Yosef Yitzchok Lerner () is a

Hareidi 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 ...

, American-born, Rabbi in

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 ...

who is known for writing several popular books on Jewish law and custom. He also heads ''Beis Midrash L'Horaah Toras Shlomo'', a

Kollel A kollel (also kolel) (, , , , a "gathering" or "collection" f scholars is an institute for full-time, advanced Torah study, study of the Talmud and rabbinic literature. Like a yeshiva, a kollel features Shiur (Torah), shiurim (lectures) and ...

for rabbinic ordination.

Background

Lerner was born to Shmuel Yechiel Lerner a

Holocaust The Holocaust (), known in Hebrew language, Hebrew as the (), was the genocide of History of the Jews in Europe, European Jews during World War II. From 1941 to 1945, Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy ...

survivor from

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

, in Forest Hills, NY. His mother, Grace Lerner, was born and raised in Newark, New Jersey. At a young age, the family relocated to Chicago, Illinois. As a teenager, he studied in the

Telz Yeshiva Telshe Yeshiva (; ; also spelled ''Telz'') is a yeshiva in Wickliffe, Ohio, formerly located in Telšiai, Lithuania. During World War II the yeshiva relocated to Cleveland, Ohio in the United States and is now known as the Rabbinical College of ...

in Chicago and, later, at the

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 ...

of Rabbi Dovid Soloveitchik in Jerusalem. He also studied at

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, NJ 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 a ...

under the tutelage of Rabbi

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 ...

. He married a daughter of the

Mohel A ( , Ashkenazi Hebrew, Ashkenazi pronunciation , plural: , , "circumciser") is a Jewish man trained in the practice of , the "covenant of male circumcision". A woman who is trained in the practice is referred to as a ''mohelet'' (plural: ''mo ...

of Jerusalem, Rabbi Yosef Dovid Weissberg and learned in the Kollel of

Shaar Hashamayim Yeshiva Shaar Hashamayim Yeshiva (, lit., "Gate of Heaven") is an Ashkenazi yeshiva in Jerusalem dedicated to the study of the kabbalistic teachings of the Arizal (Rabbi Isaac Luria). It is famous for its student body of advanced kabbalists — many ...

under the leadership of the leading

posek In Jewish law, a ''posek'' ( , pl. ''poskim'', ) is a legal scholar who determines the application of ''halakha'', the Jewish religious laws derived from the written and Oral Torah, in cases of Jewish law where previous authorities are incon ...

of his time, Rabbi

Shlomo Zalman Auerbach Shlomo Zalman Auerbach (; July 20, 1910 – February 20, 1995) was an Orthodox Jewish rabbi, posek, and rosh yeshiva of the Kol Torah yeshiva in Jerusalem. The Jerusalem neighborhood Ramat Shlomo is named after Auerbach. Biography Auerbach was ...

. He studied

Halacha ''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 ('' mi ...

as an apprentice to Rabbi

Moshe Halberstam Rabbi Moshe Halberstam (; April 1, 1932 – April 26, 2006) was the son of Grand Rabbi Yaakov Halberstam of Tschakava, a scion of the Sanz dynasty, and of the daughter of Rabbi Sholom Moskowitz of Shotz of London. He was the Rosh Yeshivah of th ...

whom he views as his mentor in terms of halachik decisions. He also served as a lecturer for

Aish HaTorah Aish, formerly known as Aish HaTorah (Hebrew: אש התורה, lit. "Fire of the Torah"), is a Jewish educational organization. The focus of Aish is the spread of traditional Jewish religious teachings and culture to Jews around the globe, util ...

's Halacha program. After leaving his position at Aish HaTorah, Lerner started a Kollel in which he teaches and prepares English-speaking students for rabbinic ordination. The honorary president of his Kollel was originally Rabbi Lerner's mentor, Rabbi Moshe Halberstam, who signed the rabbinic ordination. After Rabbi Halberstam's death in 2006, the mantel of the Kollel's honorary leadership was passed to Rabbi

Moshe Sternbuch Moshe Sternbuch (; born 15 February 1926) is a British-born Israeli Haredi rabbi. He serves as the ( Gaon Av Beis Din) of the Edah HaChareidis in Jerusalem, and the rabbi of the Gra Synagogue in the Har Nof neighbourhood. Biography Moshe Ste ...

who co-signed the Rabbinic ordination with Lerner, until other circumstances in his life caused him to pull back from involvement in other projects in 2014. Since then Rabbi Avraham Yitzchok Ulman of the Badatz Eidah Hachareides has taken over honorary leadership and co-sign the Rabbinic ordination.

Works

* Shemiras HaGuf VaHaNefesh (שמירת הגוף והנפש) – Laws and customs about physical and spiritual well-being This two-volume work has been printed many times since its original printing in the 1980s. Later editions of this work contain a special section in mystical Chidushei Halacha and remedies for remembrance which is dedicated as a tribute to Lerner's teacher Rabbi Shnuer Kotler. * Sefer Habayis (ספר הבית) – Book of Jewish law and customs for the Jewish home, especially the laws and customs of the ''Hanukat HaBayit'' (housewarming celebration) Due to its popularity, this book was translated into English to reach a broader audience. (''Sefer Habayis: Jewish law and custom for the house and home'', 2001, Feldheim: ) * Shegiyos Mi Yavin (שגיאות מי יבין) – This award-winning two-volume work is a compendium of halachik rulings in situations where mistakes have occurred in ritual performances and how to rectify those situations.

Controversy

A letter of Rav Sholomo Zalman Auerbach in Rabbi Lerner's book played a limited role in the affair surrounding the controversy of the works of

Natan Slifkin Natan Slifkin (also Nosson Slifkin) (; born 25 June 1975 in Manchester, England), popularly known as the "Zoo Rabbi", is a British-born Israeli Modern Orthodox community rabbi, and the director of the Biblical Museum of Natural History in Beit Sh ...

because in one of his works, Lerner published a letter penned by Rabbi

which discusses the correlation between rabbinic teachings and contemporary scientific knowledge.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lerner, Yosef Yitzchok Living people Rabbis from Chicago American Haredi rabbis American people of Hungarian-Jewish descent American emigrants to Israel Israeli Orthodox rabbis Rabbis in Jerusalem Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century American rabbis