Established | 2009 |
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Founder | Rabba Sara Hurwitz and Rabbi Avi Weiss |
Religious affiliation | Jewish |
President | Rabba Sara Hurwitz |
Location | Bronx , New York 40°53′17″N 73°54′36″W / 40.888°N 73.910°W |
Language | English, Hebrew |
Website | https://www.yeshivatmaharat.org |
Yeshivat Maharat is a Jewish educational institution in The Bronx, New York, which is the first Orthodox-affiliated yeshiva in North America to ordain women.[1] The word Maharat (Hebrew: מהר״ת) is a Hebrew acronym for phrase manhiga hilkhatit rukhanit Toranit (Hebrew: מנהיגה הלכתית רוחנית תורנית), denoting a female "leader of Jewish law spirituality and Torah." Semikha is awarded to graduates after a 3- or 4-year-long program composed of intensive studies of Jewish law, Talmud, Torah, Jewish thought, leadership training, and pastoral counseling.[2] The ordination functions as a credentialed, albeit controversial, pathway for women in the Orthodox Jewish community to serve as clergy members.