Tzvi Berkowitz

Tzvi (Zvi Paltiel) Berkowitz is an Orthodox rabbi, Talmudist and lecturer at Yeshivas Ner Yisroel (Ner Israel Rabbinical College), Baltimore, Maryland, and teaches the highest-level shiur (class), numbering over 100 students, considered large for such institutions, particularly a yeshiva of this sort based in Baltimore.

Personal and professional life

Born in San Francisco to Holocaust survivors of Gerrer Hasidic descent he went to study at Ner Israel Yeshiva at a young age. He is married to Ettil, the daughter of the Rabbi Shmuel Kamenetsky (also a Ner Israel alumnus), and has 14 children.

In the world of the Haredi Lithuanian yeshivas the rabbinical scholar who is appointed to the position of highest-level lecturer in a yeshiva is second only to that of the rosh yeshiva (dean). The Ner Israel Rabbinical College is one of the oldest and most prestigious yeshivas in the United States making Berkowitz into one of the most prominent lecturers of Talmud in the United States.

In American Jewish Orthodoxy

Berkowitz serves in a variety of additional functions both within and outside of Ner Israel. Berkowitz also serves on the faculty of Ohr Nissan Talmud Center devoted to the Torah education of Iranian Jews under the auspices of the Ner Israel yeshiva.

He is a frequent guest speaker in Baltimore and other cities, such as Atlanta, Minneapolis and in various parts of New York as in Far Rockaway:

"Rabbi Berkowitz delivers the most advanced shiur in the yeshiva and is respected throughout the yeshiva world for his scholarship and insight. Many bachurim [male students] are attracted to Ner Israel because of the opportunity to attend his shiur [lectures]. He maintains close ties with alumni, many of whom live in the Five Towns area. It is typical for alumni who have been out of the yeshiva for years to consult with Rav Berkowitz on a regular basis."

Influence

Berkowitz has had a impact on other younger rabbis who have noted his educational influence on themselves, such as recent authors of Orthodox religious Judaica: Dov Moshe Lipman, Avi Fertig and such as:

"Rabbi Jeffrey Greenberg... Dean of Ateres Naava Seminary, previously TBY seminary in Queens. He was the Director of New York NCSY for 20 years...attended Ner Israel in Baltimore, where he received Smicha, attaining a close relationship with his Rav, Rav Tzvi Berkowitz."