RIETS Graduate Halacha Programs Certificate and Master’s Programs in Bioethics, Business Ethics, and Jewish Law The RIETS Graduate Halacha Programs offer rigorous, applied Torah learning for those seeking to engage the most complex questions of contemporary life. Business Halacha Curriculum Contact Us Artificial Intelligence Biotechnology Computer Science Cybersecurity Data Analytics and Visualization Digital Marketing and Media Mathematics Nursing Occupational Therapy Physician Assistant Physics Speech-Language Pathology Bioethics & Jewish Law The Bioethics & Jewish Law program equips students to understand how Halacha intersects with contemporary medical and bioethical challenges, preparing them to navigate complex moral dilemmas in healthcare, family, communal, and clinical settings. View Bioethics Certificate View Bioethics Master’s View Bioethics CoursesBusiness Ethics & Jewish Law The Business Ethics & Jewish Law program equips clergy, professionals, and community leaders with the ethical, analytical, and halakhic tools necessary to navigate contemporary business practice through the lens of Jewish legal thought.View Business Ethics Certificate View Business Ethics Master’s View Business Ethics Courses About the ProgramClasses begin September 2026. RIETS Graduate Halacha Programs are designed for students who want to bring deep Torah learning into conversation with the practical questions facing modern Jewish life. Through rigorous study of classical and contemporary sources, applied case analysis, and live discussion with leading faculty, students develop the tools to think carefully, communicate clearly, and respond responsibly to difficult halakhic and ethical questions. Why These Programs Matter Bioethics Focus Modern medicine raises urgent questions about fertility, end-of-life care, capacity, surgery, public health, emerging technologies, and the role of families, physicians, rabbis, and communities in medical decision-making. Business Ethics FocusModern business life raises equally serious questions about honesty, competition, markets, employment, finance, debt, acquisition, real estate, corporate structure, consumer protection, and communal responsibility. Objectives Bioethics & Jewish Law Objectives Students will learn to engage questions in: Students in RIETS Graduate Halacha Programs will:Receive training that prepares them to help patients and families navigate conflicts or challenges they may encounter within the healthcare system with halakhic clarity, ethical sensitivity, and practical judgment. Learn to apply classical and contemporary Torah sources to real-world questions in fertility, surgery, end-of-life care, diminished capacity, public health, and emerging medical technologies. Build the language and confidence to participate thoughtfully in conversations about medical ethics, patient care, and communal guidance.Understand how halakhic decision-making interacts with broader bioethical frameworks, including autonomy, best interests, informed consent, and human dignity. Prepare to serve as informed and sensitive resources for families, communities, and professionals navigating difficult healthcare decisions.Business Ethics & Jewish Law Objectives Students will learn to engage questions in: Master the core halachic frameworks that govern commercial life — including kinyanim, ona'ah, ribbis, geneivas da'as, and hasagas gevul — and trace their development from the Gemara through contemporary poskim.Apply classical sources to the realities of modern commerce, from corporate structures and equity investments to real estate transactions, brokerage, and debt finance.Recognize halachic questions embedded in everyday professional life that often go unnoticed — in negotiation, marketing, hiring, competition, and contracts — and develop the instincts to ask before acting.Understand the interaction between halacha and secular commercial law, including when civil law carries halachic weight (dina d'malchusa, minhag hasochrim) and how the two systems approach the same problems differently.Analyze employer-employee relationships through Torah sources — wages, working conditions, obligations, and rights — and apply those principles to modern workplace structures.Develop competence in halachic dispute resolution, including the role of beis din, business mediation, and how commercial disagreements are addressed within Jewish law.Integrate Torah values into professional identity, so that a career in business becomes not a challenge to religious life but an arena for it. Who Should ApplyThis program was built for people who take both their Torah and their daily responsibilities seriously. Perhaps you spend your days in the world of Business and have always sensed that halacha