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A kollel ( Hebrew : כולל , pl. כוללים ‎, kollelim , a "gathering" or "collection" [of scholars]) is an institute for full-time, advanced study of the Talmud and rabbinic literature . Like a yeshiva , a kollel features shiurim (lectures) and learning sedarim (sessions); unlike most yeshivot, the student body of a kollel typically consists mostly of married men. A kollel generally pays a regular monthly stipend to its members.

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74-535: Originally, the word was used in the sense of "community". Each group of European Jews settling in Israel established their own community with their own support system. Each community was referred to as the "kollel of [place-name] " to identify the specific community of the Old Yishuv . The overwhelming majority of these Jews were scholars who left their homelands to devote themselves to study Torah and serve God for

148-589: A decree of expulsion , Jewish people had sought refuge in the Ottoman Empire . In 1492 and again in 1498, when the Sephardic Jews were expelled from Spain and Portugal respectively, refugees migrated to the Land of Israel, which changed hands from Mamluks to Ottomans after the second Ottoman–Mamluk war , and Ottoman tolerance was seen as an alternative to Christian persecution. Joseph Nasi , with

222-722: A group of 300 Jews headed by the Tosafists from England and France in 1211 struggled very hard upon arrival in the region, as they had no financial support and no prospect of making a living. The vast majority of the settlers were wiped out during the Fourth Crusade ; they arrived in 1219, and the few survivors were allowed to live only in Acre . Their descendants blended with the original Jewish residents, called Mustarabim or Maghrebim , but more precisely Mashriqes ( Murishkes ). The Mamluk period (1260–1517) saw an increase in

296-640: A kollel of Warsaw, was instrumental in making the etrogs saleable in Ashkenazi Jewish communities in Europe. He planted thousands of trees in a donated orchard near Tiberias and turned the proceeds over to the Warsaw kollel. Generally the Old Yishuv did not participate in the creation of agricultural communities, which was begun in earnest by the immigrants that arrived from Eastern Europe beginning in

370-524: A kollel was also established in Montreal . Other locations with community kollelim include Atlanta , Dallas , Jacksonville, Las Vegas , Miami Beach , Minneapolis , Pittsburgh , Philadelphia , Phoenix, St. Louis , and Seattle . In the past years about 30 Haredi community kollelim in North America have been opened by yeshiva-trained scholars to serve, in addition to the full-time study by

444-418: A morning session, an afternoon session, and an evening session, in which a total of 10 hours of each day is spent studying. For each session there is a limud (subject) which is a chapter of the mesechta that that group is learning. The morning session is the most important of the sessions and is the subject that students will devote their after-hours time to and are most likely to write papers on; it

518-571: A number of Chassidishe Kollelim as well, such as the Chicago Chassidishe Kollel , the Los Angeles Kollel Yechiel Yehudah , and others. Unlike most community Kollelim that primarily focus on in depth Talmud study, Chassidishe Kollelim usually focus more on the study of Shulchan Aruch and poskim , including tests on the material by leading Poskim . Maimonides in his code of Jewish law,

592-547: A veteran, each pursuing its own specific curriculum with an emphasis on individual learning. Beth Medrash Govoha is a successor institution to Yeshivas Etz Chaim , which was located in Slutzk , in what is today Belarus . That institution was led by Rabbi Isser Zalman Meltzer and by Rabbi Aaron Kotler, until it was forcibly closed by the Soviet Revolution of 1917, which banned all forms of Jewish studies. Etz Chaim

666-641: A vibrant Jewish center had continued to exist in the Galilee following the Jewish–Roman wars , its importance was reduced with increased Byzantine persecutions and the abolition of the Sanhedrin in the early 5th century. Jewish communities of the southern Levant under Byzantine rule fell into a final decline in the early 7th century, and with the Jewish revolt against Heraclius and Muslim conquest of Syria ,

740-409: A weekly discourse on the topic that was studied that week. Many of the chaburos require members themselves to prepare and give discourses of their own on a rotating basis. Other responsibilities of the rosh chaburah include submitting the number of seats needed for the members of his chaburah , and to decide the topic of study for the semester. Three zmanim (semesters) exist in

