Yitzhak Buxbaum was an American author and maggid (preacher/storyteller). He died on 23 December 2020.
Most of Buxbaum's books and articles relate to Hasidism, especially its storytelling tradition, and Neo-Hasidism. He has authored the following books.
Reviews of Buxbaum's work have appeared in Jewish publications with a variety of perspectives,[2] including The Algemeiner Journal,[3] Hadassah Magazine,[4] The Jewish Chronicle,[5] and Tikkun.[6] His books have been reviewed for broader audiences in the journal Parabola[7] and the website Spirituality and Practice.[8][9]
Manuscripts and drafts of The Light and Fire of the Baal Shem Tov are archived at Cornell University Library.[10]
Buxbaum told stories "in Jewish and non-Jewish settings to Jewish and non-Jewish audiences", with a focus on "the spiritual nature of storytelling."[11][12] He was grouped among "the most active tellers in the Jewish world."[13]
Building on his ordination as a maggid by Shlomo Carlebach,[14] Buxbaum established a program to train women and men as maggidim (plural of maggid).[15][16] Graduates include Shoshana Litman, described as Canada's first ordained female Jewish storyteller,[17] and Tamir Zaltsman, who states that he is the first ordained Russian-speaking maggid.[18] Some graduates are themselves training maggidim.[19]
Buxbaum graduated from Cornell University (class of 1964).[10]
He told interviewers that as a young man, he identified as an atheist and felt disconnected from his Jewish roots. But a time of intense soul-searching, and encounters with Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach, led him to devote his life to Jewish spirituality.[20]
In 2007, Buxbaum was one of six spiritual leaders from different faiths who opened the memorial celebration for Sri Chinmoy at the United Nations.[21]
Buxbaum lived in Brooklyn. He was married to actor and storyteller Carole Forman.[22]