has something to say about your work but have never had the opportunity to study it in a serious and sustained way. Or perhaps you are simply drawn to an area of Torah that is intellectually rich, endlessly practical, and central to what it means to live a fully observant life. Whatever brings you here, the program asks only two things: a readiness to learn rigorously, and a desire to bring halacha into the arena where most of life is actually lived. No prior background in business is required. Advanced Certificate in Jewish BioethicsIncludes:Two coursesBioethics & Jewish Law IBioethics & Jewish Law IIOffered in successive semestersEach course includes weekly online sessions and one in-person seminarTotal cost: $6,000, or $3,000 per courseOpportunities to meet with and learn from distinguished Roshei YeshivaMaster’s Degree in Bioethics & Jewish LawIncludes:30 creditsCertificate and foundation coursesCore coursesElectivesCapstone thesisRemote and synchronous learningCan be completed in one year full-time or over multiple years part-timeBioethics Course BreakdownCertificate/Foundation Courses — 6 CreditsHAL 6301 Bioethics & Jewish Law I — 3 creditsHAL 6302 Bioethics & Jewish Law II — 3 creditsCore Requirements — 12 CreditsHAL 6311 Fertility & Infertility (ART) — 3 creditsHAL 6312 Surgery — 3 creditsHAL 6313 Death & Dying — 3 creditsHAL 6314 Fetal Life & Abortion — 3 creditsElective Requirements — 8 CreditsStudents choose from:HAL 6321 DNA & Lineage — 2 creditsHAL 6322 Diminished Capacity — 2 creditsHAL 6323 Defining Death — 2 creditsHAL 6324 Public Health & Research Ethics — 2 creditsHAL 6325 History of Jewish Bioethics — 2 creditsHAL 6328 Emerging Technologies in Jewish Bioethics — 2 creditsCapstone Thesis — 4 CreditsHAL 6391 Thesis I: Research — 2 creditsHAL 6392 Thesis II: Writing — 2 creditsAdvanced Certificate in Business Ethics & Jewish LawIncludes:Two coursesBusiness Ethics & Jewish Law IBusiness Ethics & Jewish Law IISynchronous online delivery$3,000 per courseCertificate courses serve as the foundation for further master’s studyMaster’s Degree in Business Ethics & Jewish LawIncludes: 30 Credits6 certificate credits21 master’s course credits3-credit thesisFour Concentration AreasReal EstateSalesFinanceManagementBusiness Ethics Core CoursesWorkplace EthicsTheft and FraudJewish Law FundamentalsBusiness Ethics & Jewish Law Course BreakdownCertificate/Foundation Courses — 6 CreditsHAL 6303 Business Ethics & Jewish Law I — 3 creditsHAL 6304 Business Ethics & Jewish Law II — 3 creditsCore Requirements — 9 CreditsHAL 6331 Workplace Ethics — 3 creditsHAL 6332 Theft & Fraud — 3 creditsHAL 6333 Jewish Law Fundamentals — 3 creditsElective Requirements — 12 CreditsReal EstateHAL 6341 Real Estate Development & Acquisition — 3 creditsHAL 6342 Brokerage in Jewish Law — 3 creditsManagementHAL 6343 Employee Rights & Obligations I — 3 creditsHAL 6344 Employee Rights & Obligations II — 3 creditsSalesHAL 6345 Acquisitions in Jewish Law — 3 creditsHAL 6346 Consumer Protection — 3 creditsHAL 6347 Marketing — 3 creditsHAL 6348 Monopoly Power & Market Economics — 3 creditsFinanceHAL 6349 Debt Finance (Ribbis) I — 3 creditsHAL 6351 Debt Finance (Ribbis) II — 3 creditsHAL 6352 Corporate Structure — 3 creditsHAL 6353 Investments: Equity & Alternatives — 3 creditsCapstone Thesis — 3 CreditsHAL 6393 Capstone Thesis — 3 credits ``` Bioethics Faculty Rabbi Kalman Laufer Areas of expertiseShort one-line description Read Bio Rabbi Kalman Laufer Rabbi Kalman Laufer serves as faculty at both Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»â€™s Isaac Breuer College and Stern College for Women teaching courses in Medical & Business Ethics. Rabbi Laufer completed his Semikha (Yorah Yorah) at RIETS in 2017 and is currently pursuing Yadin Yadin (Dayanus) in the Rabbi Norman Lamm Kollel L’Horaah at RIETS under the auspices of Rabbi J. David Bleich and Rabbi Mordechai Willig. Rabbi Laufer graduated Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»â€™s Sy Syms School of Business with a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance and a Master’s Degree in Accounting as well as a Master’s degree in Bioethics from Albert Einstein College of Medicine/Cardozo Law School. Rabbi Laufer focuses his studies in areas of Bioethics and Medical Halacha specifically working on Halakhic issues that arise in caring for parents suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease or dementia. He also serves as an independent member of the St. John’s Riverside Hospital Ethics Committee. Rabbi Dr. Edward Reichman Areas of expertise Short one-line description Read Bio Rabbi Dr. Edward Reichman Rabbi Dr. Edward Reichman is a Professor of Emergency Medicine at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, where