The Baal Shem made men very great, he saw men in a new light. He took men seriously, very seriously. And therefore he had an extraordinary appreciation of the nature of the Jew. He maintained that every Jew could be a sanctuary. The ancient Temple in Jerusalem could be rebuilt by every Jew within his own soul. And out of this inner sanctuary would grow the incense, the smoke of the incense, in the rich heaven. Every Jew could rebuild the Temple and establish its altars.
— Susannah Heschel, Moral Grandeur and Spiritual Audacity by Abraham Joshua Heschel, Susannah Heschel, editor