Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin or ''Yeshivas Rabbeinu Chaim Berlin'' ( he, יְשִׁיבַת רַבֵּינוּ חַיִּים בֶּרלִין) is an American

Haredi 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 ...

Lithuanian-type boys' and men's

yeshiva A yeshiva (; he, ישיבה, , sitting; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy a ...

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

. Chaim Berlin consists of a preschool, a ''yeshiva ketana'' (elementary school), a ''

mesivta ''Mesivta'' (also metivta; Aramaic: מתיבתא, "academy") is an Orthodox Jewish yeshiva secondary school for boys. The term is commonly used in the United States to describe a yeshiva that emphasizes Talmudic studies for boys in grades ...

'' (high school), a college-level

beth midrash A ''beth midrash'' ( he, בית מדרש, or ''beis medrash'', ''beit midrash'', pl. ''batei midrash'' "House of Learning") is a hall dedicated for Torah study, often translated as a "study hall." It is distinct from a synagogue (''beth knes ...

, and

Kollel Gur Aryeh Kollel Gur Aryeh ( he, כולל גור אריה) is a kollel for young married Orthodox men located in Brooklyn, New York. It was established in 1956 by Rabbi Yitzchok Hutner as the post-graduate division of the Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin. A numbe ...

, its post-graduate

kollel A kollel ( he, כולל, , , a "gathering" or "collection" f 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); ...

division.

History

The school was established in 1904 as ''Yeshiva Tiferes Bachurim'' in

Brownsville, Brooklyn Brownsville is a residential neighborhood in eastern Brooklyn in New York City. The neighborhood is generally bordered by Crown Heights to the northwest; Bedford–Stuyvesant and Cypress Hills to the north; East New York to the east; Canarsie ...

, by Jews who moved there from the

Lower East Side The Lower East Side, sometimes abbreviated as LES, is a historic neighborhood in the southeastern part of Manhattan in New York City. It is located roughly between the Bowery and the East River from Canal to Houston streets. Traditionally an im ...

of New York City,(May 14, 1964
"Yeshiva Fire Loss Is $150,000; Brooklyn School Not Insured"
''The New York Times''. Retrieved September 16, 2019. thus making it the oldest yeshiva in

Kings County Kings County or King's County may refer to: Places Canada *Kings County, New Brunswick *Kings County, Nova Scotia *Kings County, Prince Edward Island ** King's County (electoral district), abolished in 1892 Ireland * County Offaly, formerly calle ...

. At the suggestion of

Meir Berlin Meir Bar-Ilan (; – ) was an Orthodox rabbi, author, and Religious Zionist activist, who served as leader of the Mizrachi movement in the United States and Mandatory Palestine. Bar-Ilan University, founded in 1955, was named in his honour. ...

(Bar-Ilan), it was renamed in 1914 for his brother, Chaim Berlin, Chief Rabbi of Moscow and later Jerusalem, and who had also served in

Valozhyn Valozhyn, Vałožyn or Volozhin ( be, Вало́жын, , russian: Воло́жин, lt, Valažinas, pl, Wołożyn, yi, וואָלאָזשין ''Volozhin''; also written as Wolozin and Wolozhin) is a town in the Minsk Region of Belarus. The pop ...

, from where several of the yeshiva's founders came. Chaim Berlin's Mesivta (high school) was, for a while, located in Far Rockaway headed by

Shlomo Freifeld Rabbi Shlomo Freifeld (1925–1990) was an influential figure in the world of Orthodox Judaism who established a Yeshiva and Jewish community in the New York City area. He influenced tens of thousands of students and was a key figure in the US- ...

. The yeshiva's Stone & Pitkin (Brownsville) seven story building, formerly known as the Municipal Bank Building, was purchased in 1940; Jacob Rutstein was their major philanthropist.

Leadership

The founding

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 ...

, Yaakov Moshe Shurkin, served from 1936 until his death in 1963.

