Aryeh Klapper
Personal
Born (1968-02-03) February 3, 1968[1]
ReligionJudaism
NationalityAmerican
DenominationOrthodox
Alma materYeshiva University
PositionDean
YeshivaCenter for Modern Torah Leadership
ResidenceSharon, Massachusetts, U.S.

Aryeh (Robert David)[2] Klapper is a leading American rabbi and Jewish thinker who serves as dean of the Center for Modern Torah Leadership.[3][4][5] He is senior dayan of the Boston Beit Din, co-founder of the Boston Agunah Taskforce, and rosh kollel of the Center for Modern Torah Leadership's student fellowship program, the summer beit midrash.[6][7] Klapper is known for his lectures, published academic and religious articles, and leadership in the Orthodox world.[8][9] He was listed as one of Tablet Magazine's "Rabbis You Should Know" in 2014.[10]

Klapper previously served as rabbi of Brandeis Hillel, talmud curriculum chair of Maimonides High School, Orthodox adviser and associate director for Education at Harvard Hillel, instructor of Rabbinics and Medical Ethics at Gann Academy, and interim rabbi of the Young Israel of Sharon.[11]

Klapper launched a podcast, Taking Responsibility for Torah, in 2021.[12] He published a book, Divine Will and Human Experience, in 2022.[13]

Early life and education

The 1988 staff of Hamevaser. Klapper is in the center with Yona Reiss to his left.

Klapper is the son of Molly Roxana Klapper, author of The German Literary Influence on Byron (1974)[14] and editor of Definitive Creative Impasse-Breaking Techniques In Mediation (2011),[15][16] and Jacob Klapper, former chair of the electrical and computer engineering department at NJIT and co-author of Phase-Locked and Frequency-Feedback Systems (1972).[17][18] He has one sister, named Rachele Hannah.[18] Klapper placed second in the 1980 National Spelling Bee[19] after qualifying through the All-Yeshiva Spelldown.[20] The New York Daily News described him as a "spelling star" who had "a vast mental storehouse of words."[21]

Klapper attended Manhattan Day School,[20] graduated from Yeshiva University with a bachelor's degree in political science, and received rabbinic ordination from the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary and a master's degree in Bible from the Revel Graduate School of Jewish Studies in 1994.[2][22][8]

While at YU, Klapper served as editor-in-chief of Hamevaser newspaper, editor-in-chief of Gesher journal, president of the English Honors Society, and co-chair of the Committee to Preserve Revel.[6][23][24][25]

He is married to Deborah Klapper,[2] and has four children[26] and one grandchild.[27]

Career

Klapper taught at several east-coast universities before joining Harvard Hillel in 2002,[10][28] where he taught a faculty Talmud class,[29] built the Cambridge eruv,[30] and met his future wife, a Harvard student who served as minyan gabbai.[31] He became known for his intellectual scholarship and his generosity in inviting guests for Shabbat meals.[31] In 1997, he launched his Summer Beit Midrash program, a co-educational summer kollel.[6] He taught at Maimonides High School from 1994 to 2003, eventually serving as Talmud Curriculum Chair, and at Gann Academy from 2005 to 2014.[6] He is a leading Orthodox opponent of torture[10][32][33] and sexual abuse.[34][3]

Summer Beit Midrash

Klapper first launched the Summer Beit Midrash in 1997 as a six-week all-male kollel geared toward understanding the process of deciding halakha. 15-20 fellows are selected each year to participate. In 2004, after being overwhelmed with applications from women and unable to fund a second program, Klapper made the program co-ed, saying "Psak is largely a function of people asking questions. If someone knows their stuff, others will ask them. We live in a time where I expect women to exercise leadership in the halakhic community." Students study daily, from morning prayers until late at night, and spend the final week writing an amateur responsum in response to that summer's designated question.[35] Each summer's fellows give lectures at synagogues around New England and learn b'chavrusa with community members.[36] In 2009, the program relocated to the Young Israel of Sharon, Massachusetts.[37]

Center for Modern Torah Leadership

Rabbi Klapper lectures to the 2017 Summer Beit Midrash.