814-800: A year or two after they get married, whether or not they will pursue a rabbinic career. Modest stipends, or the salaries of their working wives, and the increased wealth of many families have made kollel study commonplace for yeshiva graduates. The largest United States kollel is at Beth Medrash Govoha in Lakewood, New Jersey . More than 4,500 kollel scholars are attached to the yeshiva, which has 6500 students in total. Large kollels also exist in Ner Israel Rabbinical College , numbering 180 scholars, and in Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin , with more than 100 scholars. In

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888-568: A year, based on the Hebrew calendar : The three zmanim span two official semesters. The Fall semester runs through the Winter zman. The Spring semester includes the Summer zman and Elul zman. Applications to enroll into the yeshiva are accepted twice a year, before the summer and winter semesters. There are no enrollments for the fall semester. The deadlines vary, and they are generally close to

962-690: Is Abraham Gershon of Kitov . In the 18th century, groups of Hasidim and Perushim settled in the Land of Israel (Ottoman Southern Syria ). In 1764 Rabbi Nachman of Horodenka , a disciple and father-in-law of the Baal Shem Tov settled in Tiberias. According to "Aliyos to Eretz Yisrael," he was already in Southern Syria in 1750. In 1777, the Hasidic leaders Rabbi Menachem Mendel of Vitebsk and Rabbi Avraham of Kaliski , disciples of

1036-470: Is a postgraduate institution and the general age of entry for new students is about 22. A high level of analytic skill and comprehension in understanding the Talmud is required, to the extent that a student is able to study a subject from the starting point all the way to the most complex areas of that subject on his own. The yeshiva does not have a remedial program for weak or unprepared students, and reaching

1110-410: Is also the subject of the lectures. All learning is done within a system of chaburos (study groups) in which 15 to 200 scholars are seated together to study the same subject at the same pace with their individual chavrusa (study partner). Every chaburah is headed by a rosh chaburah (head/leader of the study group). The rosh chaburah is typically somebody that is more advanced than

1184-654: Is authorized to grant bachelor's and master's degrees in Talmudics , as well as two post-master's diplomas in Talmudics. What students seek in Beth Medrash Govoha is to at first attain the skills necessary to properly understand and analyze the Talmud and to be able to do independent research on a scholarly level, and then use these skills to become accomplished Talmudic scholars. Beth Medrash Govoha

1258-556: Is considered probably the worst stage for the development of the Old Yishuv. With the restoration of the Ottoman rule in 1840 with British and French intervention, the region began experiencing a serious rise in the population, rising from just 250,000 in 1840 to 600,000 by the end of the 19th century. Though most of the increase was Muslim, also the Jewish community gradually rose in numbers. Several Jewish communities were established in

1332-525: Is negotiated. The stated policy of the yeshiva is that no eligible student is denied the opportunity to study Torah because of their inability to pay tuition. The accepted student must also complete steps required by the State of New Jersey of all students entering dormitories and post-secondary schools in New Jersey. Additionally, in a signed acceptance agreement, the matriculating student agrees to abide by

1406-455: Is very critical of those that study Torah without having a source of income and rely on charity, to the extent that he calls it a disgrace to God and to the Torah. However, the kollel system is both a popular and accepted one in many Orthodox Jewish circles, yet some maintain that a distinction must be made between a situation of mutual desire for such by both the learner and the supporter and, on

1480-571: The Israeli Haredi Jewish community, thousands of men study full-time for many years in hundreds of kollelim. Kollel has been known at times to cause a great deal of friction with the secular Israeli public at large. It has been criticized by the Modern Orthodox , non-Orthodox, and secular Jewish communities. The Haredi community defends the practice of kollel on the grounds that Judaism must cultivate Torah scholarship in

1554-615: The Kingdom of Jerusalem . Following the Crusaders' defeat and the conquest of Jerusalem , he urged Saladin to allow the resettlement of the Jews in the city, and several hundred of the long-existing Jewish community of Ashkelon resettled Jerusalem. Small Jewish communities were also existent at the time in Gaza and in desolate villages throughout upper and lower Galilee. The immigration of

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1628-519: The Land of Israel during late antiquity and the early Middle Ages, and was composed of three clusters. Firstly, Ladino -speaking Sephardic Jewish communities settled in the region during the late Mamluk and early Ottoman periods, alongside Arabic -speaking Musta'arabi communities, who had already been living there since before the coming of Islam and had been culturally and linguistically Arabized . Secondly, Ashkenazi Jews immigrated from Europe in

