Bruria David - Biography

Bruria David (born 1936) is a Haredi Jewish rebbetzin and Torah scholar. She is the founder and dean of Beth Jacob Jerusalem (commonly known as BJJ), a prestigious Haredi religious girls seminary located in the Unsdorf neighborhood of Jerusalem, Israel. She is the only child of Rabbi Yitzchok Hutner, rosh yeshiva of Yeshiva Rabbi Chaim Berlin, and the wife of Rabbi Yonasan David, rosh yeshiva of Yeshiva Pachad Yitzchok in Jerusalem's Har Nof neighborhood. Together with her husband and parents, she was on one of the airplanes hijacked by the Black September terrorists in 1970.

Early life and education

David is the daughter of Rabbi Yitzchok Hutner and his rebbetzin, Masha Lipshitz. Her parents married in 1933 and moved to Palestine, but returned to New York a year later, where Bruria was born.

She received her doctorate in history from Columbia University in 1971 as a student of Salo Baron.. Her dissertation, titled The Dual Role of Rabbi Zvi Hirsch Chajes: Traditionalist and Maskil, demonstrates a thorough mastery of the secondary material, and deals with Rabbi Chajes's relationships in the traditional world of Orthodox Judaism.

BJJ

Dr. David founded Beth Jacob Jerusalem (BJJ) in the early 1960s as a post-high-school seminary geared for American and Israeli graduates of Bais Yaakov who wish to pursue Torah study on an advanced academic level. The seminary also provides professional training toward a teaching degree. Dr. David personally interviews each applicant to maintain the school's reputation as one of the "elite" institutions in the Haredi world.

Black September hijacking

In 1970 Rabbi and Mrs. David accompanied her father and mother on a trip to Israel. During their return flight to New York on 6 September 1970, their plane was hijacked by the PFLP Palestinian terrorist organization. The terrorists freed the non-Jewish passengers and held the Jewish passengers hostage on the plane for one week, after which the women and children – including Dr. David and her mother – were released and sent to Cyprus. The hijacked airplanes were subsequently detonated. The remaining 40-plus Jewish men – including Rabbi Hutner, Rabbi David, and two students accompanying Rabbi Hutner, Rabbi Meir Fund and Rabbi Yaakov Drillman – and male flight crew continued to be held hostage in and around Amman, Jordan; Rabbi Hutner was held alone in an isolated location while Jews around the world prayed fervently for his safe return. Rabbi Hutner and Rabbi David were finally released on 26 September and flown to Nicosia, Cyprus. On 28 September Rabbi Hutner, Rabbi David, their wives and students were flown back to New York via Europe, and were home in time for the first night of Rosh Hashana.

Scholarship

Together with her husband, Rabbi Yonasan David, Dr. David edited the works of her father, entitled Pachad Yitzchok (Dread of Isaac). The couple also complied and published the official biography of Rabbi Hutner, entitled "Sefer HaZikaron" (Book of Remembrance).

External links

• Bruria Hutner David's full PhD thesis (PDF)