In 2004, Klapper left Harvard Hillel to launch the Center for Modern Torah Leadership,[31] which is a registered non-profit which describes itself as "the intellectual catalyst of Modern Orthodoxy" and aims "to make halakhah the shared spiritual language of the Jewish community, and to make Jewish discourse an essential contributor to the moral conversation of humanity."[38] The center took over the annual Summer Beit Midrash fellowship program and launched the Winter Beit Midrash, an shorter three-day program for students during winter break, and Midreshet Avigayl, a high-level Talmud program for teenage girls.[39][8] The center also holds national conferences on halakha for select groups of Orthodox rabbis and educators.[40] In 2014, Klapper left Gann Academy to run the Center for Modern Torah Leadership full-time.[10] The center published the first volume of its halakhic journal, Responsibility Inscribed, in 2015.[41]

Lectures

In his lectures, Klapper "relates Jewish tradition substantively to labor laws, human rights, torture, and many other contemporary public policy issues."[10] He has given "countless shiurim focusing mostly on issues of Jewish law."[42]

2017 Yeshiva University lecture controversy

Klapper gives regular student lectures at Yeshiva University.[43]

Invited by the Student Organization of the Yeshiva, Klapper was scheduled to give a lecture there on March 29, 2017. Posters advertising the lecture were placed around the school. On the morning of the 29th, "at least two students witnessed [Rabbi Herschel Schachter, Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshiva University] take down the signs on the left-hand door to the Glueck beit midrash.

He then crumpled the posters into a ball and tossed them into a nearby garbage can."[22] Schachter told the Yeshiva University Commentator that he had taken down the signs because “The guy's an apikores. He shouldn’t be invited here. You can quote me on that if you want. He doesn’t belong here at all.”[22] Dean of RIETS Menachem Penner defended Schachter's actions (though he later said he did not blame Klapper) and other signs were later removed by students.[22] The lecture attracted significant controversy[44][45][46][47] but was attended by 40–50 students.[43] Penner addressed students the following day, saying "putting up signs can also be a provocative act" and blaming the school newspaper for reporting Schachter's comments. He later apologized for impugning the motives of the lecture's student organizers.[43] Yosef Blau, senior Mashgiach Ruchani at YU, said it "isn't clear" why Schachter took exception to Klapper's planned lecture.[43] Schachter later retracted his remarks.[43] In December 2017, Klapper spoke at YU's Revel Graduate School and was scholar-in-residence on YU's Beren Campus.[48][42] By 2021, the incident was largely forgotten.[49]

Selected publications

Klapper has published in Tradition, Meorot, Dinei Yisrael, Beit Yitzchak and other journals and has presented at academic and community conferences.[29]

Klapper first gained attention with an article titled "זקן ממרא כגבור המסורת" in Beit Yitzchak vol. 26 (1994).[43][50] Many rabbis disagreed with the article and disapproved of its publication[51] because it pointed out that "Torah has a sacrifice that is brought for when the greatest sages of the day make a grievous error that causes mass sin" and argued that "[H]alakhah is not intended to enable avoiding responsibility," but it has also attracted widespread support and citation.[51][50]

Klapper was a primary author behind the 2010 Statement of Principles on the Place of Jews with a Homosexual Orientation in Our Community, which was later signed by more than a hundred rabbis.[52]

Klapper's oft-cited[53][54][55][56][57] 2012 article The Moral Costs of Jewish Day School[58] "placed the spotlight on communal tuition policies and the moral dilemma that the Jewish community faces from a tuition system that has transformed nearly half of participants from community contributors to charity recipients"[59] and "pointed out some of the deleterious results of such a lifestyle."[60] He "enumerated encouraging young Jews to pursue only those professions that will support the chosen lifestyle among several 'moral' costs of rising day-school tuition."[61]

Klapper was one of eleven theologians behind " "Lo$ing Faith In Our Democracy," a 2014 report published by Auburn Theological Seminary. He argued that "Historically, rabbis presumed that all contributions produce influence" and "believing otherwise would be Jewishly viewed as dangerously naïve."[62]

Klapper's 2017 article "Brain Death and Organ Donation: An Alternative Construction"[63] argued that "we cannot declare people dead so that we can save others."[64]

Klapper's 2021 statement on rape allegations against children's author Chaim Walder, in which he ruled that the books must be removed from shelves, was hailed as part of a "watershed moment" for the Orthodox Jewish world.[3][34]

Beit Din

Klapper has sat as a judge on the Boston Beit Din, an Orthodox Jewish court which hears (among other kinds) approximately 40 divorce cases a year, since 2001.[65] He was previously a member of the beit din of Elizabeth, New Jersey.[6] Klapper is a co-founder of Brandeis University's Boston Agunah Taskforce, which aims to prevent and solve agunah cases in the Boston area.[8] He educates family lawyers and judges on Jewish divorce law[66] and advocates for the Jewish prenuptial agreement.[67][68]

