An ex yeshiva student with a life-long love and appreciation of Jewish texts and a fresh and sometimes heterodox perspective on their meaning, intent and practical (halachic) implications.

At age fourteen, I was exposed to a Hasidic Shabbos in Williamsburg Brooklyn by Rav Shmuel Dishon, a Karlin-Stolin Hasid and life-long Rebbe and friend. Thus began my lifelong journey, full of wonderlust and wanderlust to explore my Jewish roots and establish my Judaic legacy.

I transferred from The Dalton School in New York City to study and board at Yeshiva Torah Vodaas in Flatbush where I was privileged to be exposed to Rav Moshe Wolfson, the Mashgiach and a living, shining example of the best of the Hasidic and mystical traditions. Every Wednesday night, I would “steal” out of the Yeshiva to take a course in “The Prayer Book” at the 92nd St. Y from Rabbi Norman Lamm and attend a lecture at Lincoln Square Synagogue from Rabbi Shlomo Riskin. After graduating Torah Vodaas, I studied at the Mesivta of Long Beach for a year before transferring to Yeshivat Be’er Yaakov in Israel and had the honor of studying with and being part of a vaad hamussar with Rav Shlomo Wolbe zt’l, arguably the last great master of Mussar.

After six years in the Yeshiva world I asked permission to take the Eged bus to the ZOA House in Tel Aviv to prepare (en route) and take the SAT. I received a BA in Philosophy and Economics from Columbia College and was fortunate to have Prof. Sidney “Magnificent” Morgenbesser as my advisor, with a course in New Testament from Elaine Pagels and in the Graduate School with David Weiss HaLivini in Talmud and Moshe Held in Ugaritic Wisdom Literature.

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