Rav Shagar

In Elul, 5756 (1996), Rav Shagar and Rav Yair Dreifus established Yeshivat Siach Yitzhak. From the outset, Rav Shagar was the central influence on the beit midrash; the yeshiva was intended as a home base for his teachings and his leadership, after many years of filling different roles in other study frameworks. During the years that Rav Shagar served as Rosh Yeshiva, until his passing in 2007, he succeeded in leaving an indelible impression, characterized by his unique religious language, his uncompromising insistence on honesty, and his quest for real renewal. The yeshiva became Rav Shagar’s main channel of expression and influence on ever-broadening circles.

Since his death, the language that Rav Shagar taught and inculcated continues to mold the discourse, and Rav Dreifus and the rest of the staff, consisting of students from Rav Shagar’s final years, are passing it on to students who never met him. At the same time, the transition from his direct presence to his influence in the form of the lasting impression that he made on others opens the door to new developments. Chazal taught that the most appropriate tikkun for the soul of the departed is ‘to set a yeshiva upon his grave’: not a rigid, frozen monument commemorating the past, but rather a place of vitality and renewal. Today, Rav Shagar’s teachings are studied at the yeshiva in the same piercing depth with which he would engage in the teachings of others. Along with study and dissemination of his Torah, there is also profound discussion of its significance in relation to the current reality and the directions in which we should advance it.

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To learn more about Rav Shagar and his Torah, visit the website of the institute for the advancement of Rav Shagar’s writings.

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In 15/6/2017, ten years after the passing of Rav Shagar, took place in jerusalem a day of study and reflection in his memory. during that day were given four lecutures in english on various subjects in Rav Shagar’s thought. you can watch those lectures here:

Rav Aaron Leibowitz: Religious Pluralism from an Orthodox Perspective

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Rav Dr. Zvi Leshem: From Shame to Shining: Rav Shagar vision of Teshuva

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Dr. Miriam Feldmann Kaye: Prayer as Promise

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Rav Ari Silberman and Dr. Eitan Abramovitch: Rav Shagar’s Approach to Psak