Applying yeshiva learning to the world

A new kind of yeshiva where students learn by doing

By RIVKAH LAMBERT ADLER
Rabbi Avi Grossman and a student examine olives (photo credit: BAT-CHEN GROSSMAN)
Rabbi Avi Grossman and a student examine olives
(photo credit: BAT-CHEN GROSSMAN)
Rabbi Avi and Bat-Chen Grossman are working to change the way Torah is taught and learned in Jerusalem. They’ve begun recruiting for a new yeshiva program for English-speaking men that puts its emphasis on applying what is learned in the classroom.
They named their new program Torah L’Maaseh, which carries the connotation of applied or practical Torah. And that’s exactly the kind of learning they plan to accentuate when the program opens in the autumn of 2018. With a maximum class size of 25 men up to age 25, the Grossmans are preparing for a year of learning and then doing.
“Everything learned in the Beit Midrash [study hall] is then experienced, and the experience usually makes the learning deeper,” Rabbi Grossman elaborates. “For example, you learn the halachot [laws] of the arba’a minim [four species of Sukkot: lulav (palm branch), etrog (citron), hadassim (myrtle) and aravot (willow)]. You know it, but at the end of the day you go buy your arba’a minim from the dealer and that’s it.
“But when you have to pick your own arba’a minim, you suddenly have to know those halachot that very few others know, in order to make sure you are picking kosher ones, and it solidifies the material you studied.”
To a large extent, the inspiration for this approach comes both from the way Rabbi Grossman learns and prefers to teach. “It’s my natural way of presenting anything. I have always been the type of guy who hears about something and wants to test it out. I want to do it myself. I want to try it out. I want to see how to do it. When I know how to do something, it’s easier for me to teach it and I find it goes over much better if we actually do it while teaching it.
“People like that a lot more. They want to see how to build a sukka. They want to see how to make matza. They want to keep kosher. They want to understand what the melachot [categories of work that are forbidden on Shabbat] are. They want to know why the lightbulb, which did not exist in Temple times, would be forbidden on Shabbat according to Torah law.”
The Grossmans made aliya with an infant daughter from Queens, New York, in 2007, just after Avi was granted rabbinic ordination. Today the couple lives in Kochav Ya’acov and their family has grown to include three more daughters and a son, all born in Israel.
Before coming to Israel, Avi began his career as a synagogue rabbi in Jackson Heights, NY. The couple turned down an offer for him to serve as a campus-based rabbi in California in order to make aliya.
Upon arriving in Israel, the Grossmans served as house parents for a now-defunct yeshiva. Later, Avi taught at Yerushalayim Torah Academy, a high school for boys from English-speaking countries, as well as in several other prestigious men’s Torah institutions, including Shapell’s and Yeshivat Hakotel.
“These yeshivas are all good educational systems and are amazing at what they do,” Avi reflected. “But I realized that keeping the students in an Anglo bubble was, for many of them, a disadvantage. The stronger students were not getting the tools they needed in order to succeed in Israel. We couldn’t find a yeshiva setting that offered a high level of Torah study, the acquisition of real-life skills, and the tools needed for integration into Israeli society.”
Which is why the couple is so enthusiastic about Torah L’Maaseh’s partnership with Yeshivat Ramot. Avi’s wife, Bat-Chen, is no stranger to Jewish education. As the daughter of a community rabbi father and educator mother, she “grew up breathing Torah, education and empowerment to love life.”
Bat-Chen, who is responsible for “all the behind the scene stuff,” says, “Yeshivat Ramot is an amazing place.
When we came to speak to the rosh yeshiva, Rav David Avihayil, about our program, he wanted first to introduce his yeshiva to us. 
“He said, ‘Here, everything is relevant!’ We were elated. Then, when we described our program to him, he was ecstatic. We worked together to seamlessly integrate Torah L’Maaseh’s program into the yeshiva as a whole.”
The students at Torah L’Maaseh live in the same dorm, share meals, learn from the same teachers, and join with the Israeli students of Yeshivat Ramot for trips and Shabbat experiences. Rabbi Grossman emphasized the importance of the Jerusalem location.
“Most yeshivas that promote integration are outside the city, and we feel that Jerusalem enhances the experience. The Ramot neighborhood is wonderful and offers the accessibility our students need.”
Integration is one of the core principles of Torah L’Maaseh. The goal for their students is “Integrate! Get out of your bubble and open yourself up to the real Israel! That includes breaking the language barrier, the cultural barriers and the fear of the unknown.
“Most people need a comfort zone and support system to succeed.
So we created our program to give the students the tools they need to succeed, while keeping them comfortable and supported.”
Bat-Chen explains that the ideal student for Torah L’Maaseh’s program “has a solid foundation in Gemara study and at least a basic knowledge of Hebrew, and wants to learn in a yeshiva that will not force him into a mold. Above all, he is intellectually honest.”
Since they will accept students up to age 25, it’s not a typical gapyear program for students just out of high school. “While we are very happy to accept the post-high-school students, we see that those who missed their gap year think that it was a once-in-alifetime opportunity and that they missed it. We want to make it clear that is not the case. We want to make it clear that Torah doesn’t expire, and neither does Israel.”
Bat-Chen also emphasized why her husband is uniquely positioned to craft the hands-on learning environment of Torah L’Maaseh. “Avi has a holistic approach to learning. He sees Hebrew language, Humash [Bible], Gemara [Talmud], and Halacha [Jewish law] as one unified discipline.
“He has a degree in biology and was studying pre-med before he decided to go into rabbinics. I think this has a lot to do with his approach. He’s used to labs and testing things out, asking questions, researching and finding out more. He’s amazing at pulling it all together and making it relevant. I see how his students thrive with this unique style.”
The Grossmans know the Torah L’Maaseh approach works because, as Avi relates, it’s worked with the toughest audience of all: their own children. “While everyone else is complaining about eating matza, my kids are eager to finally eat it. They can’t wait.
Why? Because we make our matza at home. They see the process.
They smell the excitement and it carries over to the Seder and the rest of the holiday. We own these mitzvot.”
At first, the couple concentrated on bringing their distinctive learning approach to existing programs. But it soon became clear that, as Bat-Chen explains, “We had to do this! I wish you could see how much fun we have had as a couple, planning and executing our goals and making our dreams a reality.”