"Ultra-orthodox Jews in Jerusalem are isolated from the secular community that surrounds them not only physically but by their dress, behavior, and beliefs. Their relationship with secular society is characterized by social, religious, and political tension. The differences between ultra-orthodox and secular Jews often pose special difficulties for psychiatrists who attempt to deal with their needs.

In this book, two Western-trained psychiatrists discuss their mental health work with this community over the past two decades. With humor and affection they elaborate on some of the factors that make it difficult to treat or even to diagnose the ultra-orthodox, such as their distrust of the secular, their belief that all suffering is God-sent, and the problem of distinguishing what appear to be mental disturbances from manifestations of religious fervor."--BOOK JACKET.