1702-479: The Talmud regardless of whether they just joined the yeshiva or have already been studying for well over a decade, when students first arrive they study the mesechta (Talmudic tractate) that the yeshiva has officially selected to study at that time. This mesechta will always be one of eight that deal with areas of civil law. Some students will continue learning these subjects for many years, developing great expertise in these areas, while others will study other areas of

1776-652: The Talmud . Some students focus primarily on the practical application of the talmudic laws based on the Halachic conclusions of the Shulchan Aruch . Because of the large number of students in the Yeshiva there are groups studying virtually every subject in the Talmud . Beth Medrash Govoha is unique among Yeshivas in that a student can study any subject in the Talmud or Halachah that he prefers. The daily schedule consists of three sedarim (study sessions) –

1850-800: The Talmudic academy Midrash haGadol d'Paris . He is believed to have died there between 1265 and 1268 and is buried near Haifa, at Mount Carmel . Nahmanides arrived in 1267 and settled in Acre as well. In 1488, when Obadiah of Bertinoro arrived in the Mamluk domain of Syria and sent back letters regularly to his father in Italy, many in the diaspora came to regard living in Mamluk Syria as feasible. Canaan State of Israel (1948–present) From 1360, when Louis I of Hungary had issued

1924-543: The ' Yissachar - Zebulun ' partnership, after the Midrashic legend that the tribe of Zevulun financially supported the tribe of Issachar so that they could occupy themselves with Torah study. The reward of the supporter in the World-to-Come is seen to be equal to that of the scholar's reward. Most kollels have a scholar serving as a rosh kollel , or head of the kollel. He decides on the subject matter studied by

1998-556: The 1870s and 1880s, largely associated with the Hovevei Zion . Towards this end, Hovevei Zion members, including the philanthropist Isaac Leib Goldberg, purchased land from the Ottoman government and local inhabitants. Although there was some earlier support from religious Jews in Europe such as Rabbi Zvi Hirsh Kalischer of Thorn —who published his views in Drishat Zion —Hovevei Zion encountered significant opposition from

2072-899: The 18th and early 19th centuries, forming another group. A third wave of Yishuv members arrived in the late 19th century, hailing from Europe, North Africa , Yemen , Persia , and the Caucasus . These migrations gave rise to two distinct communities within the Old Yishuv—the Sephardim (including Musta'arabim ) and the Askhenazim. Apart from the Old Yishuv centres in the Four Holy Cities —namely Jerusalem , Hebron , Tiberias and Safed —smaller communities also existed in Jaffa , Haifa , Peki'in , Acre , Nablus and Shfaram . Petah Tikva , although established in 1878 by

2146-501: The 19th century; however, chicken remained a luxury item. Meat was primarily beef, but goat and lamb were eaten, particularly in the spring. Almost every part of the animal was used. Fresh fish was a rare and expensive food in Jerusalem, particularly in the winter. Salted cod was soaked and then prepared for both weekdays and Sabbath meals. Sephardim also had a preference for fish called gratto and for sardines . Another fish that

2220-456: The 1st of Elul for the winter enrollment, and the 1st of Adar for summer enrollment. This is generally a four-part process. Only applicants who have received a " bechina (entrance exam) card" authorizing them to advance will be able to proceed with these steps: Shivti , the yarchei kallah program, is a highly acclaimed weekly Sunday program for laymen. The shivti was created by Rav Yaakov Tescher. After acceptance, tuition

2294-832: The Arabic growers of Umm al-Fahm for their entire progeny of Balady citron . In the 1840s they were also instrumental in the introduction of the Greek citron, which was already cultivated in Jewish-owned farms. In the 1870s the Sephardim switched to the Greek variety, and the Ashkenazi Salant partners took over the Balady business. After a little while, controversy erupted regarding its kashrut status. Rabbi Chaim Elozor Wax , president of Kupath Rabbi Meir Baal Haness ,

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2368-462: The Diaspora observed Jewish religious traditions of the 613 commandments and tzedakah (charitable giving or actions). Many of the arrivals were noted Torah scholars whose communities felt honored to be represented and sent them ma'amodot "stipends" regularly. The kollel network was established many years prior in Jewish communities around the globe to financially support one another while under

