“Holy city of Tel Aviv” – Non-religious YESHIVA

Some 150 students are expected this week to attend the first non-religious yeshiva, which will open its gates in the holy city of Tel Aviv.? It is an initiative of the BINA Center for Jewish Identity and Hebrew Culture, which has decided to establish a yeshiva in the heart of the big city that will combine Torah studies with military service and which is designated for the non-religious public.

The yeshiva students will study for one year and will then be drafted to the Israel Defense Forces for full military service. In the middle of the service they will take a one-year yeshiva study break.

Each day the students will study Gmara and Halacha. Two days a week, the students will leave the Gmara studies and will occupy themselves with social activity in the southern part of Tel Aviv. Once in every two weeks, the students will stay at the yeshiva for Shabbat.

The tuition was set at NIS 5,000 (about USD 1,140) a year. The lecture team includes writer Dov Alboim who will teach Hassidism and Kabbalah and famous lecturer Rabbi Yoel Bin-Nun.

The yeshiva is headed by Tal Shaked who was a lawyer at the State Prosecutor’s Office.

Shaked explained: “The studying process for each student will be characterized by a personal, internal test through Jewish texts. The positioning of the yeshiva in the heart of everyday activities in Tel Aviv indicates the non-religious yeshiva’s aim to be a leading pioneer.”