One must be cautioned that, when speaking about Kabbalah, it does not refer to the numerous imitations being sold nowadays in the form of little booklets, red strings, and healing waters.
All of these approaches take the name of Kabbalah in vain, for the utmost secrets of the world and the promise of eternal life, protective angels, and supreme devotion cannot be purchased for five cents apiece.
This type of commercialized mysticism is surely more propagated today than authentic Kabbalah and has the dangerous ability to deceive the masses into believing that they have discovered the essence of Kabbalah.
Kabbalah is – or at least has been for the last 500 years – the official theology of the Jewish people.
It is the route to gaining a better understanding of the relationship between man and God.
Anyone who feels any sort of connection to God should have enough sense to be interested in knowing God.
This is true about so many other things; for instance, if I love or admire somebody, I have a desire to know that person better and in a deeper, more intimate way.
–Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz
From the essay, "Man of War" by Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz