(VIN Podcast) — Recently, Gedolim in Israel banned a yeshiva being launched in Beit Shemesh.
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In a signed letter, the Rabbanim said, in part, “…we have now heard that people are planning to establish an institution called a yeshiva gedolah which mixes the holy and the profane, Heaven forfend, in the city of Beit Shemesh. It is our duty to warn against this and to raise a huge storm to alert the Yere’ei Hashem wherever they are that they should not send their children and disciples to this place or give them any support G-d forbid.”
Rav Eliezer Steinberger is Rosh Yeshiva of Nishmas HaTorah, a Charedi yeshiva that incorporates secular studies into its curriculum. In a fascinating, compelling and informative interview, he explains why there is a huge need for this type of yeshiva, while at the same time, explaining the perspective of the Gedolim as well.
In the latest episode of the VIN Podcast, the addressed the following questions:
- Is learning secular studies ideal or only ‘b’dieved’?
- Is it strictly for parnassah or for philospohical reasons as well?
- Were the yeshivas in Europe unanimously opposed to secular studies? What was Rav Hirsch’s opinion?
- The need for parnassah for the sake of a family’s mental health and ability to properly function
- Why do American yeshivas teach secular studies?
- Did Rav Shach z”l oppose yeshivas teaching secular studies in all cases?
- His thoughts on the Gedolim’s ban of the yeshiva in Beit Shemesh
- Much more
This guy seems extremely level headed. I have no problems with thus guy.
The truth of the matter is that you can’t be a posek if you do not know mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, engineering, construction, etc. They say Rav Belsky, ZT”L studied all these subjects on his own without going to college. However, The Roshei Yeshivos of Baltimore, Chaim Berlin and Torah V’Daas encouraged the bochurim to go to night college after finishing high school.
The problem is calling it a Yeshivah
Toro College teaches both!
It’s wonderful.separate days for boys and girls.
Very successful Program.
You come out with a profession without having to mingle eith goyim
Yeshivah is a term used for strictly learning Torah
I don’t think rabbanim are against colleges that teach university level courses, but they don’t want to call them yeshivos. As to this rav’s statement that secular studies were taught in Kelm, he is only partially correct. My own father, A”H, studied in the yeshiva ketana is Kelm for 5 years, and he and another bachur had permission for private tutoring so that they could obtain a high school diploma. At 17 my father left to finish off in a Jewish, but not frum, high school. The yeshiva didn’t tolerate his involvement with the Beitar zionist movt., which took time away from yeshiva studies, but they never complained to my grandfather, who also studied there during the time of Rav Lopian, about the years of private tutoring. BTW. the Litvish boys got a far superior education during the elementary school years than many today receive in high school. Talk about yeridas hadoros.
Chazal also told us to listen to the Chachmei Yisroel of each generation. If the senior Chachomim of the last & current generation forbade the opening of such a Yeshiva in EY, then we to come up with alternative ways to help people find a parnasah. Perhaps by being trained outside of the Yeshiva. You cannot disregard the concensus of the Manhigei Hador by quoting a Chazal, the Chachomim are well aware of that Chazal.
Americans are leaving colleges that do not teach practical job skills in droves. Same thing will happen with “only Torah” yeshivas.
Actually that was the way of pagan priests
The more reliant an individual is on the group, the more likely they are to remain in the group. You don’t need to study psychology to arrive at that conclusion. It’s simple logic and born out by observation.
if people want to have secular studies, that’s up to them and their daas Torah– to force people to do teach something they don’t want to like the viscous, vitriolic, virulent, venomous, vulgar, odious hate filled org, yaffed does is despicable.
He’s not totally right. We do have a mitzvah give tzedoka to poor people, which means that there are poor people and they will always be poor people. To say that chazal against people being poor, simply cannot be so.