therapeutic integration of kabbalistic and halakhic concepts with medical practice.

Keywords: Heresy, Therapeutic Orthodoxy, Jonathan Eybeschütz, Orthodox Judaism, Innovation, Deferred Prophecy, Revelation, Postmodernism, Kabbalah, Healing, Medical Practice