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Rabbi David Sperling

Sivan 24, 5774
Question
Can a convert become a rosh yeshiva?
Answer
Shalom, Thank you for your question. Interestingly, the source of the answer that Rabbi Lewis wrote (to which your question is a follow-up) addresses the very issue you raise. Rav Feinstein zt"l (Igrot Mosher YD 4,26) was asked whether a convert may be appointed as a Rosh Yeshiva. His answer is that it is permitted. The reasoning being that today we need to be especially careful with the mitzvah of loving the convert. That being so, we should try to be lenient in these issues where there is room to do so. In the case of teachers, and even heads of educational institutions today, the appointments are not really of positions of authority, but rather simple employment that manages the class or school which are entered into by the students through choice. The students choose the yeshiva, and as such the Rosh Yeshiva has a different status than that of the official positions of authority the Talmud talks about when limiting the appointment of converts. Based on this Rav Feinstein zt"l ruled that it is permitted. Blessings.
את המידע הדפסתי באמצעות אתר yeshiva.org.il