he also teaches Jewish medical ethics, and holds the Rabbi Isaac and Bella Tendler Chair in Jewish Medical Ethics at Yeshiva College. He received his B.A. from Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»; M.D. from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine; and Rabbinic Ordination from the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary. In addition to his full-time clinical practice in Emergency Medicine at Montefiore Medical Center, Rabbi Dr. Reichman lectures internationally on Jewish medical ethics and Jewish medical history. He has edited numerous books and penned many book chapters and journal articles, and his book, The Anatomy of Jewish Law: A Fresh Dissection of the Relationship Between Medicine, Medical History and Rabbinic Literature was published jointly by Koren/OU/Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³» presses. Rabbi Dr. David Shabtai Areas of expertise Short one-line description Read Bio Rabbi Dr. David Shabtai Rabbi Dr. David Shabtai brings a unique combination of rabbinic scholarship, medical expertise, and public health training to the bioethics program. He received his B.A. from Columbia University; M.D. from New York University School of Medicine; M.P.H. from Brown University School of Public Health; and Rabbinic Ordination from the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary, where he also completed the Wexner Kollel Elyon program. Rabbi Dr. Shabtai is a recognized authority in Jewish medical ethics, having authored Defining the Moment: Understanding Brain Death in Halakhah (Shoresh Press) and contributed chapters to numerous scholarly works on halakhic perspectives in modern medicine. He previously taught Jewish Perspectives on Bioethics at the Straus Center for Torah and Western Thought at Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³», presenting monthly seminars for advanced rabbinical students on the intersection of science and Judaism. His practical rabbinic experience includes serving as Rabbi of the Sephardic Minyan at Boca Raton Synagogue, where he regularly addressed medical halakhic queries and worked with organizations like Chayim Aruchim to liaise between families, rabbis, and hospitals. Rabbi Dr. Shabtai has coordinated vaccine policy committees for South Florida Jewish day schools and served on multiple medical advisory committees. His scholarly work appears in leading publications including the Medical Halachah Annual, Journal of Halacha and Contemporary Society, and Jewish Medical Ethics. Rabbi Kalman Laufer Areas of expertiseShort one-line description Read Bio Rabbi Kalman Laufer Rabbi Kalman Laufer serves as faculty at both Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»â€™s Isaac Breuer College and Stern College for Women teaching courses in Medical & Business Ethics. Rabbi Laufer completed his Semikha (Yorah Yorah) at RIETS in 2017 and is currently pursuing Yadin Yadin (Dayanus) in the Rabbi Norman Lamm Kollel L’Horaah at RIETS under the auspices of Rabbi J. David Bleich and Rabbi Mordechai Willig. Rabbi Laufer graduated Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»â€™s Sy Syms School of Business with a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance and a Master’s Degree in Accounting as well as a Master’s degree in Bioethics from Albert Einstein College of Medicine/Cardozo Law School. Rabbi Laufer focuses his studies in areas of Bioethics and Medical Halacha specifically working on Halakhic issues that arise in caring for parents suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease or dementia. He also serves as an independent member of the St. John’s Riverside Hospital Ethics Committee. Rabbi Dr. Edward Reichman Areas of expertise Short one-line description Read Bio Rabbi Dr. Edward Reichman Rabbi Dr. Edward Reichman is a Professor of Emergency Medicine at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, where he also teaches Jewish medical ethics, and holds the Rabbi Isaac and Bella Tendler Chair in Jewish Medical Ethics at Yeshiva College. He received his B.A. from Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»; M.D. from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine; and Rabbinic Ordination from the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary. In addition to his full-time clinical practice in Emergency Medicine at Montefiore Medical Center, Rabbi Dr. Reichman lectures internationally on Jewish medical ethics and Jewish medical history. He has edited numerous books and penned many book chapters and journal articles, and his book, The Anatomy of Jewish Law: A Fresh Dissection of the Relationship Between Medicine, Medical History and Rabbinic Literature was published jointly by