Mir Yeshiva (Brooklyn) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Mirrer Yeshiva Central Instituteישיבת מיר
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The yeshiva in June 2020
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United States
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| Type | Private elementary, middle school, high school, beis medrash, and kollel |
| Founder | Rabbi Avraham Kalmanowitz |
The Mirrer Yeshiva Central Institute, often called the Mir Yeshiva, is a special Jewish school in Brooklyn, New York. It is a type of school called a yeshiva, where students learn about the Torah and Jewish law.
One of the important teachers at the yeshiva is Rabbi Elya Brudny. He is also part of a group of leading Jewish scholars called the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah.
Contents
The Mir Yeshiva Story
The first Mir Yeshiva was started a long time ago in 1815. It was in a town called Mir, which is now in Belarus. This school taught students there for almost 100 years.
Moving During World War I
When World War I began in 1914, the yeshiva had to move. It went to Poltava in what is now Ukraine. Rabbi Eliezer Yehuda Finkel led the school then. He was the son of a famous rabbi, Nosson Tzvi Finkel.
Returning to Mir and Fleeing the Holocaust
In 1921, the yeshiva moved back to its original home in Mir. It stayed there until 1939. That year, Nazi Germany invaded Poland, starting World War II and the the Holocaust. Many students from other countries left, but the yeshiva kept going.
As the Nazi armies got closer, the school leaders decided to move everyone. They went to Keidan in Lithuania. But the Nazis kept moving east. So, the entire yeshiva community had to flee even further.
A Long Journey to Safety
The students and teachers traveled across Siberia by train. They went all the way to the Far East. In 1941, they finally reopened the yeshiva in Kobe, Japan.
Many other smaller Jewish schools also escaped with the Mir Yeshiva. Even though it was hard, the Mir leaders helped support all these students. They found places for them to live and eat.
A short time later, the yeshiva moved again. This time, they went to Shanghai, China, which was controlled by Japan. They stayed there until World War II ended.
A Japanese diplomat named Chiune Sugihara helped many Jews escape. He gave thousands of special travel papers, called transit visas. These visas allowed them to travel to Japan and escape danger. His brave actions have been written about in many books.
Starting Over in New Places
After the war ended, most of the Jewish people who had found safety in Shanghai moved. Many went to Mandatory Palestine (which is now Israel) or the United States. The students and teachers from the Mir Yeshiva were among them.
They decided to start the yeshiva again in two new places. One campus was opened in Jerusalem, Israel. The other campus, the one we are learning about, was opened in Brooklyn, New York.
The Mir Yeshiva in Brooklyn
The Brooklyn yeshiva first settled in the New Lots area of East New York. Later, it moved to its current location on Ocean Parkway in Flatbush.
Leaders of the Brooklyn Campus
The first main leader, or rosh yeshiva, of the Brooklyn campus was Rabbi Avraham Kalmanowitz. He led the school for almost 20 years. He passed away in 1964.
After him, his son, Rabbi Shraga Moshe Kalmanowitz, and his son-in-law, Rabbi Shmuel Berenbaum, became the new leaders. Rabbi Shraga Moshe passed away in 1998, and Rabbi Shmuel passed away in 2008.
Other important rabbis who taught at the yeshiva included Rabbi Dovid Kviat and Rabbi Shmuel Brudny. Rabbi Moshe Handelsman was the executive director for a long time. He passed away in 2022.
Current Activities and Growth
The Mirrer Yeshiva Central Institute is officially recognized by the College Board. This means it is a proper educational institution.
The yeshiva is currently growing. They are building new dorms for students to live in. They are also building a new beis midrash, which is a large study hall.
Important Teachers and Leaders
Rabbi Shmuel Berenbaum was a very important leader of the yeshiva for many years. He passed away on January 6, 2008. He was the son-in-law of Rabbi Avraham Kalmanowitz, who founded the Brooklyn branch.
After Rabbi Berenbaum passed away, the mayor of New York City, Michael Bloomberg, praised him. He said that Rabbi Berenbaum helped build the yeshiva into one of the largest centers for Jewish learning in the world.
Today, the yeshiva is led by several rabbis. These include Rabbi Avraham Yaakov Nelkenbaum, Rabbi Asher Eliyahu Kalmanowitz, Rabbi Hershel Zolty, and Rabbi Asher Dov Berenbaum. The mashgiach, who guides the students, is Rabbi Ezriel Erlanger.
The Mir Yeshiva in Brooklyn has different parts. It includes an elementary school, a high school, a beis midrash (for advanced study), and a kollel (for married men who continue their studies). The kollel is led by Rabbi Eliezer Ginsburg. The high school is led by a son-in-law of Rabbi Shraga Moshe Kalmanowitz.
Well-Known Former Students
Many people who studied at the Mir Yeshiva have become well-known. Some of them include:
- Samuel Belkin
- Yaakov Bender
- Abba Berman
- Zev Brenner
- Lazar Gulkowitsch
- Avraham Jacobovitz
- Meir Kahane
- Aryeh Kaplan
- Yisrael Mendel Kaplan
- Yaakov Luban
- Herman N. Neuberger
- Tovia Singer
- Pesach Stein
- Shraga Feivel Zimmerman
