Kol Torah is a

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 stu ...

in the Bayit Vegan neighborhood of

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

History

Yeshivas Kol Torah was founded in 1939 by Yechiel Michel Schlesinger (1898–1948), born in

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

and Boruch Kunstadt, a dayan from

Fulda Fulda () (historically in English called Fuld) is a city in Hesse, Germany; it is located on the river Fulda and is the administrative seat of the Fulda district (''Kreis''). In 1990, the city hosted the 30th Hessentag state festival. Histor ...

. It was the first mainstream

Haredi Haredi Judaism (, ) is a branch of Orthodox Judaism that is characterized by its strict interpretation of religious sources and its accepted (Jewish law) and traditions, in opposition to more accommodating values and practices. Its members are ...

yeshiva to teach in

Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...

, as opposed to

Yiddish Yiddish, historically Judeo-German, is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated in 9th-century Central Europe, and provided the nascent Ashkenazi community with a vernacular based on High German fused with ...

, as was accepted at the time. This innovation had the crucial support of the Chazon Ish. Matzevat hagrashaz

After Schlesinger's death in 1949, Kol Torah was headed by Shlomo Zalman Auerbach, until his death in 1995. Moshe Yehuda Schlesinger, eldest son of the founder, is currently serving as

rosh yeshiva Rosh yeshiva or Rosh Hayeshiva (, plural, pl. , '; 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, primarily the Talmud and th ...

. Kol Torah is separated into two parts, the rabbinical college and the high school. The number of students in both combined reaches around 1000 students.

Notable faculty members

* , son in law of Shlomo Zalman Auerbach. * , chief disciple of

Elazar Shach Elazar Menachem Man Shach (, Elazar Shach; January 1, 1899 O.S. – November 2, 2001) was a Haredi rabbi who headed Lithuanian Orthodox Jews in Israel and around the world from the early 1970s until his death. He served as chair of the Counc ...

and Jerusalem Faction leader. * , author of ''Birkas Avrohom''. * (1943–1997). * Yehoshua Neuwirth (1927-2013), author of '' Shemirat Shabbat Kehilchatah''.

Notable alumni

* Pinchas Biberfeld (1915–1999), Chief Rabbi of

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

. * Meir Kessler, rabbi of Modi'in Illit. * Israel Meir Lau (born 1937), Ashkenazi

Chief Rabbi of Israel The Chief Rabbinate of Israel (, ''Ha-Rabbanut Ha-Rashit Li-Yisra'el'') is recognized by law as the supreme rabbinic authority for Judaism in Israel. It was established in 1921 under the British Mandate, and today operates on the basis of the C ...

(1993–2003). *

Norman Lebrecht Norman Lebrecht (born 11 July 1948) is a British music journalist and author best known as the owner of the classical music blog ''Slipped Disc''. His writings have been accused of sensationalism and criticized for their inaccuracies, while oth ...

(born 1948), British commentator on music and cultural affairs, and novelist. * Nachum Neriya (born 1941), son of Moshe-Zvi Neria and founder of Torah Betziyon. * Yehoshua Neuwirth (1927 - 2013), author of ''Shemirat Shabbat Kehilchatah''. * Shmuel Rabinovitch (born 1970), rabbi of the

Western Wall The Western Wall (; ; Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: ''HaKosel HaMa'arovi'') is an ancient retaining wall of the built-up hill known to Jews and Christians as the Temple Mount of Jerusalem. Its most famous section, known by the same name ...

and the Holy Sites of

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

. * Daniel Sperber (born 1940), Professor of

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 ...

Bar-Ilan University Bar-Ilan University (BIU, , ''Universitat Bar-Ilan'') is a public research university in the Tel Aviv District city of Ramat Gan, Israel. Established in 1955, Bar Ilan is Israel's second-largest academic university institution. It has 20,000 ...

. * Chaim Walder (1968-2021), author of Haredi children's literature who committed suicide after a rabinnical court concluded he had sexually abused dozens of women, girls, and boys. * Yitzhak Shlomo Zilberman (1929-2001), founder of Yeshivat Aderet Eliyahu; pioneer of the Zilberman Method in Jewish education.

References

{{Authority control Ashkenazi Jewish culture in Jerusalem German-Jewish culture in Jerusalem Haredi Judaism in Israel Haredi yeshivas Educational institutions established in 1939 Orthodox yeshivas in Jerusalem 1939 establishments in Mandatory Palestine