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NEWS
Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah Calls on Principals Not to Alter
Curricular Arrangements in Any Way
By Betzalel Kahn
The Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah of Degel Hatorah held an
emergency meeting at the home of HaRav Aharon Leib Shteinman
after Succos to discuss crucial matters affecting talmudei
Torah and Bais Yaakov schools.
At the meeting were HaRav Aharon Yehuda Leib Shteinman, HaRav
Michel Yehuda Lefkowitz, HaRav Nissim Karelitz, HaRav Shmuel
Auerbach, HaRav Yitzchok Sheiner, HaRav Gershon Edelstein,
HaRav Nissim Toledano and HaRav Nosson Tzvi Finkel. Moetzes
Gedolei HaTorah members HaRav Avrohom Yaakov Zalesnik, HaRav
Tzvi Markowitz, HaRav Chaim Pinchos Scheinberg and HaRav Meir
Tzvi Bergman were unable to attend.
The meeting was called in response to attempts by ranking
Education Ministry officials to manipulate the chareidi
education system by threatening to cut off funding to all
institutions that fail to meet its curriculum dictates. For
months such threats have been heard from various Education
Ministry officials and public figures, but now they are being
issued by top-ranking officials.
Several months ago Maran HaRav Eliashiv sent a letter of
congratulations to Talmud Torah Chochmas Shlomo including the
lines, "Currently an oppressive call has been heard to alter
the path that has been handed down to us by changing the
status of talmudei Torah to `recognized institutions,'
which would be liable, chas vesholom, to lead to the
involvement of secular education figures in schools for
tinokos shel beis rabbon . . . and at such a time it
is incumbent upon us to make known that whoever dares to make
even the slightest changes in the way talmudei Torah
have been run until now will be held accountable."
The opening speeches at the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah meeting
were given by Chinuch Atzmai heads Rabbinical Committee
Chairman HaRav Yosef Yekusiel Efrati, Rabbi Avrohom Yosef
Lazerson, General Director Rabbi Meir Luria and Rabbi Tzvi
Baumel.
HaRav Efrati, HaRav Eliashiv's trusted assistant, provided a
cutting survey of Education Ministry attempts to intervene in
the curriculum taught at chareidi education institutions and
spoke about Chinuch Atzmai's battle against the Core
Curriculum Program (Tochnit Halibah).
Rabbis Lazerson, Luria and Baumel spoke about the day-to-day
administration of Chinuch Atzmai institutions and future
concerns.
At the end of the briefings, Degel HaTorah MKs Rabbi Avrohom
Ravitz and Rabbi Moshe Gafni arrived to report on their talks
with Education Ministry representatives on the severance of
funds to institutions that fail to commit to the Core
Program. They also reported on a UTJ meeting earlier in the
day with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, where the issue of
cutting off funding to schools that fail to comply with the
curriculum requirements was raised.
After the briefings Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah members held a
prolonged meeting, at the end of which Moetzes Gedolei
HaTorah Secretary HaRav Avrohom Rubinstein read aloud a
series of decisions reached (see sidebar).
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Decisions Issued by Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah
Since time immemorial our forefathers have dedicated
themselves heart and soul to the task of ensuring that the
education of Jewish children remains pure. As Chazal say,
"Al tig'u bemeshichai," refers to tinokos shel beis
rabban. This mesirus nefesh stood by them in
raising upright, blessed generations faithful to Hashem and
His Torah, and it is the foundation of our existence.
Since the Education Ministry is currently seeking to plant a
foreign vine in Kerem Beis Yisroel by bringing in the Core
Program, with its alterations to the workings of educational
institutions, on 30 Tishrei 5765 Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah
convened to consider this matter and expressed deep
unease/distress over the attempt to interfere with
curriculum, which has always been based on holy purity as we
received from our forefathers from Mt. Sinai.
The following decisions were reached:
a) Educational arrangements at educational institutions, i.e.
talmudei Torah, Chinuch Atzmai institutions and Bais
Yaakov have always been dear to our hearts and souls. Only
the Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah has the authority to determine
educational arrangements at Chinuch Atzmai institutions.
b) Principals may not agree to any changes in the current
curriculum, choliloh, without the consent of Moetzes
Gedolei HaTorah.
c) The Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah calls upon the principals of
institutions and Chinuch Atzmai to stop every breach in
education arrangements since nobody can know where it will
lead to.
d) Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah instructs Degel HaTorah MKs to
work to the best of their ability against all of the breaches
in the field of education.
e) Moetzes Gedolei HaTorah forbids all principals of
talmudei Torah recognized by the Education Ministry as
"exempt institutions" not to become "recognized but
unofficial."
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