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Brisker Method
The Brisker method, or Brisker ''derech'', is a reductionistic approach to Talmud study innovated by Rabbi Chaim Soloveitchik of Brisk (Brest, Belarus), as opposed to the traditional approach which was rather holistic. It has since become popular and spread to yeshivas worldwide. The Brisker method is also known as the "conceptual" approach to Talmud study and is often referred to simply as ''lomdus'' (lit. "analytical study"). See . Theory Broadly speaking, before the Brisker method, Talmudic texts were taken at "face value" unless there was a compelling reason not to. If a contradiction between two texts was discovered, then it became necessary to reinterpret one or both texts to reconcile them, but there was no standard method by which to perform this reconciliation. Any explanation that one offered, which seemed reasonable, would be accepted. The Brisker method replaces this approach with a methodical search for precise definitions of each concept involved in the discussio ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yeshivas
A yeshiva (; ; 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 are studied in parallel. The studying is usually done through daily '' shiurim'' (lectures or classes) as well as in study pairs called ''chavrusas'' (Aramaic for 'friendship' or 'companionship'). ''Chavrusa''-style learning is one of the unique features of the yeshiva. In the United States and Israel, different levels of yeshiva education have different names. In the U.S., elementary-school students enroll in a ''cheder'', post-bar mitzvah-age students learn in a '' mesivta'', and undergraduate-level students learn in a ''beit midrash'' or ''yeshiva gedola'' (). In Israel, elementary-school students enroll in a Talmud Torah or ''cheder'', post-bar mitzvah-age students learn in a ''yeshiva ketana'' (), and high-school-age students learn in a ''yeshiva gedola''. A ''kollel'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yeshiva
A yeshiva (; ; 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 are studied in parallel. The studying is usually done through daily '' shiurim'' (lectures or classes) as well as in study pairs called '' chavrusas'' ( Aramaic for 'friendship' or 'companionship'). '' Chavrusa''-style learning is one of the unique features of the yeshiva. In the United States and Israel, different levels of yeshiva education have different names. In the U.S., elementary-school students enroll in a '' cheder'', post- bar mitzvah-age students learn in a '' mesivta'', and undergraduate-level students learn in a '' beit midrash'' or '' yeshiva gedola'' (). In Israel, elementary-school students enroll in a Talmud Torah or '' cheder'', post-bar mitzvah-age students learn in a ''yeshiva ketana'' (), and high-school-age students learn in a ''yeshiva gedola''. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Reductionist
Reductionism is any of several related philosophical ideas regarding the associations between phenomena which can be described in terms of simpler or more fundamental phenomena. It is also described as an intellectual and philosophical position that interprets a complex system as the sum of its parts. Reductionism tends to focus on the small, predictable details of a system and is often associated with various philosophies like emergence, materialism, and determinism. Definitions '' The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'' suggests that reductionism is "one of the most used and abused terms in the philosophical lexicon" and suggests a three-part division: # Ontological reductionism: a belief that the whole of reality consists of a minimal number of parts. # Methodological reductionism: the scientific attempt to provide an explanation in terms of ever-smaller entities. # Theory reductionism: the suggestion that a newer theory does not replace or absorb an older one, but redu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yehezkel Abramsky
Yehezkel Abramsky (; 7 February 1886 – 19 September 1976), also affectionately referred to as Reb Chatzkel Abramsky, was a prominent and influential Lithuanian Jewish Orthodox rabbi and scholar, born and raised in the Russian Empire, who later headed the London Beth Din rabbinical court for 17 years, before retiring to Jerusalem in 1951. Rabbinate and scholarship Yehezkel Abramsky was born in Dashkovichy, Grodno Governorate, Russian Empire (in present-day Belarus) was the third child and eldest son of Mordechai Zalman Abramsky, a local timber merchant, and his wife, Freydel Goldin of Grodno. His parents were deeply religious but the village lacked enough Jews to support a prayer service so Yehezkel studied at home before moving on to study in the yeshivas of Telz, Mir, Slabodka and particularly Brisk under Rabbi Chaim Soloveitchik. At the age of 17 he became a rabbi, serving, in turn, the communities of Smolyan, Smalyavichy, and Slutsk. Following the Russian Revolution ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aaron Rakeffet-Rothkoff
Aaron Rakeffet-Rothkoff (; born December 2, 1937) is an Israeli-American professor of rabbinic literature at Yeshiva University's Caroline & Joseph Gruss Institute in Jerusalem. Biography Rabbi Rakeffet attended Bnei Akiva as a youth. Meir Kahane was one of his madrichim (counselors). Rabbi Rakeffet met his future wife Malkah while giving a shiur at Bnei Akiva. Rabbi Rakeffet started his career in 1961 as a pulpit rabbi at Lower Merion Synagogue in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania. In 1962, he moved from Lower Merion to become the spiritual leader of the first Orthodox synagogue in suburban Essex County, Congregation Beth Ephraim of Maplewood and South Orange, New Jersey. During that time, he also served as a high school rebbe at the Manhattan Talmudical Academy of Yeshiva University. In 1969, he moved to Israel and worked as a Staff Editor for the Encyclopaedia Judaica. He also wrote numerous entries, including the one for Rabbi Joseph Dov Soloveitchik and Rabbi Eliezer Silver ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pulpit