2442-534: The Diaspora. The export of etrogs was also a source of income for the Old Yishuv. This predated the Lovers of Zion idea of the return to the land and Jewish farming, before which etrogs for use as Sukkot were cultivated exclusively by Arab peasants and then merchandized by the Jews. According to Jacob Saphir , the etrog business was monopolized by the Sephardic kollel even before 1835. They had contracted with

2516-782: The Galilean Jewish population greatly declined. In 1660 Tiberias and Safed were laid in ruins by Ottoman-aligned Druze warlords during the Druze power struggle of 1658–1667 , and the remaining Jews fled as far as Jerusalem. Though Jews returned to Safed in 1662, it became a majority-Muslim center of the Ottoman Safed Sanjak . In 1700, Judah HeHasid , a maggid of Shedlitz , Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth made aliyah and settled in Jerusalem. A group of over 1,500 Ashkenazi Jews came with him, although some sources claim only 300 actually arrived. At that time,

2590-526: The Jewish population had greatly reduced in numbers. In early Middle Ages, the Jewish communities of southern Bilad al-Sham (southern Syria), living as dhimmis under Muslim rule, were dispersed among the key cities of the military districts of Jund Filastin and Jund al-Urdunn , with a number of poor Jewish villages existing in the Galilee and Judea. Despite temporary revival, the Third and Fourth Fitnas (Arab Muslim civil wars) drove many non-Muslims out of

2664-630: The Jewish population of the Old City of Jerusalem was primarily Sephardic: 200 Ashkenazi Jews compared with a Sephardi community of 1,000. The Ashkenazi immigrants heeded the call of HeHasid, who went from town to town advocating a return to the Land of Israel to redeem its soil. Almost a third of the group died of hardship and illness during the long journey. Upon their arrival in the Holy Land, they immediately went to Jerusalem. Within days, HeHasid died. The survivors borrowed money from local Arabs for

2738-495: The Jewish population, especially in the Galilee, but the Black Death epidemics had cut the country's demographics by at least one-third. Safed and Jerusalem were the major populated Jewish urban areas, replacing Tiberias, Acre and Tyre. In 1260, Rabbi Yechiel of Paris arrived in the Land of Israel, at the time part of Mamluk Empire , along with his son and a large group of followers, settling in Acre. There he established

2812-474: The Old Yishuv and New Yishuv became blurred, particularly in urban neighborhoods and agricultural settlements. In the late 19th century, the Old Yishuv comprised 0.3% of the world's Jews, representing 2–5% of the population of the Palestine region . The establishment of Rishon LeZion , the first moshava founded by Hovevei Zion in 1882, could be considered the true beginning of the "New Yishuv". While

2886-416: The Old Yishuv dispatched emissaries ( shlihim or meshullahim ) to raise money in for sustenance. The halukka system, which promoted dependence on charity, was harshly criticized in later years as being ineffectual, especially when Zionism arose in Europe (1830s–1880s). This period saw a shift from traditional forms of charity towards efforts of "self-help" and productivity both in the Land of Israel and in

2960-523: The Old Yishuv had lived for centuries in the four Holy cities of Safed, Hebron, Jerusalem, and Tiberias. These Jews were devoted to prayer and the study of Torah , Talmud , or Kabbalah , and had no independent source of living. As those Jews fulfilled the Talmudic commandment of God that the Jewish people must live in the Land of Israel to incite the coming of the Messiah , and, in part as they prayed for

3034-410: The Old Yishuv, was also supported by the arriving Zionists. The "Old Yishuv" term was coined by members of the "New Yishuv" in the late 19th century. Today, scholars generally concur that the term "Old Yishuv" does not strictly denote chronology or demographics, as many communities classified under this term arrived in the latter half of the 19th century. By the late Ottoman period, distinctions between

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3108-406: The civic authority and care of the governments of the countries in which Jews lived. Money for this purpose was raised in Jewish communities around the world for distribution among the various kollels that were correspondingly established (by country or community of origin) in the Old Yishuv, especially in Jerusalem. From the 13th century until the beginning of the 20th century, Jewish communities of