Divine Will and Human Experience

Klapper published his first book, Divine Will and Human Experience: Explorations of the Halakhic System and Its Values, in 2022. The book is composed of essays on three main themes: the primary foundational commitments of Modern Orthodoxy, selected responsa, and biblical exegesis. In a review for the Jewish Press, David Wolkenfeld wrote that the book "is thought-provoking and has great merit" although the essays "are too short to do justice to the fullness of Rabbi Klapper’s thought".[13]

References

  1. ↑ "MRS. Klapper Has Son". The New York Times.
  2. 1 2 3 "Deborah Reingold, Robert Klapper". The New York Times. 1996-12-22. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  3. 1 2 3 "Backlash mounts against Orthodox children's book author accused of abusing minors, surprising many". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. 2021-11-19. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  4. ↑ Yanklowitz, Rabbi Dr Shmuly (2014-05-01). The Soul of Jewish Social Justice. Urim Publications. ISBN 978-965-524-156-3.
  5. ↑ "Thoughts on Confrontation & Sundry Matters Part I – The Seforim Blog". Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 "Center for Modern Torah Leadership - Dean / Rabbi". 2019-12-20. Archived from the original on 2019-12-20. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  7. ↑ "profile". WebYeshiva. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  8. 1 2 3 4 "About Us". www.brandeis.edu. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  9. ↑ Kohn, Rachel. "How Does Free Will Work?". Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 "15 American Rabbis You Haven't Heard Of, But Should". Tablet Magazine. 2014-09-15. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  11. ↑ "Aryeh Klapper". Tablet Magazine. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  12. ↑ "Taking Responsibility for Torah". Taking Responsibility for Torah. Retrieved 2021-12-29.
  13. 1 2 Wolkenfeld, Rabbi David. "Good Things Come In Threes". Retrieved 2023-01-30.
  14. ↑ Klapper, M. Roxana (1974). The German literary influence on Byron. Romantic reassessment. Salzburg: Institut fur Englische Sprache und Literatur, Universitat Salzburg.
  15. ↑ "Definitive Creative Impasse-Breaking Techniques In Mediation". New York State Bar Association. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  16. ↑ "M(olly) Roxana Klapper." Gale Literature: Contemporary Authors, Gale, 2001.
  17. ↑ "Phase-Locked and Frequency Feedback Systems - 1st Edition". www.elsevier.com. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  18. 1 2 "Klapper, Jacob." American Men & Women of Science: A Biographical Directory of Today's Leaders in Physical, Biological, and Related Sciences, edited by Katherine H. Nemeh, et al., 22nd ed., vol. 4, Gale, 2005, p. 384.
  19. ↑ "6 Mar 1980, 422 - Daily News at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2022-02-10.
  20. 1 2 "Klapper spelling". Daily News. 1980-02-03. p. 129. Retrieved 2022-10-24.
  21. ↑ "5 Mar 1980, 24 - Daily News at Newspapers.com". Newspapers.com. Retrieved 2022-02-10.
  22. 1 2 3 4 "Rabbi Hershel Schachter: Inviting Rabbi Aryeh Klapper to Speak at YU is "like inviting a Reform rabbi"". The Commentator. 2017-03-29. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  23. ↑ Bailey, Jay (March 5, 1992). "Special Editorial: Facilities Mismanagement" (PDF). The Commentator.
  24. ↑ Masmid, 1988. Yeshiva University Libraries. 1988.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  25. ↑ Eisenberg, Michael (February 19, 1992). "Students Voice Concern at Open Meeting of BRGS Taskforce". The Commentator.
  26. ↑ "CARO Family Tree". www.loebtree.com. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  27. ↑ "Weekly announcements - Young Israel of Sharon". www.yisharon.org. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  28. ↑ "Hillel Hires Rabbinical Student To Replace Reform Rabbi | News | The Harvard Crimson". www.thecrimson.com. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  29. 1 2 "Rabbi Aryeh Klapper | Torah In Motion". torahinmotion.org. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  30. ↑ Milstein, Tamar. "New perimeters for Sabbath are drawn in Greater Boston: Eruvim planned by shul, B.U. Hillel." Jewish Advocate [Boston, MA], 18 June 1998
  31. 1 2 3 Schoenberg, Shira. "Klapper to leave Harvard Hillel." Jewish Advocate [Boston, MA], 3 June 2005
  32. ↑ "Can Judaism ever justify torture? | Wisconsin Jewish Chronicle". www.jewishchronicle.org. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  33. ↑ Grob, Leonard; Roth, John K. (2017-05-01). Losing Trust in the World: Holocaust Scholars Confront Torture. University of Washington Press. ISBN 978-0-295-80671-6.