A pulpit is a raised stand for preachers in a Christian church. The origin of the word is the Latin ''pulpitum'' (platform or staging). The traditional pulpit is raised well above the surrounding floor for audibility and visibility, accessed by steps, with sides coming to about waist height. From the late Middle Ages, late medieval period onwards, pulpits have often had a canopy known as the sounding board, ''tester'' or ''abat-voix'' above and sometimes also behind the speaker, normally in wood. Though sometimes highly decorated, this is not purely decorative, but can have a useful acoustic effect in projecting the preacher's voice to the Church (congregation), congregation below, especially prior to the invention of modern audio equipment. Most pulpits have one or more book-stands for the preacher to rest his bible, notes or texts upon. The pulpit is generally reserved for clergy. This is mandated in the regulations of the Catholic Church, and several others (though not a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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 of the rabbi developed in the Pharisees, Pharisaic (167 BCE–73 CE) and Talmudic (70–640 CE) eras, when learned teachers assembled to codify Judaism's written and oral laws. The title "rabbi" was first used in the first century CE. In more recent centuries, the duties of a rabbi became increasingly influenced by the duties of the Clergy, Protestant Christian minister, hence the title "pulpit rabbis." Further, in 19th-century Germany and the United States, rabbinic activities such as sermons, pastoral counseling, and representing the community to the outside all increased in importance. Within the various Jewish denominations, there are different requirements for rabbinic ordination and differences in opinion regarding who is recognized as a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joseph Soloveitchik
Joseph Ber Soloveitchik ( ''Yosef Dov ha-Levi Soloveychik''; February 27, 1903 – April 9, 1993) was a major American Orthodox rabbi, Talmudist, and modern Jewish philosopher. He was a scion of the Lithuanian Jewish Soloveitchik rabbinic dynasty. As a ''rosh yeshiva'' of Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary (RIETS) at Yeshiva University in New York City, The Rav, as he was known, ordained close to 2,000 rabbis over the course of almost half a century. Some Rabbinic literature, such as sefer ''Shiurei HaGrid'', refers to him as הגרי"ד, short for "The great Rabbi Yosef Dov". He is regarded as a seminal figure by Modern Orthodox Judaism and served as a guide and role-model for tens of thousands of Jews, both as a Talmudic scholar and as a religious leader. Heritage Joseph Ber Soloveitchik was born on February 27, 1903, in Pruzhany, Imperial Russia (later Poland, now Belarus). He came from a rabbinical dynasty dating back some 200 years: His paternal grandfather wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Netziv
Naftali Zvi Yehuda Berlin (20 November 1816 – 10 August 1893), also known as Reb Hirsch Leib Berlin, and commonly known by the acronym Netziv, was a Russian Orthodox rabbi, rosh yeshiva ( dean) of the Volozhin Yeshiva and author of several works of rabbinic literature in Lithuania. Biography Early life The Netziv was the eldest son of Yaakov Berlin, a merchant and Torah scholar in the city of Mir, in the Russian Empire (now in Belarus). His paternal lineage traces back to Rabbi Elchanan of Berlin, known as "R' Elchanan Ba'al HaTosafot" due to his profound Torah knowledge, comparable to that of the Tosafists. On his maternal side, his lineage goes back to Rabbi Meir Eisenstadt, author of the responsa "Panim Meirot." Rabbi Sholom Schwadron recounted that in his youth, the Netziv struggled with his studies, and his father considered sending him to learn a trade. In response, the boy cried for a long time until the gates of wisdom were opened for him. Some of the Netziv's fam ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Volozhin
Valozhyn or Volozhin (, ; ; ; ; ) is a town in Minsk Region, Belarus. It serves as the administrative center of Valozhyn District. It is located northwest of the capital Minsk, on the Valozhynka River in the Neman, Neman River basin, and the beginning of the Naliboki forest. In 1995, its population was approximately 11,500. As of 2025, it has a population of 9,923. Before World War II, about half the town's population were Jews, Jewish but they were murdered during the Holocaust. History Overview The town was built on the main road leading from Vilnius to Minsk. It is divided into two sections: the "lower neighborhood" along the river and the "upper neighborhood" toward the hills. Half of the town square is framed by the remains of 12th century buildings, including a bell tower, a palace, and a monastery. Most of the other remaining impressive buildings in the town are from the 19th century. Valozhyn was established as a "privately owned city" by Count Tyszkiewicz family, Tyszk ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Maimonides
Moses ben Maimon (1138–1204), commonly known as Maimonides (, ) and also referred to by the Hebrew acronym Rambam (), was a Sephardic rabbi and Jewish philosophy, philosopher who became one of the most prolific and influential Torah scholars of the Middle Ages. In his time, he was also a preeminent astronomer and physician, serving as the personal physician of Saladin. He was born on Passover eve 1138 or 1135, and lived in Córdoba, Spain, Córdoba in al-Andalus (now in Spain) within the Almoravid dynasty, Almoravid Empire until his family was expelled for refusing to convert to Islam. Later, he lived in Morocco and Egypt and worked as a rabbi, physician and philosopher. During his lifetime, most Jews greeted Maimonides' writings on Halakha, Jewish law and Jewish ethics, ethics with acclaim and gratitude, even as far away as Iraq and Yemen. Yet, while Maimonides rose to become the revered head of the History of the Jews in Egypt, Jewish community in Egypt, his writings also ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mitzvah
In its primary meaning, the Hebrew language, Hebrew word (; , ''mīṣvā'' , plural ''mīṣvōt'' ; "commandment") refers to a commandment Divine law, from God to be performed as a religious duty. Jewish law () in large part consists of discussion of these commandments. According to religious tradition, there are 613 commandments, 613 such commandments. In its secondary meaning, the word ''mitzvah'' refers to a deed performed in order to fulfill such a commandment. As such, the term ''mitzvah'' has also come to express an individual act of human kindness in keeping with the law. The expression includes a sense of heartfelt sentiment beyond mere legal duty, as "you shall love your neighbor as yourself" (Leviticus 19:18). For some ''mitzvot'', the purpose is specified in the Torah; though, the opinions of the Talmudic rabbis are divided between those who seek the Teleology, purpose of the ''mitzvot'' and those who do not question them. The former believe that if people were to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
