Eliezer Melamed ( he, אליעזר מלמד, born 28 June 1961) is an Israeli
Orthodox Zionist
Zionism ( he, צִיּוֹנוּת ''Tsiyyonut'' after '' Zion'') is a nationalist movement that espouses the establishment of, and support for a homeland for the Jewish people centered in the area roughly corresponding to what is known in Je ...
rabbi
A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as '' semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form o ...
and the
rosh yeshiva
Rosh yeshiva ( he, ראש ישיבה, pl. he, ראשי ישיבה, '; Anglicized pl. ''rosh yeshivas'') is the title given to the dean of a yeshiva, a Jewish educational institution that focuses on the study of traditional religious texts, primar ...
of
Yeshivat Har Bracha
Yeshivat Har Bracha ( he, ישיבת הר-ברכה), is a national-religious yeshiva in Har Brakha, an Israeli settlement in the West Bank near Nablus. The yeshiva was founded in 1991 by Rabbi Eliezer Melamed.
Scholarship Programs
In addit ...
, rabbi of the community
Har Bracha, and author of the book series ''
Peninei Halakha''.
Biography
Eliezer Melamed is the son of Rabbi
Zalman Baruch Melamed, a student of Rabbi
Zvi Yehuda Kook
Zvi Yehuda Kook ( he, צבי יהודה קוק, 23 April 1891 – 9 March 1982) was a prominent ultranationalist Orthodox rabbi. He was the son of Rabbi Avraham Yitzhak Hacohen Kook, the first Ashkenazi chief rabbi of British Mandatory Pal ...
. Melamed's first name is the result of a dream Kook had on the occasion of his birth. Melamed attended classes given by Kook from age fifteen to twenty, and, like his father, considers Kook to be his most significant rabbi. Melamed is married to Inbal, daughter of the artist
Tuvia Katz Tuvia Katz (born 1936) is an Israeli artist.
Tuvia Katz was born in Poland to a traditional family. To escape the Nazis, his family fled Europe and settled in Argentina. In 1960, Katz immigrated to Israel and settled on Kibbutz Hokuk. At the age of ...
, and has thirteen children.
Rabbinic and teaching career
Melamed taught
Talmud
The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law ('' halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the ce ...
and
Halakha
''Halakha'' (; he, הֲלָכָה, ), also transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Jewish religious laws which is derived from the written and Oral Torah. Halakha is based on biblical commandm ...
in the Kollel of Rabbi Deutsch in
Mea Shearim for half a year. The Kollel was headed by Rabbi
Yitzchak Ginsburg
Yitzchak Feivish Ginsburgh (Hebrew: יצחק פייוויש גינזבורג; born 14 November 1944) sometimes referred to as "the Malakh" () is an American-born Israeli rabbi affiliated with the Chabad movement. In 1996 he was regarded as one ...
, which gave Melamed the chance of learning as a Chevruta with Ginsburg and hearing many of his classes. Later on, he taught Talmud, and Emuna (Jewish philosophy) in particular, in the
Yeshiva of Bet El for approximately twenty years, and four years in the Yeshiva of Kedumim. Melamed edited a new edition of the book ''Shnei Luchot HaBrit'' (
the Shelah), and the first two volumes of the new edition of Rabbi
Zadok HaKohen
Rabbi Zadok ha-Kohen Rabinowitz of Lublin (in Hebrew: צדוק הכהן מלובלין) (Kreisburg, 1823 – Lublin, Poland, 1900), or Tzadok Hakohen or Tzadok of Lublin, was a significant Jewish thinker and Hasidic leader.
Biography
He was bor ...
from Lublin's books. In addition, he took part in the completion of the entire series.
In August 1988, Melamed was appointed to serve as the rabbi of the community of the settlement
Har Bracha.
In September 1992, Melamed established
Yeshivat Har Bracha
Yeshivat Har Bracha ( he, ישיבת הר-ברכה), is a national-religious yeshiva in Har Brakha, an Israeli settlement in the West Bank near Nablus. The yeshiva was founded in 1991 by Rabbi Eliezer Melamed.
Scholarship Programs
In addit ...
, which he leads. In the Yeshiva, Melamed teaches a daily class in Halakhah, gives classes in Emuna, and guidance in public and private matters.
In July 2013, he received "The Jewish Creation Award" for his series of books
Peninei Halakha.
In November 2020, he received "Rabbi Kook Award" for his series.
Published works
''Peninei Halachah'' is a series of books on
halakhic
''Halakha'' (; he, הֲלָכָה, ), also transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Jewish religious laws which is derived from the written and Oral Torah. Halakha is based on biblical comman ...
subjects, authored by Melamed, that cover such subjects as the laws of
shabbat
Shabbat (, , or ; he, שַׁבָּת, Šabbāṯ, , ) or the Sabbath (), also called Shabbos (, ) by Ashkenazim, is Judaism's day of rest on the seventh day of the week—i.e., Saturday. On this day, religious Jews remember the biblical stori ...
and the Jewish perspective on
organ donations
Organ donation is the process when a person allows an organ of their own to be removed and transplanted to another person, legally, either by consent while the donor is alive or dead with the assent of the next of kin.
