Haredi Judaism consists of groups within Orthodox Judaism that are characterized by their strict interpretation of religious sources and their accepted halakha and traditions, in opposition to more accommodating or modern values and practices. Its members are usually referred to as ultra-Orthodox in English; however, the term "ultra-Orthodox" is considered pejorative by many of its adherents, who prefer terms like strictly Orthodox or Haredi. Haredi Jews regard themselves as the most religiously authentic group of Jews, although other movements of Judaism disagree.
Haredi Jewish men during a Torah reading
Young Haredi Jews in Jerusalem, 2005
Hasidic boys in Łódź, 1910
Haredi Jews from Galicia at the Karmelitermarkt [de] in Vienna's second district, Leopoldstadt, 1915
Orthodox Judaism is the collective term for the traditionalist branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as revealed by God to Moses on Mount Sinai and faithfully transmitted ever since.
A Jewish man pilloried in the synagogue, a common punishment in the pre-emancipation Jewish community in Europe.
Moses Sofer of Pressburg, considered the father of Orthodoxy in general and ultra-Orthodoxy in particular.
Isaac Bernays in clerical vestments. The ministerial style of dress seen here was ubiquitous among German and Western European (neo)-Orthodox Jews.
Young Samson Raphael Hirsch, the ideologue of Orthodox secession in Germany.