Dozens of heads of talmudei Torah and exempt institutions gathered Sunday night in the home of HaRav Aharon Leib Shteinman shlita for an emergency meeting to discuss their concerns regarding a serious breach in the autonomy of Torah-true educational institutions for yaldei Yisroel. The meeting, led by the Rosh Yeshiva, was also attended by HaRav Michel Yehuda Lefkowitz, HaRav Nissim Karelitz, HaRav Chaim Kanievsky, HaRav Shmuel Auerbach, HaRav Boruch Dov Povarsky, the Admor of Belz, the Admor of Tzanz, and HaRav Yisroel Hager of Vishnitz shlita.
Exempt educational institutions have long suffered from ongoing schemes on the part of various government institutions resulting from the constant incitement against the chareidi education system, which reached its peak when the High Court determined there is no legal basis for budgeting exempt institutions, despite the past 40 years of government funding.
Talmud Torah managers are being required by the Education Ministry to report what percent of the contents of the Core Curriculum Program are taught, to enable the Ministry to allocate funding in accordance with the number of classroom hours devoted to the so-called Core Curriculum.
The Education Ministry's incursion into talmud Torah curriculum is an unveiled attempt to destroy the foundations of chareidi education. The war being waged by the Education Ministry and the High Court is a direct attack on the walls of the age-old tradition of passing on Torah and Torah values in an unadulterated form.
Maranan verabbonon, led by HaRav Yosef Sholom Eliashiv, HaRav Shteinman and HaRav Lefkowitz shlita, summoned cheder managers to the meeting to demonstrate a united front of all yirei'im ledvar Hashem in the all-out war declared against chareidi education, and particularly the exempt institutions.
The following decisions were reached at the meeting:
1) Educational arrangements at talmudei Torah are a fundamental issue.
2) Only gedolei Yisroel have the authority to determine educational arrangements at talmudei Torah and all other educational institutions.
3) Talmud Torah managers should, under no circumstances, agree to any change in the learning structure and arrangement that have been in place.
4) Neither may talmud Torah managers facilitate any outside supervision of learning and curricular arrangements or educators' accreditation, or any other factor that is liable to harm the autonomy of the pure form of education entrusted to them.
5) Chareidi representatives shall make every possible effort to act against the breaches in the field of education and to resolutely convey to government leaders the position of united Torah-true Jewry, in order to stand guard to protect educational autonomy.