3182-578: The construction of a synagogue but soon ran out of funds and borrowed more money at very high rates of interest. In 1720, when they were unable to repay their debts, Arab creditors broke into the synagogue, set it on fire, and destroyed their homes. The Jews fled the city and over the next century, any Jew dressed in Ashkenazi garb was a target of attack. Some of the Ashkenazi Jews who remained began to dress like Sephardic Jews. One known example

3256-534: The country, with no evidence of mass conversions, except for Samaritans . The Crusader period marked the most serious decline, lasting through the 12th century. Maimonides traveled from Spain to Morocco and Egypt, and stayed in the Holy Land , probably sometime between 1165 and 1167, before settling in Egypt. He had then become a personal physician of Saladin , escorting him throughout his war campaigns against

3330-492: The financial backing and influence of his aunt, Gracia Mendes Nasi , succeeded in resettling Tiberias and Safed in 1561 with Sephardic Jews, many of them former Anusim . From the mid-16th century, Safed had become the most influential center of Jewish mysticism and traditional halakha , inhabited by important rabbis and scholars. Among them were Rabbis Yakov bi Rav , Moses ben Jacob Cordovero , Yosef Karo , Abraham ben Eliezer Halevi and Isaac Luria . At this time there

3404-445: The first ever day for new students, the atmosphere can seem tumultuous, with much milling about, good spirit and cheer, hence that day has become known as "Tumult day," during which little study takes place and instead much socializing along with the more serious work of choosing both study group and study partner. Rabbi Aharon Kotler served as the academic and spiritual leader of the institution, from 1943 until his passing in 1962. He

3478-450: The kollel, in which members are subsisting on support from others, is part of an overall philosophy of some Orthodox Jews, that God desires that the children of Israel primarily occupy themselves in this world with the study of the Torah , and gave certain Jews more of a propensity to work with the intention that they should support the 'learners'. In Orthodox Judaism this has become known as

3552-457: The kollel. In many cases he also has to spend considerable time fund-raising to support the kollel. Many kollels employ former students – avrechim ( אברכים ), sg. avrech ( אברך ) – as fundraisers, often giving them titles such as Executive Director or Director of Community Programming. Fundraising projects may include sponsorships of specific events or "day(s) of learning." Many Orthodox Jewish yeshiva students study in kollel for

3626-597: The largest yeshiva in the US) and Rabbi Elazar Shach , one of the most prominent leaders of the Jewish community in Israel until his death in 2001. The community kollel movement was also fostered by Torah Umesorah , the National Society for Hebrew Day Schools. Currently, the term is applied in America to any stipend given for yeshiva study and is now a general term for the yeshivah approach to life. The philosophy of

3700-399: The late 19th century, including Mishkenot Sha'ananim , which was built by British Jewish banker and philanthropist Sir Moses Montefiore in 1860 as an almshouse, paid for by the estate of an American Jewish businessman from New Orleans , Judah Touro ; and Petah Tikva , established in 1878. Many of the immigrant Jews were elderly and had immigrated to die in the Holy Land, whereas most in

3774-463: The level required to be a successful student at the yeshiva takes several years of intense, full-time study. As such, in general, only students who have already studied in an undergraduate level yeshiva geared for students aged 18–22, will be accepted. The yeshiva studies are based on classical Torah study traditions using the Talmud , Rishonim , Shulchan Aruch , Responsa , and Rabbinic literature as texts and sources. Although all students study

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3848-562: The maggid Dov Ber of Mezeritch , settled in the area. Misnagdim began arriving in 1780. Most of them settled in Safed or Tiberias, but a few established an Ashkenazi Jewish community in Jerusalem, rebuilding the ruins of the Hurva Synagogue , the destroyed synagogue of Judah HeHasid. Starting in 1830, about twenty disciples of Moses Sofer settled in Southern Syria, almost all of them in Jerusalem. From 1831 to 1840, Syria fell under

3922-464: The members of the chaburah and his primary function is to assist the chabura in their studies. Additionally some roshai chaburah assist in pairing the members of their chaburah with an appropriate chavrusah (study partner). Most roshei chaburah will study the material on their own time so that they are proficient and thoroughly knowledgeable on the subject. Some roshai chaburah (plural of rosh hachaburah ) also give

