Alan Morinis (born December 8, 1949) is a Canadiananthropologist,filmmaker, andwriter who has been a leading figure in the contemporary revival of theMusar movement, aJewish ethical movement.

Morinis was born into aleft-wingsecular Jewish home inToronto, Ontario, Canada. He completed hisPh.D. inSocial Anthropology atOxford University, which he attended on aRhodes Scholarship (Ontario 1972). Morinis studied religiouspilgrimages, especially inHinduism, and authored the bookPilgrimage in the Hindu Tradition: A Case Study of West Bengal as well as editedSacred Journeys: the anthropology of pilgrimage.^[1]

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 studymusar under the tutelage of RabbiYechiel Yitzchok Perr. Morinis has described his early Mussar education in his bookClimbing Jacob's Ladder.^[2][3]

In 2004, Morinis founded the Mussar Institute, based inVancouver,British Columbia. He sought to revive theMusar movement, which he saw as having largely died off after theHolocaust.^[4]

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

Frederic andMary Ann Brussat of the web siteSpirituality & 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 ofElon 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]

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)

• Musar movement
• Living people
• 1949 births
• Jewish Canadian non-fiction writers
• Canadian Rhodes Scholars
• Canadian anthropologists
• Writers from Toronto
• Alumni of Magdalen College, Oxford
• Hindu studies scholars
• Spiritual teachers
• Canadian religious writers
• Writers of Musar literature
• Canadian male non-fiction writers
• 21st-century Canadian male writers
• 21st-century Canadian non-fiction writers

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