Yeshivat Kerem B'Yavneh
Yeshivat Kerem B'Yavneh | |
|---|---|
| Country | Israel |
| District | Central |
| Council | Hevel Yavne |
| Founded | 1954 |
| Population (2022)[1] | 536 |
Yeshivat Kerem B'Yavneh (Hebrew: ישיבת כרם ביבנה, lit. Vineyard in Yavne Yeshiva) is a youth village and major yeshiva in southern Israel. Located near the city of Ashdod and adjacent to Kvutzat Yavne, it falls under the jurisdiction of Hevel Yavne Regional Council. In 2022 it had a population of 536.
History & Ideology
Founded in 1954, Kerem BeYavneh was the first Yeshivat Hesder. The first Rosh Yeshiva of Kerem B'Yavneh was the renowned scholar Rabbi Chaim Yaakov Goldvicht. Following his retirement, Goldvicht was succeeded by Rabbi Mordechai Greenberg, himself an alumnus of the yeshiva, and Rosh Kollel. During Elul Zman 5774, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Blachman was appointed Mishneh Li-Rosh yeshivah (Associate Rosh Yeshiva, ) Shortly before Elul 2015 the overseas program announced that Rabbi David Zahtz, already a Mashgiach in KBY would be assuming the role of associate dean of the overseas students and Program Director. Working for him would be Rabbi Zev Bannett, a world renowned Mekubal who has a deep understanding and creative approach to Toras Hashem, as well as Rabbi Zvi Roness a former IDF Rabbi, and Rabbi Zvi Davidson a London-born alumnus of the Yeshiva.
Like most Yeshivot Hesder, Kerem B'Yavneh is a religious Zionist institution, advocating the position that the State of Israel is a concrete step forward in the coming of the final redemption. It also has an open outlook towards western culture, both with faculty holding university degrees and students attending university.[2]
Structure and enrollment
Programs within the yeshiva include a Hesder track, a gap-year for overseas students and a Kollel Rabbanut as well as a Kollel Ledayanut (a Kollel for training of religious court judges).
The yeshiva has an enrollment of around 300 students, including students from Israel and from overseas, most of whom reside in dormitories on campus. Overseas students come mainly from the United States, the United Kingdom, South Africa and Canada, but also other countries.
Notable alumni
- Pesach Wolicki, Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshivat Yesodei HaTorah and associate director of CJCUC.
- Mordechai Torcyner, Rosh Kollel of the YU Kollel in Toronto
- Yona Metzger, Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Israel
- Yitzhak Levy, Knesset member and government minister
- Hanan Porat, Israeli politician
- Uri Bin Nun, director the Israel Electric Corporation
- Steven Weil, Executive Vice President of the OU
- Ephraim Mirvis, current Chief Rabbi of the British Commonwealth[3]
- Zalman Baruch Melamed Rav and Rosh Yeshiva of Beit El
- Yisrael Ariel Head of Machon Hamikdash
- Tzefanya Drori, Rav and Rosh Yeshiva of Kiryat Shmona
- YY Efrati, noted expert on mitzvos hatluyos baaretz and primary aide of Rav Elyashiv
- Eytan Feiner, Rabbi of the White Shul of Far Rockaway, NY
- Uri Orlian, Rabbi of Congregation Shaaray Tefila of Lawrence, NY
- Efram Goldberg, Rabbi of the Boca Raton Synagogue
- Adir Posy, Associate Rabbi of Congregation Beth Jacob of Beverly Hills
- Binyamin Y. Marwick, Rabbi of Congregation Shomrei Emunah of Baltimore
- Yosef Viener, Rabbi of Kehillas Sha'ar HaShamayim of Wesley Hills
- Ohad Moskowitz, successful Jewish singer
A number of the staff at Yeshiva University's Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary studied at Kerem B'Yavneh, including:
- Eliakim Koenigsberg
- Mordechai Willig
- Baruch Simon
- Zvi Sobolofsky
- Yonason Sacks
- Daniel Z. Feldman
- Netanel Wiederblank
- Yehuda Willig
A number of alumni are also prominent in non-rabbinic academic positions, including:
- David Stern, Professor of Classical and Modern Jewish and Hebrew Literature at Harvard University
References
- ^ "Regional Statistics". Israel Central Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
- ^ "Staff". Yeshivat Kerem B'Yavneh.
- ^ "Biography".