The Center for the Study of Rabbinic Thought was launched in 1998 as a unique intellectual framework to address the significance of Rabbinic thought as an independent discipline. The Center’s goal was to revive our connection to Talmudic roots and to shed light on Rabbinic thought as a formative work of Jewish faith and culture.

In 1999, Beit Morasha opened the Moshe Green Beit Midrash for Women’s Leadership. This was a pioneering Beit Midrash for advanced Talmudic study to empower women to become educational leaders in Israeli high schools and institutes for advanced Jewish learning. Similar to the other Beit Midrash programs at Beit Morasha, this program involved the full integration of advanced Talmudic studies and academic disciplines.

The Prof. Ernest Schwarcz Institute for Ethics, Judaism and State was established in 2000. It was the first research forum of its kind, in which the interaction between Jewish ethics and Israeli democracy were discussed in terms of spiritual, philosophic and existential categories relating to Israel as a democratic and sovereign Jewish state. The Institute addressed contemporary moral dilemmas through study, research, conferences, and publications.

Beit Morasha expanded and honed its teaching and research concepts with the founding of the Robert M. Beren College in 2002. The college incorporated all of the Beit Midrash programs, the publishing department, and two research institutes. Beren College programs rested on a unique interdisciplinary approach that combined advanced, traditional, and classical Yeshiva learning with the best of the academic world, introducing a full synergy of knowledge, methodologies, and disciplines.

Beit Morasha continues to advance innovative Jewish thought through its programs, and through its academic journal, Akdamot, which publishes essays on varied topics reflecting classical and contemporary Jewish thought.