Aaron Moshe Schechter (also Aharon Moshe Schechter) is an American

Haredi Haredi Judaism ( he, ', ; also spelled ''Charedi'' in English; plural ''Haredim'' or ''Charedim'') consists of groups within Orthodox Judaism that are characterized by their strict adherence to ''halakha'' (Jewish law) and traditions, in oppos ...

rabbi. He is the

rosh yeshiva Rosh yeshiva ( he, ראש ישיבה, pl. he, ראשי ישיבה, '; 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, primar ...

(dean) of

Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin or ''Yeshivas Rabbeinu Chaim Berlin'' ( he, יְשִׁיבַת רַבֵּינוּ חַיִּים בֶּרלִין) is an American Haredi Lithuanian-type boys' and men's yeshiva in Brooklyn, New York. Chaim Berlin consis ...

and its post-graduate

Talmud The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cente ...

ical division,

Kollel Gur Aryeh Kollel Gur Aryeh ( he, כולל גור אריה) is a kollel for young married Orthodox men located in Brooklyn, New York. It was established in 1956 by Rabbi Yitzchok Hutner as the post-graduate division of the Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin. A numbe ...

. He also serves on the presidium of

Agudath Israel of America Agudath Israel of America ( he, אגודת ישראל באמריקה) (also called Agudah) is an American organization that represents Haredi Orthodox Jews. It is loosely affiliated with the international World Agudath Israel. Agudah seeks to ...

and is a member of that organization's

Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah (, "Council of great Torah ages) is the supreme rabbinical policy-making council of the Agudat Yisrael and Degel HaTorah movements in Israel; and of Agudath Israel of America in the United States. Members are usually pr ...

(Council of Torah Sages).

Early life

Aaron Moshe Schechter was born in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

in the 1920s. He became a disciple of

Yitzchak Hutner Yitzchak (Isaac) Hutner ( he, יצחק הוטנר; 1906–1980) was an American Orthodox rabbi and rosh yeshiva (dean). Originally from Warsaw, Hutner first studied the Torah in Slabodka. He then traveled to Mandatory Palestine where he became a ...

after being enrolled in the

as a young child. He also studied in

Lakewood Yeshiva Beth Medrash Govoha ( he, בית מדרש גבוה, Sephardi pronunciation: ''Beth Midrash Gavoha''. lit: "High House of Learning"; also known as Lakewood Yeshiva or BMG) is a Haredi Jewish Lithuanian ''yeshiva'' in Lakewood Township, New Jerse ...

Disciple of Rav Yitzchak Hutner

Yeshiva Mesivta Chaim Berlin Kollel Gur Aryeh, Sept 2020

Hutner chose Schechter for leadership positions in the yeshiva even prior to Schechter's marriage. Hutner encouraged him to write a rabbinic commentary on

Maimonides Musa ibn Maimon (1138–1204), commonly known as Maimonides (); la, Moses Maimonides and also referred to by the acronym Rambam ( he, רמב״ם), was a Sephardic Jewish philosopher who became one of the most prolific and influential Torah ...

, which he called ''Avodas Aharon''.

Rosh yeshiva of Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin

Hutner said that Schechter and

Rabbi Yonasan David A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as '' semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form o ...

would serve as co-equal

roshei yeshiva Rosh yeshiva ( he, ראש ישיבה, pl. he, ראשי ישיבה, '; 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, primar ...

of Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin.

Agudath Israel and Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah

After the death of Hutner in 1980, Schechter joined the ''nesius'' (presidium) of

. Schechter has worked closely with two other early disciples of Hutner on the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah,

Aharon Feldman Rabbi Aharon Feldman (born 1932) is an Orthodox Jewish rabbi and rosh yeshiva (dean) of Yeshivas Ner Yisroel (Ner Israel Rabbinical College) in Baltimore, Maryland. He has held this position since 2001. He is also a member of the Moetzes Gedolei ...

of Yeshiva Ner Yisrael, and

Yaakov Perlow Yaakov Perlow ( yi, יעקבֿ פּערלאָוו he, יעקב פרלוב‎; November 16, 1930 – April 7, 2020) was an American Hasidic rabbi and rosh yeshiva, and Rebbe of the Novominsk Hasidic dynasty. From 1998 until his death in 202 ...

, the

Rebbe A Rebbe ( yi, רבי, translit=rebe) or Admor ( he, אדמו״ר) is the spiritual leader in the Hasidic movement, and the personalities of its dynasties.Heilman, Samuel"The Rebbe and the Resurgence of Orthodox Judaism."''Religion and Spiritua ...

of Novominsk, who was appointed ''Rosh Agudas Yisroel'' (head of Agudath Israel of America). On January 13, 2015, Schechter resigned from the Moetzes Gedolei Hatorah over a dispute regarding internal dissent in the

World Agudath Israel World Agudath Israel ( he, אגודת ישראל), usually known as the Aguda, was established in the early twentieth century as the political arm of Ashkenazi Torah Judaism. It succeeded ''Agudas Shlumei Emunei Yisroel'' (Union of Faithful Jewr ...

-affiliated

Degel Hatorah Degel HaTorah ( he, דגל התורה, , Banner of the Torah) is an Ashkenazi Haredi political party in Israel. For much of its existence, it has been allied with Agudat Yisrael, under the name United Torah Judaism. History Degel HaTorah was ...

. After the dispute was settled, he returned.

Personal life

Schechter married Shoshana Roisa Leichtung in 1954. She served as the Principal of General Studies at Yeshiva of Brooklyn's girls' elementary school for over 20 years. She died on August 4, 2016. They had two sons. One, Mordechai Zelig Schecter, serves as the ''

mashgiach ruchani A mashgiach ruchani ( he, משגיח רוחני; pl., ''mashgichim ruchani'im'') or mashgicha ruchani – sometimes mashgiach/mashgicha for short – is a spiritual supervisor or guide. He or she is usually a rabbi who has an official position wit ...

'' (spiritual supervisor) at Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin. The other, Nosson Schecter, is a

mohel A ( he, מוֹהֵל , Ashkenazi pronunciation , plural: , arc, מוֹהֲלָא , "circumciser") is a Jew trained in the practice of , the "covenant of circumcision". Etymology The noun ( in Aramaic), meaning "circumciser", is derived f ...

. Their son-in-law is Rabbi Shlomo Halioua, current rosh yeshiva of Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin. Their eldest daughter is Esther Yormark, teacher at Beis Yaakov Academy in Brooklyn.

Works

Avodas Aharon

External links

Rabbi Schechter speaks to students on OU radio, December 28, 2006

* ttp://www.oorah.org/endorsements.htm Endorses the outreach ''kiruv'' work of the oorah.org organization
Member of rabbinical committee, ''Vaad L'Hatzolas Nidchei Yisroel

Video of Rabbi Schechter speaking about reconciling Science and Torah

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schechter, Aaron 20th-century American rabbis 21st-century American rabbis Living people American Haredi rabbis Rosh yeshivas Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah Year of birth missing (living people) Orthodox rabbis from New York City