Koren/OU/Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³» presses. Rabbi Dr. David Shabtai Areas of expertise Short one-line description Read Bio Rabbi Dr. David Shabtai Rabbi Dr. David Shabtai brings a unique combination of rabbinic scholarship, medical expertise, and public health training to the bioethics program. He received his B.A. from Columbia University; M.D. from New York University School of Medicine; M.P.H. from Brown University School of Public Health; and Rabbinic Ordination from the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary, where he also completed the Wexner Kollel Elyon program. Rabbi Dr. Shabtai is a recognized authority in Jewish medical ethics, having authored Defining the Moment: Understanding Brain Death in Halakhah (Shoresh Press) and contributed chapters to numerous scholarly works on halakhic perspectives in modern medicine. He previously taught Jewish Perspectives on Bioethics at the Straus Center for Torah and Western Thought at Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³», presenting monthly seminars for advanced rabbinical students on the intersection of science and Judaism. His practical rabbinic experience includes serving as Rabbi of the Sephardic Minyan at Boca Raton Synagogue, where he regularly addressed medical halakhic queries and worked with organizations like Chayim Aruchim to liaise between families, rabbis, and hospitals. Rabbi Dr. Shabtai has coordinated vaccine policy committees for South Florida Jewish day schools and served on multiple medical advisory committees. His scholarly work appears in leading publications including the Medical Halachah Annual, Journal of Halacha and Contemporary Society, and Jewish Medical Ethics. Business Ethics Faculty Rabbi Josh Fagin Rabbi Joshua Fagin is the Assistant Program Director of the Business Ethics & Jewish Law program, where he also serves as a lecturer. Read Bio Rabbi Josh Fagin He studied at Yeshivat Hakotel under Rav Reuven Taragin, Yeshivas Itri under Rav Ariav Ozer, and Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³» under Rav Eli Shulman, and received semicha under Rabbi Aryeh Lebowitz. He holds a master's degree in Jewish Studies from the Bernard Revel Graduate School and is currently pursuing a PhD in Jewish Studies at Touro University.Rabbi Fagin serves as a Rebbi in Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»'s Isaac Breuer College morning program and as Program Administrator for the Undergraduate Torah Studies division at Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³». He is the Rabbi Meyer Kramer, Esq. Endowed Kollel L'Hora'ah Rabbinic Fellow in the Rabbi Norman Lamm Yadin Yadin Program of the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary. He currently teaches Business Halacha for a Sy-Syms requirement, despite a personal portfolio whose largest holdings are in Lego for his two sons, Yaakov and Mordy. He has served as a Shiur Rebbe in Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»'s Post-Pesach Program and as an instructor in Gemara Bootcamp, a RIETS program that teaches the mechanics necessary to read Gemara correctly.Rabbi Fagin lives in Washington Heights with his wife, Adina, and their two sons. Rabbi Daniel Rapp Read more Rabbi Daniel Rapp Rabbi Josh Fagin Rabbi Joshua Fagin is the Assistant Program Director of the Business Ethics & Jewish Law program, where he also serves as a lecturer. Read Bio Rabbi Josh Fagin He studied at Yeshivat Hakotel under Rav Reuven Taragin, Yeshivas Itri under Rav Ariav Ozer, and Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³» under Rav Eli Shulman, and received semicha under Rabbi Aryeh Lebowitz. He holds a master's degree in Jewish Studies from the Bernard Revel Graduate School and is currently pursuing a PhD in Jewish Studies at Touro University.Rabbi Fagin serves as a Rebbi in Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»'s Isaac Breuer College morning program and as Program Administrator for the Undergraduate Torah Studies division at Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³». He is the Rabbi Meyer Kramer, Esq. Endowed Kollel L'Hora'ah Rabbinic Fellow in the Rabbi Norman Lamm Yadin Yadin Program of the Rabbi Isaac Elchanan Theological Seminary. He currently teaches Business Halacha for a Sy-Syms requirement, despite a personal portfolio whose largest holdings are in Lego for his two sons, Yaakov and Mordy. He has served as a Shiur Rebbe in Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»'s Post-Pesach Program and as an instructor in Gemara Bootcamp, a RIETS program that teaches the mechanics necessary to read Gemara correctly.Rabbi Fagin lives in Washington Heights with his wife, Adina, and their two sons. Rabbi Daniel Rapp Read more Rabbi Daniel Rapp Request more info
