Rabbi
Nota Schiller
Rabbi Nota Schiller in 2011
TitleRosh Yeshiva
Personal
Born
Nota Schiller

1937 (age 86–87)
ReligionJudaism
SpouseSima
PositionRosh yeshiva
YeshivaOhr Somayach, Jerusalem
Began1972

Nota Schiller (Hebrew: נטע שילר, born 1937) is an Orthodox Jewish rabbi and rosh yeshiva of Yeshivat Ohr Somayach, Jerusalem. He is an influential figure in the baal teshuva movement,[1] having guided generations of students with little or no Jewish background to master the classical rabbinical texts[2] and embrace an Orthodox lifestyle. He is widely regarded as an erudite Torah scholar in his own right.[2]

Biography

Schiller was born in 1937 and raised in Brooklyn, New York, where he attended the high school division of Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin[3] He graduated from Yeshivas Ner Yisroel in Baltimore.[4]

The 1960s and 1970s were a time of searching for meaning by Western-educated, college-age men and women. In 1972, Rabbis Noah Weinberg, Mendel Weinbach, Nota Schiller, and Yaakov Rosenberg founded Shma Yisrael Yeshiva to teach young Jewish men with little or no background in Jewish studies.[5][6] After a few years, Weinberg left the yeshiva over a difference in philosophy and founded Aish HaTorah in 1974,[6] whereas Rav Rosenberg left and founded Machon Shlomo in Har Nof. Shma Yisrael subsequently changed its name to Ohr Somayach, after the commentary on the Mishneh Torah written by Rabbi Meir Simcha of Dvinsk, the Ohr Somayach, in response to critics who contended that the name belonged to the entire Jewish people, not just one institution.[7]

Ohr Somayach International

Schiller was the driving force behind the development of Ohr Somayach International, which has opened yeshivas and learning branches in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, South Africa, and Australia.[8] He founded the first international Ohr Somayach program in Yonkers, New York in 1977. The program became an independent spin-off in 1979 and relocated to Monsey.[9]

References

  1. ↑ "The Jewish Revolution in San Francisco: Harav Nota Schiller and the Lisa Kampner Hebrew Academy". Lisa Kampner Hebrew Academy. 2010. Archived from the original on July 17, 2011. Retrieved January 13, 2011.
  2. 1 2 "Hertz Family Foundation Announces $1.5 Million In Grants Made to Yeshiva Ohr Somayach in Jerusalem". PR Web. November 5, 2009. Retrieved January 13, 2011.
  3. ↑ Friedman, Thomas L. (1990). From Beirut to Jerusalem. Anchor Books. p. 313. ISBN 0-385-41372-6.
  4. ↑ Oberstein, Rabbi Elchonon (February 2007). "Montgomery to Mt. Wilson: The Journey Begins". Who What Where. Archived from the original on February 22, 2007. Retrieved January 13, 2011.
  5. ↑ Donn, Rabbi Yochanan. "Conscience of the Lost Jews: Harav Yisroel Noah Weinberg, zt"l". Hamodia. Archived from the original on July 21, 2011. Retrieved January 13, 2011.
  6. 1 2 "Today's Yahrtzeits and History – 11 Shevat". matzav.com. January 26, 2010. Retrieved January 15, 2011.
  7. ↑ "Did You Know That #16". Ohr Somayach International. March 1, 2003. Retrieved January 13, 2011.
  8. ↑ "Worldwide Branches". Ohr Somayach International. Retrieved January 15, 2011.
  9. ↑ "Ohr Somayach Founders Page". Ohr Somayach International. 2006. Archived from the original on December 22, 2010. Retrieved January 13, 2011.
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