Yeshivas Chofetz Chaim (also known as the Rabbinical Seminary of America) is an Orthodox yeshiva based in Kew Gardens Hills, Queens, New York, United States. It is primarily an American, non-chasidic Haredi Talmudic yeshiva. The yeshiva is legally titled Rabbinical Seminary of America (RSA) but is often referred to as just Chofetz Chaim as that was the nickname of its namesake, Yisroel Meir Kagan. It has affiliate branches in Israel and North America.

History

Brooklyn

The Yeshiva was established in 1933 by Rabbi Dovid Leibowitz, a great-nephew of the Chofetz Chaim. Leibowitz was a disciple of Nosson Tzvi Finkel and he also studied under Naftoli Trop at the Yeshiva in Radun, Belarus. The yeshiva was named for Leibowitz's great uncle, Rabbi Yisroel Meir Kagan, who had died that year. It is officially named Yeshivas Rabbeinu Yisrael Meir HaKohen, but is often referred to simply as Chofetz Chaim, which is commonly used as a name for Kagan, after his book with the same title. Chofetz Chaim means "desires life" in Hebrew. The Yeshiva's first building was in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Queens

In December 1955 it relocated to Forest Hills, Queens. Most recently, at the start of the 2003 academic year, the Yeshiva relocated to Kew Gardens Hills, Queens.

Leadership

After Leibowitz died in December 1941, he was succeeded as head by his son, Henoch Leibowitz, a role held in the 21st century by Dovid Harris and Akiva Grunblatt. The yeshiva houses a boys' secondary school or Mesivta, Yeshiva Preparatory High School, headed for many years by Rabbi Zechariah Fendel, an undergraduate yeshiva, and a rabbinical school that grants Semicha (ordination). Rabbinical students at the yeshiva often spend a decade or more there, studying a traditional yeshiva curriculum focusing on Talmud, mussar ("ethics"), and halakha ("Jewish law").

Characteristics

The yeshiva is known for six primary characteristics that distinguish it from other schools:

Affiliates and branches by location

The network of affiliated schools was selectively built over many decades by Henoch, including, in 1964, the first Israeli branch.

United States

Canada

Israel

Notable alumni