Community Magazine September 2009

F ew would argue that the famous Bet Midrash Gevoha (BMG) represents the most elite institution for higher Torah learning in America today. If BMG is the Harvard of yeshivot, then Lakewood is undoubtedly the Cambridge of Jewish academia. It’s no wonder then, why so many budding and established talmide hachamim (Torah scholars) have flocked to its environs. While the population in New Jersey has grown some 14 percent since 1990, according to the US Census Bureau, Lakewood’s population has exploded by over 63 percent during the same period. Not surprisingly, among the leading Jewish families who have settled in bastion of advanced Torah exploration recently, is a distinguished group of young Sephardic households, many of who are pursuing nothing less than the finest Jewish pedagogic experience. By some estimates, the Sephardic population of Lakewood has ballooned to about 500 families. But in a town that had scarcely a dozen Sephardic families just two decades ago, how would the treasured Sephardic customs and traditions be transmitted to the next generation? Eleven years ago, Rabbi Mordechai Dabbah rose to the occasion along with Mr. Ezra Erani and filled this gaping hole in the Jewish educational system in Lakewood, establishing Yeshivat Keter Torah, the town’s first Sephardic yeshiva for boys. Although Lakewood was already home to many fine yeshivot which did an excellent job of instilling yirat shamayim (fear of Heaven) and teaching Torah at very high standards, these were entirely Ashkenazic institutions and Lakewood’s Sephardic children had no opportunity to taste the special flavor of their unique mesorah , or to see Sephardic role models to whom they could relate, and feel a sense of belonging and pride in their family heritage. When Tradition Takes Priority The importance of Keter Torah’s mission to educate Sephardic students according to their family tradition goes far beyond simple community pride. Keter Torah was established with the philosophy that pure tradition is the backbone of our nation’s spiritual survival. Mesorah means passing on our customs, beliefs and lifestyle to the next generation. Each generation learns from the previous one, maintaining an unbroken chain that extends all the way back to Matan Torah . Although many varying customs have emerged among different communities due to the vicissitudes of exile, each community is obligated to maintain and observe its particular traditions precisely In a city brimming with first-rate Torah institutions, Rabbi Mordechai Dabbah’s Yeshivat Keter Torah has drawn especially wide acclaim, combining the highest academic standardswithanemphasis on thepersonal development of each student inaccordance with their rich Sephardic heritage. 42 COMMUNITY MAGAZINE