I don’t know Amnon Rubenstein. I have no clue what his politics are or whether he is secular or religious. But I agree with him entirely on this issue. Israel must educate its youth to be productive citizens. And I agree with the renewed attempt to introduce a core curriculum in Israeli high schools as a requirement for government funding.
This has always been vehemently and successfully opposed by the Charedi leadership through their political representatives in the Kenesset. No doubt they will do so again this time. And as Mr. Rubenstein points out politics in Israel always trumps everything else …even when the country’s best interests are at stake. Politics have caused good programs to either be ignored or subverted. So the outcome for this new attempt at a minimal secular education for Charedi high school students is likely to fail yet again.
I have long advocated for the type of Charedi educational system we have here in the west. If it is Halachic here, it is Halachic there. There are not two Torahs, one for Israel and one for the west. But that is in essence what many Charedi defenders say when comparing the two systems. ‘Our needs are different than theirs’ they might say or something similar .
Why is it more important for Americans to have better secular educations than it is for Israelis? I do not recall seeing or hearing about any Teshuva saying anything like that.
There is no Halachic reason to bar secular studies from every single Charedi high school student.
I can understand although I may not agree with the desire to have some students stay in Torah only tracks. Those with the potential to be Torah giants might be given exemptions. But for the majority of students there is absolutely no excuse for not preparing them for the future instead of leaving their fortunes to chance. The system as it exists now perpetuates an intolerable situation that continues to grow every time a Charedi child is born.
Yet the Charedi leadership continues to insist on rejecting even the most modest of proposals. Are they so certain that they will be able to politically extort government funding forever? And even if they can ...as they increasingly gain greater control of the government though their increased numbers… will there be the funds available to meet their ever increasing needs as the tax base continues to erode? … in part because of this very policy?
Some of their opposition is based on the model of the Yeshiva of Volozhin during 19th century Czarist Russia. The Czar mandated a core curriculum that seemed relatively innocuous. Volozhin closed rather than submit to the demands of a Czar. So too must we do now, they might say. Better to close down shop rather than submit to a forced core curriculum of an anti religious Israeli government.
But the differences are so obvious that one would have to be completely blind to not see them. The Czar had a stated goal of destroying Torah observance. The education ministry has no such goal. The curriculum suggested is far smaller than the one accepted by the religious Dati Schools. And far smaller than any American Charedi school. Furthermore the ministry has expressed a willingness to work with the Charedi leadership to devise a core curriculum that would be acceptable to them.
But... nothing doing!
Yes, there are anti religious people in government. But they are the proverbial ‘red herring’. The education ministry proposals are not governed by them. There is a major difference between the anti Semitic Czarist government in Russia that was helped along by anti religious Jewish advisors… and what Israel is doing. In Israel it is clearly about the economic well being of its citizens and the desire to keep them off the welfare rolls. It is about providing them the ability to get decent jobs.
There are so many ways to achieve a fair an equitable program. If only the Charedi leaders would agree to any compromise. No one is trying to shove anything down anyone’s throat that is even remotely anti Torah. Yet, the Charedi leadership continues to refuse and reject everything as though the Czar were still alive.
If things don’t change soon there will come a time where the bottom will fall out. Welfare will not be the answer. The Charedi political parties can demand funding in exchange for votes for just so long. Eventually the demand for funds will exceed the supply. And that could force a change.
A change that happens in that way will be catastrophic. There will be so much dysfunction accumulated in families as a result of the poverty that it will inevitably push huge numbers of children out of Charedi Judaism forever or even out of Torah observance, God forbid. It’s already happening to a significant extent, but it can easily explode to unprecedented proportions. And it will be impossible to stem the tide.
A little foresight now can go a long way. I agree with Mr. Rubenstein’s concluding comments:
Mandating the core curriculum for boys in ultra-Orthodox schools, broadening the curriculum for girls, and providing graduates who want to continue their studies with state-funded courses to prepare for matriculation exams addresses the severe problem created by the inadequate education in the haredi sector.
From that, we must not back down.