Yitzchok Hutner Yitzchak (Isaac) Hutner ( he, יצחק הוטנר; 1906–1980) was an American Orthodox rabbi and rosh yeshiva (dean). Originally from Warsaw, Hutner first studied the Torah in Slabodka. He then traveled to Mandatory Palestine where he became ...

joined the faculty during 1936-1937, and gave monthly lectures as rosh yeshiva from 1943 to 1980. In the late 1970s, a branch was opened in Jerusalem called Yeshiva Pachad Yitzchok (Fear of Isaac). After Hutner's death, the New York yeshiva was headed by his disciple Aaron Schechter, and the Jerusalem branch was headed by his son-in-law Yonason David. The position of ''

mashgiach ruchani A mashgiach ruchani ( he, משגיח רוחני; pl., ''mashgichim ruchani'im'') or mashgicha ruchani – sometimes mashgiach/mashgicha for short – is a spiritual supervisor or guide. He or she is usually a rabbi who has an official position wit ...

'' (spiritual supervisor) has been held by (among others) Avigdor Miller,

, Shlomo Carlebach, and Shimon Groner.

Divisions

Chaim Berlin consists of a preschool, a ''yeshiva ketana'' (elementary school), a ''

'' (high school), a college-level

, and

, its post-graduate

division. Total enrollment for all divisions approaches 2,000 students. The ''mesivta'' acts as a feeder school for the beth midrash. The yeshiva maintains a summer location, Camp Morris, in

Sullivan County, New York Sullivan County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 78,624. The county seat is Monticello. The county's name honors Major General John Sullivan, who was labeled at the time as a hero in the A ...

. The Yeshiva also runs a summer youth program with the name Chaim Day Camp.

Notable alumni

Notable alumni include many who served in rabbinic capacities throughout the world.

A-M

* Shalom Z. Berger (born 1960), Senior Content Editor of the Koren Talmud Bavli * Shlomo Carlebach (1925–2022), former mashgiach ruchani of Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin * Shlomo Carlebach (1925–1994), rabbi, religious teacher, spiritual leader, composer, and singer * Yonasan Dovid David, co-rosh yeshiva of Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin * Yaakov Feitman (born 1948), rabbi of Kehillas Bais Yehudah Tzvi, Cedarhurst, New York * Aharon Feldman (born 1932), rosh yeshiva of Ner Israel Rabbinical College *

(1925–1990), founding rosh yeshiva of Yeshivas Shor Yoshuv *

David Weiss Halivni David Weiss Halivni ( he, דוד וייס הלבני; September 27, 1927 – June 28, 2022) was a European-born American-Israeli rabbi, scholar in the domain of Jewish sciences, and Professor of Talmud. He served as '' Reish Metivta'' of the U ...

(1927–2022), rabbi and professor of Talmud * David Hartman (1931–2013), American-Israeli rabbi and philosopher of contemporary Judaism, founder of the Shalom Hartman Institute. * Simcha Krauss (1937–2022), retired rabbi of the Young Israel of

Hillcrest, Queens Fresh Meadows is a neighborhood in the northeastern section of the New York City borough of Queens. Fresh Meadows used to be part of the broader town of Flushing and is bordered to the north by the Horace Harding Expressway; to the west by Po ...

, and leader of the

Religious Zionists of America The Religious Zionists of America (Hebrew official name: Religious Zionists of America/Mizrachi-Hapoel Hamizrachi, also known as Mizrachi, is an American-based organization that is the official body for those, mostly Modern Orthodox Jews who ident ...

David Lefkowitz David Lefkowitz (April 11, 1875 – June 5, 1955), a rabbi, led Temple Emanu-El in Dallas, Texas from 1920 to 1949, after having worked at Temple Israel in Dayton, Ohio.

(1875–1955), chaplain United States Marines * Aharon Lichtenstein (1933–2015), rosh yeshiva of

Yeshivat Har Etzion Yeshivat Har Etzion (YHE; ), commonly known in English as "Gush" and in Hebrew as "Yeshivat HaGush", is a hesder yeshiva located in Alon Shvut, an Israeli settlement in Gush Etzion. It is considered one of the leading institutions of advanced Tor ...

, Alon Shevut, and rosh kollel of

Yeshiva University Yeshiva University is a private Orthodox Jewish university with four campuses in New York City."About YU
on the Yeshiva Universi ...

