Stella K. Abraham Beit Midrash for Women, commonly known as Migdal Oz ( he, בית מדרש לנשים מגדל עז), is an

Orthodox Jewish Orthodox Judaism is the collective term for the traditionalist and theologically conservative branches of contemporary Judaism. Theologically, it is chiefly defined by regarding the Torah, both Written and Oral, as revealed by God to Moses on M ...

institution of higher

Torah study Torah study is the study of the Torah, Hebrew Bible, Talmud, responsa, rabbinic literature, and similar works, all of which are Judaism's Sifrei kodesh, religious texts. According to Rabbinic Judaism, the study is done for the purpose of the ''mi ...

for women located in the

Kibbutz A kibbutz ( he, קִבּוּץ / , lit. "gathering, clustering"; plural: kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1909, was Degania. Today, farming h ...

Migdal Oz Migdal ( he, מִגְדָּל) is a Hebrew word for tower. It may refer to: People * Alexander Migdal (born 1945), Soviet, Russian and American physicist, son of Arkady Migdal * Arkady Migdal (1911–1991), Soviet physicist * Ted Migdal (1918–19 ...

in Gush Etzion in

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

Overview

Migdal Oz is the

sister school A sister school is usually a pair of schools, usually single-sex school, one with female students and the other with male students. This relationship is seen to benefit both schools. For instance, when Harvard University was a male-only school, Rad ...

of Yeshivat Har Etzion, sharing its general philosophy, leadership and many faculty members. The total student population is 180, including 30 from the U.S., Canada, and England, and more than 40 in the advanced teachers' training program. The director of Migdal Oz is

Esti Rosenberg Esti Rosenberg (Hebrew: אסתי רוזנברג; born July 24, 1965) is an American-Israeli Orthodox Rabbanit who is the founder and head of the Migdal Oz seminary. She is the daughter of Rabbi Aharon Lichtenstein and Dr. Tovah Soloveitchik and t ...

, whose father, Rabbi Aharon Lichtenstein, along with Rabbi Yehuda Amital, provided the school with rabbinic guidance and often make religious policy decisions. The curriculum includes

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 ...

study in keeping with the halakhic rulings of Rosenberg's grandfather, Rabbi

Joseph B. Soloveitchik Joseph Ber Soloveitchik ( he, יוסף דב הלוי סולובייצ׳יק ''Yosef Dov ha-Levi Soloveychik''; February 27, 1903 – April 9, 1993) was a major American Orthodox rabbi, Talmudist, and modern Jewish philosopher. He was a scion o ...

. Notable alumni include: Elana Stein Hain and

Gilah Kletenik Gilah Kletenik is an academic and rabbi. Career Kletenik is a Starr Fellow at Harvard University. She has written about Jewish Studies and other topics. Previously she was a congregational scholar at the Modern Orthodox Congregation Kehilath ...

History

Migdal Oz was established in 1997 by Yeshivat Har Etzion. It was located in a trailer which now serves as the kibbutz's sewing room. A permanent building with a study hall, classrooms, and a dining hall, was completed in 2003. The program began as a framework for Israeli high school graduates prior to doing '' Sherut Leumi'' (

National service National service is the system of voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act 1939. The l ...

) or being drafted into the

Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the Israel, State of Israel. It consists of three servic ...

. Since then, it has expanded to include women who have completed their military service, as well as foreign students. Many combine their studies at Migdal Oz with the Teacher Training Program of Herzog College.

References

External links

* {{Orthodox yeshivot in Israel Educational institutions established in 1997 Orthodox Jewish schools for women Jewish seminaries Zionist organizations Religious Zionism Gush Etzion Yeshivat Har Etzion Yeshivas in the West Bank 1997 establishments in Israel

Overview

History

See also

References

External links