Yosef Yitzchok Lerner is a

Hareidi 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 ...

, American-born, Rabbi in

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

who is known for writing several popular books on Jewish law and custom. He also heads ''Beis Midrash L'Horaah Toras Shlomo'', a

Kollel A kollel ( he, כולל, , , a "gathering" or "collection" f scholars is an institute for full-time, advanced study of the Talmud and rabbinic literature. Like a yeshiva, a kollel features shiurim (lectures) and learning ''sedarim'' (sessions); ...

for rabbinic ordination.

Background

Lerner was born to Shmuel Yechiel Lerner a

Holocaust The Holocaust, also known as the Shoah, was the genocide of European Jews during World War II. Between 1941 and 1945, Nazi Germany and its collaborators systematically murdered some six million Jews across German-occupied Europe; a ...

survivor from

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

, in Forest Hills, NY. His mother, Grace Lerner, was born and raised in Newark, New Jersey. At a young age, the family relocated to Chicago, Illinois. As a teenager, he studied in the

Telz Yeshiva Telshe Yeshiva (also spelled ''Telz'') is a yeshiva in Wickliffe, Ohio, formerly located in Telšiai, Lithuania. During World War II the yeshiva began relocating to Wickliffe, Ohio, in the United States and is now known as the Rabbinical College o ...

in Chicago and, later, at the

Yeshiva A yeshiva (; he, ישיבה, , sitting; pl. , or ) is a traditional Jewish educational institution focused on the study of Rabbinic literature, primarily the Talmud and halacha (Jewish law), while Torah and Jewish philosophy are s ...

of Rabbi Dovid Soloveitchik in Jerusalem. He also studied at

Beth Medrash Govoha 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 Judaism, Haredi Jewish Misnagdim, Lithuanian ''yeshiva'' in Lake ...

Lakewood, NJ Lakewood Township is the most populous township in Ocean County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. A rapidly growing community as of the 2020 U.S. census, the township had a total population of 135,158 representing an increase of 41,415 (+45.5% ...

under the tutelage of Rabbi

Shneur Kotler Yosef Chaim Shneur Kotler (1918 – 24 June 1982) was an Orthodox rabbi and rosh yeshiva of Beth Medrash Govoha (also known as the Lakewood Yeshiva) in Lakewood, New Jersey from 1962 to 1982. During his tenure, he developed the Lithuanian-style ...

. He married a daughter of the

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 fro ...

of Jerusalem, Rabbi Yosef Dovid Weissberg and learned in the Kollel of

Shaar Hashamayim Yeshiva Shaar Hashamayim Yeshiva ( he, ישיבת שער השמים, lit., "Gate of Heaven") is an Ashkenazi Jews, Ashkenazi yeshiva in Jerusalem dedicated to the study of the kabbalah, kabbalistic teachings of the Rabbi Isaac Luria, Arizal (Rabbi Isaac Lu ...

under the leadership of the leading

posek In Jewish law, a ''Posek'' ( he, פוסק , pl. ''poskim'', ) is a legal scholar who determines the position of ''halakha'', the Jewish religious laws derived from the written and Oral Torah in cases of Jewish law where previous authorities a ...

of his time, Rabbi

Shlomo Zalman Auerbach Shlomo Zalman Auerbach ( he, שלמה זלמן אויערבאך; July 20, 1910 – February 20, 1995) was a renowned Orthodox Jewish rabbi, posek, and rosh yeshiva of the Kol Torah yeshiva in Jerusalem. The Jerusalem neighborhood Ramat Shlomo i ...

. He studied

Halacha ''Halakha'' (; he, הֲלָכָה, ), also transliterated as ''halacha'', ''halakhah'', and ''halocho'' ( ), is the collective body of Jewish religious laws which is derived from the written and Oral Torah. Halakha is based on biblical commandm ...

as an apprentice to Rabbi

Moshe Halberstam Rabbi Moshe Halberstam (April 1, 1932 – April 26, 2006) was the son of Grand Rabbi Yaakov Halberstam of Tschakava, a scion of the Sanz dynasty, and of the daughter of Rabbi Sholom Moskowitz of Shotz of London. He was the Rosh Yeshivah of ...

whom he views as his mentor in terms of halachik decisions. He also served as a lecturer for

Aish HaTorah Aish HaTorah ( he, אש התורה, lit. "Fire of the Torah") is an Orthodox Jewish educational organization and yeshiva. History Aish HaTorah was established in Jerusalem in 1974 by Rabbi Noah Weinberg, after he left the Ohr Somayach yeshiva, ...

's Halacha program. After leaving his position at Aish HaTorah, Lerner started a Kollel in which he teaches and prepares English-speaking students for rabbinic ordination. The honorary president of his Kollel was originally Rabbi Lerner's mentor, Rabbi Moshe Halberstam, who signed the rabbinic ordination. After Rabbi Halberstam's death in 2006, the mantel of the Kollel's honorary leadership was passed to Rabbi

Moshe Sternbuch Moshe Sternbuch (or Moishe / Moses Shternbuch, he, משה שטרנבוך) is a Haredi rabbi. He serves as the ''Ra'avad'' (Chief) of the Edah HaChareidis, vice-president of the Rabbinical Court in Jerusalem, and the rabbi of the Gra Synagogue in ...

who co-signed the Rabbinic ordination with Lerner, until other circumstances in his life caused him to pull back from involvement in other projects in 2014. Since then Rabbi Avraham Yitzchok Ulman of the Badatz Eidah Hachareides has taken over honorary leadership and co-sign the Rabbinic ordination.

Works

* Shemiras HaGuf VaHaNefesh (שמירת הגוף והנפש) – Laws and customs about physical and spiritual well-being This two-volume work has been printed many times since its original printing in the 1980s. Later editions of this work contain a special section in mystical Chidushei Halacha and remedies for remembrance which is dedicated as a tribute to Lerner's teacher Rabbi Shnuer Kotler. * Sefer Habayis (ספר הבית) – Book of Jewish law and customs for the Jewish home, especially the laws and customs of the ''Hanukat HaBayit'' (housewarming celebration) Due to its popularity, this book was translated into English to reach a broader audience. (''Sefer Habayis: Jewish law and custom for the house and home'', 2001, Feldheim: ) * Shegiyos Mi Yavin (שגיאות מי יבין) – This award-winning two-volume work is a compendium of halachik rulings in situations where mistakes have occurred in ritual performances and how to rectify those situations.

Controversy

A letter of Rav Sholomo Zalman Auerbach in Rabbi Lerner's book played a limited role in the affair surrounding the controversy of the works of

Natan Slifkin Natan Slifkin (also Nosson Slifkin) ( he, נתן סליפקין; born 25 June 1975 in Manchester, England), popularly known as the "Zoo Rabbi," is a British-born Israeli Modern Orthodox community rabbi and the director of the Biblical Museum of N ...

because in one of his works, Lerner published a letter penned by Rabbi

which discusses the correlation between rabbinic teachings and contemporary scientific knowledge.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lerner, Yosef Yitzchok Living people Rabbis from Chicago American Haredi rabbis American people of Hungarian-Jewish descent American emigrants to Israel Israeli Orthodox rabbis Rabbis in Jerusalem Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century American rabbis