's Gruss Kollel, Jerusalem

N-Z

Yaakov Perlow Yaakov Perlow ( yi, יעקבֿ פּערלאָוו he, יעקב פרלוב‎; November 16, 1930 – April 7, 2020) was an American Hasidic rabbi and rosh yeshiva, and Rebbe of the Novominsk Hasidic dynasty. From 1998 until his death in 2020, h ...

(1931–2020), the Novominsker Rebbe of Borough Park * Yechiel Perr (born 1935), rosh yeshiva of

Yeshiva of Far Rockaway Yeshiva of Far Rockaway (also known as Yeshiva Derech Ayson ( he, יְשִׁיבָה דֶרֶךְ אֵיתָן) and Derech Ayson Rabbinical Seminary) is a yeshiva located at 802 Hicksville Road, Far Rockaway, Queens in New York City. It comprises ...

* Zvi Aryeh Rosenfeld (1922–1978), Polish–American rabbi and educator associated with the Breslov Hasidic movement * Nota Schiller (born 1937), rosh yeshiva of Ohr Somayach, Jerusalem *

Ahron Soloveichik Ahron (Aaron) Soloveichik ( he, אהרן סולובייצ'יק; May 1, 1917 – October 4, 2001) was a renowned Orthodox ''rosh yeshiva'', and scholar of Talmud and ''halakha''. Biography The youngest of five children, Rabbi Ahron Soloveichik wa ...

(1917–2001), taught at Yeshiva University,

Hebrew Theological College The Hebrew Theological College, known colloquially as "Skokie Yeshiva" or HTC, is a yeshiva in Skokie, Illinois. Although the school's primary focus is the teaching of Torah and Jewish tradition, it is also a private university that is part of t ...

and Brisk Rabbinical College * Pinchas Stolper (1931–2022), former Executive Vice-President of the

Orthodox Union The Orthodox Union (abbreviated OU) is one of the largest Orthodox Jewish organizations in the United States. Founded in 1898, the OU supports a network of synagogues, youth programs, Jewish and Religious Zionist advocacy programs, programs fo ...

and founder of

NCSY NCSY (formerly known as the National Conference of Synagogue Youth) is a Jewish youth group under the auspices of the Orthodox Union. Its operations include Jewish-inspired after-school programs; summer programs in Israel, Europe, and the United S ...

* Noah Weinberg (1930–2009), co-founder of Yeshivas Ohr Somayach, Jerusalem; founder of Yeshivas

Aish HaTorah Aish HaTorah ( he, אש התורה, lit. "Fire of the Torah") is an Orthodox Jewish educational organization and yeshiva. History Aish HaTorah was established in Jerusalem in 1974 by Rabbi Noah Weinberg, after he left the Ohr Somayach yeshiva ...

Yaakov Weinberg Shmuel Yaakov Weinberg, known as Yaakov Weinberg (also Jacob S. Weinberg) (1923 – July 1, 1999) was an Orthodox Jewish rabbi, Talmudist, and rosh yeshiva (dean) of Ner Israel Rabbinical College in Baltimore, Maryland, one of the major America ...

(1923–1999), rosh yeshiva of Ner Israel Rabbinical College *

Yisroel Eliyahu Weintraub Rabbi Yisrael Eliyahu Weintraub, known as Reb Yisroel Elya Weintraub, (March 25, 1932 – March 30, 2010) was one of the leading Kabbalists of his generation. The leader of the Lithuanian yeshiva world, Rabbi Elazar Menachem Shach, encouraged man ...

(1932–2010), rabbi

References

External links

Hagadah of Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin

Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin
at Greatschools.org
Mesivta Rabbi Chaim Berlin

History of Jewish Brownsville: has section on Chaim Berlin
{{Coord, 40.62718, -73.96303, type:landmark_globe:earth_region:US-NY, display=title Educational institutions established in 1904 Flatbush, Brooklyn Haredi Judaism in New York (state) Haredi yeshivas Lithuanian-Jewish culture in New York (state) Mesivtas Chaim Berlin Boys' schools in New York City 1904 establishments in New York City