Rabbi Yosef Blau to Make Aliyah After 48 Years at YU
Rabbi Yosef Blau, who has served as senior Mashgiach Ruchani at Yeshiva University for nearly half a century, will be making aliyah with his wife on March 26.
Rabbi Blau’s departure, confirmed in an email to The Commentator, marks the end of an influential 48-year tenure at YU. Though he will now be based in Israel, he plans to return to New York periodically to continue mentoring students.
“We plan to spend part of the year in New York,” Rabbi Blau told The Commentator. “When here, I will be in my place in the Beis Medrash to meaningfully interact with the next generation of students.”
Rabbi Blau has been Mashgiach Ruchani at YU since 1977. In his role, he has guided thousands of students, many of whom have gone on to become leaders in Jewish communities worldwide. For the past decade, he has also spent two days a week in the Beren Campus’s beit midrash.
“During my years as Mashgiach I have been able to interact with generations of students,” he told The Commentator. “Yeshiva plays a major role in Jewish life in America. It has been an honor to be one of the graduates of Yeshiva who successfully continued the legacy of our teachers, the European Roshei Yeshiva.”
Rabbi Blau, a lifelong Religious Zionist, always planned to make aliyah. Twelve years ago, he and his wife purchased an apartment in Jerusalem in anticipation of the move — which he also sees as part of a larger mission.
“I intend to advocate for a religious Zionism dedicated to improving the religious character of the state,” he told The Commentator, “focusing on its moral and ethical values.”
Rabbi Blau’s ties to Yeshiva University span more than seventy years. He attended Yeshiva University High School for Boys in Brooklyn and graduated from Yeshiva College in 1959 with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics. He later earned a master’s degree from the Belfer Graduate School of Science and received semikha from RIETS, where he studied under Rav Joseph B. Soloveitchik.
In 1977, Rabbi Blau was appointed Mashgiach Ruchani by Rav Soloveitchik and Rabbi Norman Lamm. Over the years, he has also held leadership roles outside YU, serving as principal of Maimonides School, Hebrew Theological College and the Jewish Educational Center (JEC). He was president of Yavneh, an organization supporting Jewish students on secular campuses, and later led the Religious Zionists of America.
Beyond his work in education, Rabbi Blau has been a vocal advocate in the fight against child abuse in the Jewish community. He is a board member of Jewish Community Watch and serves as posek for ZA’AKAH, an organization combating child sexual abuse. He has also contributed articles to The Times of Israel and The Commentator.
“It brings me mixed feelings to hear that Rabbi Blau is making Aliyah,” Ezra Lebowitz (YC ‘27) told The Commentator. “On the one hand, it is important to live in Israel. For one of our Roshei Yeshiva to exemplify that for us cannot be understated. On the other hand, it makes me a bit sad. Although Rabbi Blau doesn’t take the spotlight very often, he has an indelible impact on the Talmidim and his absence will be felt.”
Yedidya Blau (YC ‘25), grandson of Rabbi Blau, thanked his grandfather for his years of hard work and dedication to his students.
“My grandfather, in addition to being a Talmid Chacham, is involved in countless Jewish foundations and programs,” Blau told The Commentator. “[But] the general impact he has had on Yeshiva University and the broader Jewish community will be most missed in his interaction with the student body.
“My grandfather has dedicated his time in yeshiva to supporting each and every student on both campuses,” Blau said. “For almost 50 years, he has served the student body in every way, attending student’s activities and programs, going on YU missions during winter break and sitting in the beit midrash every day.
“This commitment has impacted thousands of students across all Jewish communities and is leaving behind giant shoes to fill.”
Photo Caption: Rabbi Yosef Blau
Photo Credit: Yeshiva University
