BOREHAMWOOD KOLLEL
Kollel Toras Chanoch
Who We Are
Dayan Chanoch Ehrentreu זצ"ל
Nosi of Borehamwood Kollel
Dayan Chanoch Ehrentreu זצ"ל served for many years as the head of the London Beth Din. Formerly he was the Rosh Beth Din of Manchester and prior to that he was the Rosh Kollel of the Sunderland.
The Dayan was awarded the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany in recognition of his contribution to the German Jewish community. He was also one of the biggest halachic authorities in Europe with expertise in cutting edge medical and business law.
The Dayan had the vision which has developed into the Borehamwood Kollel.
Rabbi Yehuda Boruch Lieberman
Rosh Kollel
Rabbi Lieberman spent over 15 years in the world's most prestigious Torah institutions including Gateshead, Mir and Brisk before arriving in England to lead Edgware Kollel. He has overseen the personal development of the kollel graduates as well as the impact they have had on the wider community. Through the Kollel, Rabbi Lieberman spearheaded numerous successful communal learning initiatives, inspiring the broader community far beyond the walls of the study hall. This has lead to him becoming well known for his ability to communicate the deepest of Torah ideas with clarity and warmth. He brings all that experience to Borehamwood Kollel.
Rabbi Gary Bazak
Director of Education
Rabbi Gary's background is with Seed in the area of communal impact. He spearheaded the educational creativity in some of Seed's flagship projects such as their famous residential seminars, the family education programme in Jewish primary schools, and most recently, played a major role in the establishing of Borehamwood Kollel.
He is well known for his rare ability to communicate the deepest ideas to both the expert and the novice with dynamism and his trademark humour.
Rabbi Chaim Burman
Director of Community Engagement
Rabbi Burman, together with his wife Abi, lead the community engagement of the Kollel and ensure that the Kollel maximises its impact and benefit for the local community.
The Burmans are graduates of the Jerusalem-based Ner LeElef Institute for Jewish Leadership Training and founding members of the current Amsterdam Kollel. Previously a community rabbi, Rabbi Burman has a passion for Jewish education, community building and halachah. He holds 6 semichos (rabbinic ordination), an MA (Hons.) in Jewish Education and is completing a doctorate on the subject of truth theories in contemporary rabbinic literature.
Shiurim
About the Kollel
What is a Kollel?
From the earliest beginnings of the history of our people there have been individuals who dedicated their lives to the in-depth study of Torah, living and breathing the ideals and values of Torah. We are familiar with the concept of a Yeshiva; a Kollel is a variation on this theme and is in many respects a Yeshiva for married students. The word Kollel comes from the hebrew word klal, which means group or community. A community Kollel is a group of dedicated Jewish families who live, learn, and teach in the community. Kollel students spend their day immersed in Talmudic wisdom and then making that wisdom available to others who have less time to study.
I thought a Kollel was only in Israel. Are there many Kollelim (plural of Kollel) in the world?
In the last 50 years there has been a massive proliferation of community Kollelim around the globe. This is because there are many people who believe that access to Torah learning shouldn’t be a ‘post code lottery’.
This proliferation of the Community Kollel has been primarily in North America which has seen Kollelim from Toronto to Texas. Even Las Vegas has a Community Kollel!! There are Kollelim in South Africa, Australia and across Europe, East and West. In the UK Leeds, Edgware and Whitefield have a Community Kollel.
Under whose auspices is the Borehamwood Kollel?
The Borehamwood Kollel is an independent organisation established by Dayan Ehrentreu zt"l who inaugurated educational programmes across Europe. Rabbi Yehuda Boruch Lieberman leads the Kollel assisted by Rabbi Gary Bazak, a born and bred ‘Borehamwoodian’.
Why Borehamwood?
Borehamwood is the most vibrant Jewish community in Europe. It is an obvious choice for the location of a Kollel!