3996-497: The members of the kollel, as centers for adult education and outreach to the Jewish communities in which they located themselves. Topics include everything from basic Hebrew to advanced Talmud. In addition to imparting Torah knowledge, such kollels function to impart technical skills required for self-study. Many Modern Orthodox communities host a Torah MiTzion kollel, where Hesder graduates learn and teach, generally for one year. In recent years there have been established

4070-423: The onset of Zionist aliyah waves, and the consolidation of the new Yishuv by the end of World War I . Unlike the new Yishuv, characterized by secular and Zionist ideologies promoting labor and self-sufficiency, the Old Yishuv primarily consisted of religious Jews who relied on external donations ( halukka ) for support. The Old Yishuv evolved following a significant decline in Jewish communities across

4144-474: The other hand, communities that put pressure on the learner to join and remain in a kollel while simultaneously putting pressure on the community to support such an individual. Some other criticisms of the modern kollel system include: Old Yishuv The Old Yishuv ( Hebrew : היישוב הישן , haYishuv haYashan ) were the Jewish communities of the region of Palestine during the Ottoman period , up to

4218-507: The religious community, which for example insisted on the adoption of ancient and ineffective Biblical farming rules. In the Jewish communities of the Old Yishuv, bread was baked at home. People would buy flour in bulk or take their own wheat to be milled into the flour to bake bread in brick or mud ovens. Small commercial bakeries were set up in the mid-19th century. Wheat flour was used to make challah and biscuits, ordinary bread and cooking. Because of its scarcity, bread that had dried

4292-587: The rest of their lives. The kollel was the umbrella organization for all their needs. The first examples were Kolel Perushim (students of the Vilna Gaon who established the first Ashkenazi Jewish settlement in Jerusalem) and Colel Chabad for the Russian Hasidim . The Polish Jews were divided into many kollelim: Kolel Polen (Poland), headed by Rabbi Chaim Elozor Wax ; Kolel Vilna Zamość

4366-456: The rule of the Egyptian viceroy Muhammad Ali of Egypt and his son Ibrahim Pasha , who effectively extended the Egyptian domination to Damascus , driving the Ottomans north. Throughout the period a series of events greatly disturbed the demographic composition of the country, being the stage for the 1834 Syrian Peasant revolts and the 1838 Druze Revolt , which caused a great impact upon the Old Yishuv. The greatest damage in lives and property

4440-411: The rules of the institution. By long-standing institutional tradition, each semester begins with the majority of students exploring the many study groups (called "Chaburos") available in each field of study and choosing the one that they find of greatest interest. They then pair up with a study partner, who will join them in their study group. As the first days back on campus for returning students, and

4514-453: The same way that the secular academic world conducts research into subject areas. While costs may be high in the short run, in the long run the Jewish people will benefit from having numerous learned laymen, scholars, and rabbis. (See also: Religious relations in Israel ) Yeshiva students who learn in kollel often continue their studies and become rabbis , poskim ("deciders" of Jewish law ), or teachers of Talmud and Judaism. Others enter

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4588-412: The welfare of the Jewish diaspora . The system of Jewish charity called halukka "distribution" evolved to support them. As a living population, the religious Jews of the Old Yishuv helped the Diaspora maintain a stronger, deeper connection to the Land of Israel. In exchange, the Diaspora provided communities with financial support which was the economic succor of the residents of the Old Yishuv. Jews in

4662-436: The winter. Most Sephardic and Ashkenazi families would also buy large quantities of grapes to make wine. Olives and eggplants were pickled for preservation. Beth Medrash Govoha Beth Medrash Govoha ( Hebrew : בית מדרש גבוה , pronounced : Beis Medrash Gavo'ha . lit: "High House of Learning"; also known as Lakewood Yeshiva or BMG ) is a Haredi Jewish Lithuanian yeshiva in Lakewood Township, New Jersey . It

4736-464: The world of business. If successful, they may financially support the study of others while making time to continue their own learning. In the late 20th century, community kollelim were introduced. They are an Orthodox outreach tool, aimed to decrease assimilation and propagate Orthodox Judaism among the wider Jewish population. In the early 1990s community kollelim (or kollels) in North America were functioning in Los Angeles , Toronto , and Detroit ;

