The two new rabbis will serve alongside Rabbi Aharon Lichtenstein, who has served as co-Rosh Yeshiva since 1971.
Rabbi Medan, 55, is a leading figure in the religious-Zionist rabbinic world, and a renowned expert in Bible studies. In 1968, he joined the first class at Yeshivat Har Etzion, served later in the IDF in the Armored Corps in the Hesder Program, and returned afterwards to the Yeshiva as a rabbi/teacher. He earned his rabbinical ordination from the Yeshiva, a Bachelor of Education degree from Michlala in Jerusalem, and an M.A. from Touro College. In 2000, he served as a board member of the Ne'eman Committee school of conversion, and thus became involved, together with Prof. Ruth Gavison, in composing a renewed pact for religious-secular relations, for which he was awarded the Avichai Prize.
Rabbi Gigi came to Israel from Morocco at the age of 11, and joined Yeshivat Har Etzion in 1975. He earned his rabbinical ordination at the Yeshiva, and a Bachelor of Education degree from Herzog College. From1983-1988, Rabbi Gigi served as a senior lecturer at the Maalot Hesder Yeshiva in the north, and since 1988, he has been a lecturer at Yeshivat Har Etzion. He is the Rabbi of the Sephardic Synagogue in Alon Shvut, and teaches in several institutions.
Asked earlier this year about those who proposed suspending Independence Day celebrations because of the expulsion, Rabbi Medan told Arutz-7, "The State is not Omri Sharon, and Independence Day is not just a day of barbecues. We must continue to thank G-d on this day and to recite the Hallel prayer of thanksgiving and praise. This is a day of making an accounting and of thanking G-d for the great miracles He has done for us and continues to do for us."
However, in an interview with Haaretz shortly afterwards, Rabbi Medan said that the religious-Zionist camp had erred in preferring the secular camp over the hareidi-religious: "In order to forge an alliance with the secular elites, we neglected our more natural alliance with the hareidi public. Today I think that was a mistake. In the future we will behave differently. In the past, with all the disagreements, I thought there was also something we could learn from the secular elite. After I saw the secular elite stick a knife in my back and turn away from its own values - democracy and human rights - I have no more to learn from them. After all, from the standpoint of democracy, what happened here is a disgrace; and what happened here from the viewpoint of the judicial system’s protection of human rights is a shame. The courts, the press, the research institutes - no one heard us. No one heard our outcry. But it is not just us. The democratic elite did not remain loyal to the values in the name of which it spoke all these years. Therefore there are no positive values I can get from them. I have a serious problem with them.”
Concerning the 34-year relationship of Rabbis Amital and Lichtenstein, the yeshiva's website states, "The special atmosphere of the Yeshiva has been created by the continuity of leadership of Rav Yehuda Amital and Rav Aharon Lichtenstein, who merge the best traditions of Judaic studies with a pragmatic grasp of the modern world. These two Roshei Yeshiva – very different in background, temperament, and approach – provide a shining example of successful joint leadership built on mutual respect. This model serves to guide and elevate the personal and professional lives of the alumni, long after they have left the Yeshiva."
Rabbi Medan, 55, is a leading figure in the religious-Zionist rabbinic world, and a renowned expert in Bible studies. In 1968, he joined the first class at Yeshivat Har Etzion, served later in the IDF in the Armored Corps in the Hesder Program, and returned afterwards to the Yeshiva as a rabbi/teacher. He earned his rabbinical ordination from the Yeshiva, a Bachelor of Education degree from Michlala in Jerusalem, and an M.A. from Touro College. In 2000, he served as a board member of the Ne'eman Committee school of conversion, and thus became involved, together with Prof. Ruth Gavison, in composing a renewed pact for religious-secular relations, for which he was awarded the Avichai Prize.
Rabbi Gigi came to Israel from Morocco at the age of 11, and joined Yeshivat Har Etzion in 1975. He earned his rabbinical ordination at the Yeshiva, and a Bachelor of Education degree from Herzog College. From1983-1988, Rabbi Gigi served as a senior lecturer at the Maalot Hesder Yeshiva in the north, and since 1988, he has been a lecturer at Yeshivat Har Etzion. He is the Rabbi of the Sephardic Synagogue in Alon Shvut, and teaches in several institutions.
Asked earlier this year about those who proposed suspending Independence Day celebrations because of the expulsion, Rabbi Medan told Arutz-7, "The State is not Omri Sharon, and Independence Day is not just a day of barbecues. We must continue to thank G-d on this day and to recite the Hallel prayer of thanksgiving and praise. This is a day of making an accounting and of thanking G-d for the great miracles He has done for us and continues to do for us."
However, in an interview with Haaretz shortly afterwards, Rabbi Medan said that the religious-Zionist camp had erred in preferring the secular camp over the hareidi-religious: "In order to forge an alliance with the secular elites, we neglected our more natural alliance with the hareidi public. Today I think that was a mistake. In the future we will behave differently. In the past, with all the disagreements, I thought there was also something we could learn from the secular elite. After I saw the secular elite stick a knife in my back and turn away from its own values - democracy and human rights - I have no more to learn from them. After all, from the standpoint of democracy, what happened here is a disgrace; and what happened here from the viewpoint of the judicial system’s protection of human rights is a shame. The courts, the press, the research institutes - no one heard us. No one heard our outcry. But it is not just us. The democratic elite did not remain loyal to the values in the name of which it spoke all these years. Therefore there are no positive values I can get from them. I have a serious problem with them.”
Concerning the 34-year relationship of Rabbis Amital and Lichtenstein, the yeshiva's website states, "The special atmosphere of the Yeshiva has been created by the continuity of leadership of Rav Yehuda Amital and Rav Aharon Lichtenstein, who merge the best traditions of Judaic studies with a pragmatic grasp of the modern world. These two Roshei Yeshiva – very different in background, temperament, and approach – provide a shining example of successful joint leadership built on mutual respect. This model serves to guide and elevate the personal and professional lives of the alumni, long after they have left the Yeshiva."