Aryeh Malkiel Kotler (born April 1951) is a

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 ...

(ultra-Orthodox) rabbi and

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 ...

(dean) of

Beth Medrash Govoha Beth Medrash Govoha (, pronounced: ''Beis Medrash Gavo'ha''. lit: "High House of Learning"; also known as Lakewood Yeshiva or BMG) is a Haredi Jewish Litvishe ''yeshiva'' in Lakewood Township, New Jersey. It was founded by Rabbi Aharon Kotle ...

Lakewood, New Jersey Lakewood Township is the most populous township in Ocean County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. A rapidly growing community, as of the 2020 United States census, the township's population was 135,158, its highest decennial count ever and ...

, one of the largest

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 ...

s in the world. He is a member of the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah (Council of Torah Sages) of

Agudath Israel of America Agudath Israel of America (; also called the Agudah) is an American organization that represents Haredi Judaism, Haredi Orthodox Jews. It is loosely affiliated with the international World Agudath Israel. Agudah seeks to meet the needs of the Har ...

Biography

Aryeh Malkiel Kotler was born to

Shneur Kotler Yosef Chaim Shneur Kotler (1918 – 24 June 1982) was an Ashkenazi Orthodox rabbi from the Lithuanian movement and rosh yeshiva of Beth Medrash Govoha (also known as the Lakewood Yeshiva) in Lakewood, New Jersey, from 1962 to 1982. During his t ...

and his wife, Rischel (née Friedman). He is the second of 9 children. The elder Kotler was the

(dean) of

and son of the yeshiva's founder,

Aharon Kotler Aharon Kotler (February 2, 1892 – November 29, 1962) was a Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) rabbi and a prominent leader of Orthodox Judaism in Lithuania and in the United States, where he founded Beth Medrash Govoha in Lakewood Township, New Jersey. ...

. On his father's side, Kotler is the great-grandson of

Isser Zalman Meltzer Isser Zalman Meltzer (; February 6, 1870 – November 17, 1953),Isser Zalman Meltzer "Even HaEzel" (1870 - 1953) was a Jewish rabbi, rosh yeshiva and posek. He was known as the "Even HaEzel", after the title of his commentary on Rambam's ''Mishn ...

. Upon the death of his father in 1982, Kotler was named co-rosh yeshiva of Beth Medrash Govoha along with Dovid Schustal, Yeruchem Olshin, and Yisroel Neuman, who are all married to grandchildren of Aharon Kotler. At that time, the yeshiva had an enrollment of approximately 800 students, which has since grown to approximately 6,300. Kotler is a member of the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah (Council of Torah Sages) of

Family

Kotler's first wife Hinda was the daughter of Yechiel Michel Feinstein and Lifsha, the daughter of

Yitzchok Zev Soloveitchik Yitzchok Zev Halevi Soloveitchik (), also known as Velvel Soloveitchik ("Zev" means "wolf" in Hebrew, and "Velvel" is the Diminutive#Yiddish, diminutive of "wolf" in Yiddish language, Yiddish) or the Brisker Rov ("rabbi of/from Brest, Belarus, Br ...

. When Kotler succeeded his father, who died while Kotler was in the US visiting him, as rosh yeshiva of Beth Medrash Govoha, Hinda Kotler refused to join her husband in Lakewood or accept a (Jewish divorce document) without a rabbinical court in Israel hearing the case; she refused to submit to an American rabbinical court. Kotler was issued a rarely used exemption known as a (permission of 100 rabbis) which allowed him to take a second wife upon depositing the divorce document for the first wife with the rabbinical court. This created a rift within the non-hassidic Hareidi world, with some claiming that the heter meah rabbanim was invalid.Se
Emet Kene
a booklet put out by those opposing the validity of the heter meah rabbanim. Several months later he married his second wife, Chana Leah Tikotzky.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kotler, Malkiel 1951 births People from Lakewood Township, New Jersey Rabbis from New Jersey American Haredi rabbis Rosh yeshivas Beth Medrash Govoha Beth Medrash Govoha alumni Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah Living people