4810-410: Was a small community in Jerusalem headed by Rabbi Levi ibn Haviv also known as the Mahralbach . In 1620 Rabbi Yeshaye Horowitz , the Shelah Hakadosh , arrived from Prague. By the early 17th century, the Ma'an Druzes initiated a power struggle, which led to instability in Mount Lebanon and the Galilee, eroding the Jewish communities. Economic shifts also led to negative demographic movement, and

4884-421: Was available was bouri ( grey mullet ). Even until the end of the 19th century, both Ashkenazim and Sephardim in Jerusalem stored large quantities of foodstuffs for the winter. In Sephardi households, these included rice, flour, lentils, beans, olives and cheese. Ashkenazim stored wine, spirits, olives, sesame oil and wheat. At the end of the summer, large quantities of eggs were packed in slaked lime for

4958-415: Was completed in the summer of 2015, on the land where Bais Eliyahu (the "trailers") used to be. It was first used on Rosh Hashanah 5776, seating over one thousand people for the services. The building was sponsored by Ralph Herzka and Meir Levine. The yeshiva is licensed by the New Jersey Commission on Higher Education and accredited by the Association of Advanced Rabbinical and Talmudic Schools . It

5032-408: Was extended upon the Jewish communities of Safed and Hebron. In addition, the Galilee earthquake of 1837 destroyed Safed, killed thousands of its residents, and contributed to the reconstitution of Jerusalem as the main center of the Old Yishuv. Generally tolerant to the minorities, Ibrahim Pasha promoted the Jewish and Christian communities of Southern Syria, but overall his turbulent period of rule

5106-435: Was founded by Rabbi Aharon Kotler in 1943 and is the second-largest yeshiva in the world, after Mir Yeshiva in Jerusalem . As of 2019, it had 6,715 students, 2,748 regular and 3,967 in Kollel status. The principal Rosh yeshiva since 1982 is Rabbi Malkiel Kotler . Talmud and halakha studies in the institution are carried in the form of over 200 small groups, Chaburos , which consist of several students mentored by

5180-478: Was founded by Rabbi Yisrael Salanter and directed by Rabbi Isaac Blaser . The ten students enrolled were required to separate from their families, except for the Sabbath , and devote themselves to studying for the Rabbinate. There was a four-year limit on one's membership in the kollel. Two people can be considered to have spearheaded the kollel philosophy and outgrowth in today's world: Rabbi Aharon Kotler (founder of Beth Medrash Govoha , Lakewood, New Jersey ,

5254-408: Was made into a pudding known as boyos de pan . Milk was usually reserved for pregnant women or the sick. Almond milk was often used as a substitute. Labneh or sour milk was sometimes purchased from Arab peasants. Sephardim kept soft cheese in tins of salt water to preserve it. In the 1870s, meat was rare and eaten on Shabbat and festivals , but became more available towards the end of

5328-642: Was reestablished in Kletzk, under then Polish rule by Rabbi Aaron Kotler, where it thrived until World War II and the destruction of much of European Jewry. Rabbi Kotler escaped the Nazis in 1941 and came to the United States where he opened BMG in 1943. BMG's four campuses are located on 35 acres (0.14 km ) in Lakewood, with numerous academic facilities, libraries and residence halls. The newest building

5402-447: Was succeeded by Rabbi Shneur Kotler , then 44 years old, who died in 1982. Today, Rabbi Malkiel Kotler , Rabbi Shneur's son, and Rabbis Yerucham Olshin , Dovid Schustal , and Yisroel Neuman , serve in that role. Rabbi Aaron Kotler, a grandson of Rabbi Aharon Kotler, was President and CEO of the institution until he retired towards the end of 2021. Rabbi Nosson Meir Wachtfogel served as dean of students ( mashgiach ruchani ) from

5476-688: Was under different leadership; and the Galicians were incorporated under Kolel Chibas Yerushalayim . The last initially included the entire Austro-Hungarian Kingdom , but as each subparty looking for more courteous distribution, the Hungarians separated into Kolel Shomrei HaChomos . The first kollel – in the modern sense of the term – in the Jewish diaspora was the Kovno Kollel ("Kolel Perushim") founded in Kovno (Kaunas, Lithuania) in 1877. It

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