Aryeh Carmell

Aryeh Carmell (1917–2006) was an Orthodox rabbi, scholar, and author.

Biography

Early life and education

Aryeh Carmell was born in London, England, in 1917, to a Russian family of Jews. He was educated at public (i.e. State) schools, and then by private tutors, the principal one being one of the outstanding Torah scholars of the generation, Rabbi Eliyahu Eliezer Dessler, later to become Rosh Yeshiva at Gateshead Yeshiva.

Career

Rabbi Carmell was a successful mortgage broker and real estate developer, living and working in London, England. His passion, however, was Torah study. In addition to giving regular classes in Torah at his home in the Stamford Hill neighborhood, he founded the Jewish Scholarship Center, the British Shabbos Observance Bureau and the Association of Orthodox Jewish Scientists. He was in constant communication with the prominent rabbis of the day. He also co-authored a Hebrew-language book entitled "Michtav Me'Eliyahu" ("A letter from Eliyahu"), which was the first written exposition of the philosophical teachings of Rabbi Dessler. "Michtav Me'Eliyahu" became a very popular work of philosophy and ethics, and was translated into several languages. Rabbi Carmell personally translated it into English (under the name "Strive for Truth!") and into modern Hebrew (the original work containing too much Aramaic for the average Hebrew speaker). In 1972, Rabbi Carmell and his family moved to Jerusalem, where he taught at the Jerusalem Institute ("Dvar Yerushalayim") and elsewhere and where he continued to write and publish.

In addition to "Strive for Truth!", he authored "Challenge: Torah views on science and its problems", "Aids to Talmud Study" and "Masterplan: Judaism, its program, meaning and goals", and edited "Encounter: Essays on Torah and modern life", all published by Feldheim Publishers.

Death and afterward

He died in Jerusalem in September 2006.

References

• Rabbi Aryeh Carmell, ztz”l: Some Recollections of a Great Man, Rabbi Nathan Slifkin
• HaRav Aryeh Carmell, זצ"ל, Rav Avraham Chaim Carmell (his son)

Persondata
Name	Carmell, Aryeh
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Date of birth	1917
Place of birth
Date of death	2006
Place of death