A Jewish seminary, better known as a rabbinical seminary or rabbinical school, is a
Jew
Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...
ish educational institution for the purpose of training
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 t ...
s. (In some cases, a "Jewish seminary" may also refer to a
cantorial school.) While rabbis have been part of Judaism for centuries, rabbinical seminaries only became distinct institutions in the early 19th century.
History
Today, rabbinical seminaries differ from other Jewish educational institutions due to the influence of the
Haskalah
The ''Haskalah'' (; literally, "wisdom", "erudition" or "education"), often termed the Jewish Enlightenment, was an intellectual movement among the Jews of Central Europe, Central and Eastern Europe, with a certain influence on those in Wester ...
, the Jewish Enlightenment movement. Before this movement,
yeshivot
A yeshiva (; ; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish education, 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 par ...
granted rabbinical ordination to those who completed an intensive course of study focusing on
Talmud
The Talmud (; ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of Haskalah#Effects, modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cen ...
ic and
halakhic
''Halakha'' ( ; , ), also transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Jewish religious laws that are derived from the Written and Oral Torah. ''Halakha'' is based on biblical commandments (''mitzv ...
literature. The development of rabbinical seminaries was not without controversy as these new institutions were to provide a secular degree alongside rabbinic ordination (''
semikha
''Semikhah'' () is the traditional term for rabbiinic ordination in Judaism.
The original ''semikhah'' was the formal "transmission of authority" from Moses through the generations. This form of ''semikhah'' ceased between 360 and 425 CE. Si ...
)'', and thus some viewed this as promotion of heresy and assimilation.
Examples
Some Jewish rabbinical seminaries include those listed below; this is not an exhaustive list.
See also
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Jewish education
Jewish education (, ''Chinuch'') is the transmission of the tenets, principles, and religious laws of Judaism. Jews value education, and the value of education is strongly embedded in Jewish culture. Judaism places a heavy emphasis on Torah ...
*
Jewish day school
A Jewish day school is a modern Jewish educational institution that is designed to provide children of Jews, Jewish parents with both a Jewish and a secular education in one school on a full-time basis. The term "day school" is used to differentiat ...
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Midrasha
A ' (Hebrew: ; : ), typically, is an institute of Torah study for women of post-high-school age,
somewhat equivalent to a men's yeshiva; most are located in Israel.
The midrasha is also somewhat parallel to a "women's seminary" (Hebrew "semin ...
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Rabbinic Judaism
Rabbinic Judaism (), also called Rabbinism, Rabbinicism, Rabbanite Judaism, or Talmudic Judaism, is rooted in the many forms of Judaism that coexisted and together formed Second Temple Judaism in the land of Israel, giving birth to classical rabb ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jewish Seminary