  34. 1 2 Shalev, Asaf (November 19, 2021). "Backlash mounts against Orthodox children's book author accused of abusing minors, surprising many". The Forward. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  35. ↑ "Summer Beit Midrash becomes coed." Jewish Advocate [Boston, MA], 9 July 2004
  36. ↑ "Lecture". The Jewish Advocate. July 5, 2002.
  37. ↑ "Rabbi Klapper lectures at YI." Jewish Advocate [Boston, MA], 10 July 2009
  38. ↑ "Center for Modern Torah Leadership - Mission Statement". 2019-12-20. Archived from the original on 2019-12-20. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  39. ↑ "Center for Modern Torah Leadership - Winter Beit Midrash". 2019-12-20. Archived from the original on 2019-12-20. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  40. ↑ "CMTL holds national conference." Jewish Advocate [Boston, MA], 24 Aug. 2007
  41. ↑ "Responsibility Inscribed". Ben Yehuda Press. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  42. 1 2 "Following Shiur Cancellation, Rabbi Klapper to be Scholar in Residence on the Beren Campus". The Commentator. 2017-12-24. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  43. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Rabbi Aryeh Klapper Speaks at YU: Community Reacts to Rabbi Hershel Schachter's Harsh Criticism". The Commentator. 2017-03-30. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  44. ↑ Kestenbaum, Sam (March 31, 2017). "Top Yeshiva U. Rabbi Blasts Modern Orthodox Speaker As 'Like Reform'". The Forward. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  45. ↑ "Who's AK?: The Need for Open Dialogue". The Commentator. 2017-04-23. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  46. ↑ "Defending Rav Schachter From His Defenders". The Commentator. 2017-04-23. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  47. ↑ "A Response to The Commentator's News Coverage of Rav Schachter's Remarks". The Commentator. 2017-04-23. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  48. ↑ "OSL Pulls the Plug on Kol Hamevaser Talk By Rabbi Aryeh Klapper". The YU Observer. 2017-12-18. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  49. ↑ "In Retrospect: Institutional Memories". The Commentator. 2021-05-02. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  50. 1 2 "AMA - Aryeh Klapper". plageroyale.com. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  51. 1 2 "Something about Leadership". blogs.timesofisrael.com. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  52. ↑ "statementofprinciplesnya". Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  53. ↑ Sheramy, Rona (2013-08-29). "The Day School Tuition Crisis: A Short History". Jewish Review of Books. Retrieved 2021-11-21.
  54. ↑ "Raising kids without day school". The Canadian Jewish News. 2012-07-03. Retrieved 2021-11-21.
  55. ↑ Bedrick, Jason (December 2012). ""And You Shall Teach Them Diligently"" (PDF). Pioneer Institute. 94.
  56. ↑ Kigner E. Schechter ties tuition to income: Newton school caps family payments. The Jewish Advocate (Boston, MA). May 25, 2012. Accessed February 11, 2022.
  57. ↑ COHEN E, MEISEL A. Jewish Conservatism a Manifesto. Commentary. 2017;143(5):15-32. Accessed February 11, 2022
  58. ↑ Klapper, Aryeh (May 14, 2012). "The Moral Costs of Jewish Day School". Jewish Ideas Daily.
  59. ↑ Perla, Dan (21 May 2013). "Putting A Cap On Day School Tuitions". jewishweek.timesofisrael.com. Retrieved 2021-11-21.
  60. ↑ Poupko, Rabbi Elchanan (2016-03-21). "Achieving A Viable Modern Orthodoxy". Hamevaser Blog. Retrieved 2021-11-21.
  61. ↑ Fischer, Elli (17 February 2015). "Modern Orthodoxy Has Its Costs – Not Just Financial". jewishweek.timesofisrael.com. Retrieved 2021-11-21.
  62. ↑ Overby, Peter (2014-06-13). "Tract Issued By Theologians Takes On Money In Politics". NPR. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  63. ↑ Klapper, Aryeh. "Brain Death and Organ Donation – An Alternative Construction of the Debate". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  64. ↑ Weiner, Jason (2021-03-01). Jewish Guide to Practical Medical Decision-Making. Urim Publications. ISBN 978-965-524-352-9.
  65. ↑ Banda, Fareda; Joffe, Lisa Fishbayn (2016-02-12). Women's Rights and Religious Law: Domestic and International Perspectives. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-51765-8.
  66. ↑ "Home". bostonagunataskforce. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
  67. ↑ Klapper, Aryeh. "The Halakhic Prenuptial Agunah-Prevention Agreement - FAQ". Archived from the original on 2016-06-17.
  68. ↑ Sinert, Michael L. "The plight of agunot: `Chained women' are focus of Hebrew College vigil." Jewish Advocate [Boston, MA], 23 Mar. 1995, p. 1.
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