Donation may be for re ...
. In addition to posing the practical law on the matter, these books discuss the spiritual foundations of the Halakhot, and also reflect the various customs of different communities. Written in Hebrew, the book series has sold over 500,000 copies. Twenty books have been published in Hebrew, of which nine have been translated into English, ten into French, nine into Spanish, and ten into Russian. The books are rapidly gaining widespread popularity among the
Religious Zionist community in Israel.
Published Works Banned
On May 2, 2022 six prominent
hareidi
Haredi Judaism ( he, ', ; also spelled ''Charedi'' in English; plural ''Haredim'' or ''Charedim'') consists of groups within Orthodox Judaism that are characterized by their strict adherence to ''halakha'' (Jewish law) and traditions, in oppos ...
rabbis issued a letter banning Melamed’s ''Peninei Halacha Books'' which they claim ‘uproot
halachic
''Halakha'' (; he, הֲלָכָה, ), also transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Jewish religious laws which is derived from the written and Oral Torah. Halakha is based on biblical comman ...
traditions’.
The Har Bracha yeshiva headed by Melamed chose not to respond to the letter of those hareidi rabbis.
Public activities
* The establishment of the youth organization Ariel and its first branch in
Kiryat Moshe,
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
.
* The establishment of the "Rabbinical Council of
Judea
Judea or Judaea ( or ; from he, יהודה, Standard ''Yəhūda'', Tiberian ''Yehūḏā''; el, Ἰουδαία, ; la, Iūdaea) is an ancient, historic, Biblical Hebrew, contemporaneous Latin, and the modern-day name of the mountainous so ...
,
Samaria
Samaria (; he, שֹׁמְרוֹן, translit=Šōmrōn, ar, السامرة, translit=as-Sāmirah) is the historic and biblical name used for the central region of Palestine, bordered by Judea to the south and Galilee to the north. The first ...
, and
Gaza". Melamed was the first secretary of the Council. He published 35 editions of the Council's newsletters, which dealt with the clarification of crucial and relevant issues, and the clarification of fundamental public and national issues.
* Melamed took part in the establishment of the radio station
Arutz Sheva
''Arutz Sheva'' ( he, ערוץ 7, lit=''Channel 7''), also known in English as ''Israel National News'', is an Israeli media network identifying with religious Zionism. It offers online news articles in Hebrew, English, and Russian as well as ...
. His daily halakha broadcast gained high ratings, and taught Jewish law to thousands of households throughout Israel. These broadcasts served as the cornerstone for the first books in the series Peninei Halachah. Melamed also took part in the establishment of the newspaper ''Besheva''. Since the beginning, Melamed has served as the newspaper's spiritual authority, and he writes a weekly column, Revivim, which obtained wide exposure and impact. Currently, the articles have been compiled into three books.
Views and opinions
In 2005, Melamed told his followers to deduct the days they spent in prison protesting the disengagement from the days they serve on
Israeli Defense Force (IDF) reserve duty, suggesting even that they might multiply the days in prison two- or three-fold. In 2009, he expressed support for soldiers disobeying IDF orders if they came in conflict with the soldier's political or religious beliefs.
This position gained some support from fellow rabbis. Melamed was threatened with consequences for his stance, and eventually, then-Defense Minister,
Ehud Barak
Ehud Barak ( he-a, אֵהוּד בָּרָק, Ehud_barak.ogg, link=yes, born Ehud Brog; 12 February 1942) is an Israeli general and politician who served as the tenth prime minister from 1999 to 2001. He was leader of the Labor Party until Jan ...
, cancelled the Hesder program at Melamed's Yeshiva. In July 2013, Barak's successor, Moshe Ya'alon, resumed the program. In 2012, concerned that IDF members were being forced to listen to women singing (in conflict with a religious prohibition on doing so), he called for followers to delay enlisting until that policy was changed.
References
External links
*
About Rabbi Eliezer Melamed(Hebrew).
Peninei Halachah, English online
Lectures in Englishon Beit-El Yeshiva.
Rabbi Eliezer Melamed's Articleson
Arutz Sheva
''Arutz Sheva'' ( he, ערוץ 7, lit=''Channel 7''), also known in English as ''Israel National News'', is an Israeli media network identifying with religious Zionism. It offers online news articles in Hebrew, English, and Russian as well as ...
.
Teaching in Order to Act- Interview from the ''Olam Katan'' newspaper, by Arnon Segal.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Melamed, Eliezer
Religious Zionist rosh yeshivas
Israeli Orthodox rabbis
1961 births
Mercaz HaRav alumni
Israeli Rosh yeshivas
Israeli columnists
Religious Zionist Orthodox rabbis
Living people