How Can We Reconcile Judaism and Zionism in the State of Israel?
By Professor David Golinkin
Our Sages noticed (Bereishit Rabbah 39 and 55) that the phrase lekh lekha, "get you up and go", appears in only two places in the entire Torah.
In the first verse (Genesis 12:1), God tells Abraham to "get you up and go...to the land that I will show you". In the second (Genesis 22:2), God tells Abraham to "get you up and go to the land of Moriah" to sacrifice your favorite son Isaac to Me. The first lekh lekha represents our historic love for Eretz Yisrael or Zionism, while the second represents our love for God or Judaism. For the past 63 years, two opposing camps have been struggling for the soul of the State of Israel. The Haredim are only interested in the lekh lekha of Mount Moriah, while the staunch secular Zionists are only interested in the lekh lekha of Zionism.
The Haredi lekh lekha is epitomized by 60,000 yeshivah students who do not work or serve in the army, by 100 bus lines where women sit in back of the bus, by the Chief Rabbinate's monopoly on marriage and divorce, and by over 10,000 Chief Rabbinate conversions which were retroactively annulled by its own Supreme Rabbinic Court.
The secular lekh lekha is epitomized by hundreds of thousands of Israeli children who have never studied the weekly portion or Talmud or who rarely visit a synagogue, by Israeli teenagers who limit their Bar Mitzvah celebrations to disco parties and by a prestigious Jerusalem high school where the children celebrated Hanukkah by dressing up in Santa Claus outfits. Most recently it was exemplified by the well-known Israeli novelist Yoram Kaniuk who went to court so that he could be registered in the Ministry of Interior as a person "without religion".
Both of these extreme approaches are wrong-headed. Judaism without Zionism cannot sustain a modern state. Zionism without Judaism does not give Israelis a reason to persevere despite our many adversaries.
Ironically, both of these extremes were created by the founders of the State. On the one hand, they gave yeshivah students exemption from military service and gave the Chief Rabbinate a monopoly over marriage and divorce. On the other hand, they made sure that 80% of the children who study in secular public schools only study Bible and no other aspects of Judaism.
The only way to reconcile the two lekh lekha verses is by making sure that every single Israeli Jew receives a good Jewish-Zionist education. This has been the goal of the Schechter Institutes since 1984. Public opinion polls show that Israeli Jews today are actively searching for their Jewish roots. They want to know and cherish "the Jewish book shelf"; they want to experience Shabbat and the Jewish holidays. They want to know "where they came from and where they are going".
This is why the Schechter Institutes have grown from 4 students to 43,000 students. Our 80 rabbinic graduates teach Torah throughout Israel and Europe; our M.A. program for Israeli educators with 640 students and 1100 graduates is the largest in Israel; TALI now reaches 40,000 Israeli children in 88 schools, which is over 10% of the secular public elementary schools; and Midreshet Yerushalayim reaches out to thousands of Jews in Israel and Ukraine. As we open our two new campuses in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, we will redouble our efforts to teach Israeli Jews that Judaism and Zionism are two sides of the same coin and that we need both for Israel to survive and flourish.
We thank you for your ongoing financial support which has enabled us to get this far; with your help we shall continue to deepen and expand all of our programs.
Professor David Golinkin, President
Jerome and Miriam Katzin Professor of Jewish Studies
Schechter Institute of Jewish Studies
Jerusalem
Feb. 3, 2012: Schechter Rabbinical Seminary Ordination
Reuven Stamov will be ordained in Jerusalem and then make his way to the Ukrainian capital of Kiev with his wife Yelena and their two daughters, where he will serve as rabbi for the growing Masorti community there.
May 29, 2012: 15th Anniversary of the Liebhaber Prize for Religious Tolerance to be Celebrated as part of the Schechter Institute M.A. Graduation Ceremony
The Schechter Institute's Annual Commencement Exercises will take place on May 29th in Jerusalem where this year's graduating class will join the more than 1100 Schechter graduates engaged in Jewish education throughout Israel. The 15th annual Award Ceremony of the Marc and Henia z"l Liebhaber Prize for Religious Tolerance 2012 (5772) will be awarded to Rabbi Prof. David Hartman for his publications and practical work in the field which unites Jews from all religious streams and to Prof. Naama Tzabar Ben-Yehoshua of Tel Aviv University for her contributions to religious pluralism through her work at Tel Aviv University, Beth Hatefutzot and Ahvah College.
June 12 and 13: Board of Trustees Meetings for Schechter Institute and Rabbinical Seminary
Official Opening Brings U.S. Ambassador and Jerusalem Mayor to Schechter's New Campus
The Beit Legacy Heritage Classroom Building was officially opened in Jerusalem on December 5, in the presence of the U.S. Ambassador Daniel Shapiro and the mayor of Jerusalem, Nir Barkat. Ambassador Shapiro said that Schechter's educational programs "provide alternative and innovative models of social action and promote respect for the diversity of spiritual expression, reinforcing the ideals of tolerance and inclusiveness that are essential to both Israel and the U.S."
The Schechter Institute cuts the ribbon on its new campus in the presence of (right to left) Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Daniel Shapiro, Schechter President David Golinkin, Schechter Executive Committee Chair Colette Avital, MK Marina Solodkin and Board of Trustees Chair Saul Sanders. See album of the event
Jerusalem Artist Donates Installation to New Campus
Dov Abramson, 36, is a Jerusalem artist and graphic designer who is not in his studio most Tuesdays. Where you can find him is at Schechter, in class, enrolled in the Judaism and the Arts M.A. program. Soon, one of his more well-known works, "Do We Have a Minyan?" will hang in the Doctoroff Art Artrium in Schechter's new Beit Legacy Heritage Classroom building.
"We knew from the start that we wanted the new building to act as a conduit for bridging the arts and Judaism," explains Dr. Tamar Kadari, advisor to the Judaism and the Arts M.A. program and a member of the Arts Committee set up to implement an aesthetic program for the building's interior. "I met Dov as a student in one of my lectures; I saw his works...my reaction was immediate: Here is an artist whose strong visual images truly reflect the message and spirit of Judaism found at Schechter," explains Kadari.
Dov has taken on the tensions inherent in religious life and brought them center stage. "We are a text-driven nation, in love with our texts. What I do is re-think the visual dimension so it too can have a voice in a modern Jewish cultural exchange," he explains.
Dov decided to donate his work because he felt that "Schechter grapples with the same questions and tensions that the piece explores: boundaries of Jewish and Israeli identity, pluralism, and the Jewish way of life / culture."
The Arts Committee, whose members also include Prof. Alice Shalvi and Schechter lecturers Dr. Shula Laderman and Dr. Ronit Steinberg, overwhelming approved Abramson's gift to the new campus.
"Do We have a Minyan?" was exhibited in the Adi Foundation exhibit (titled 'One and All') in conjunction with the Israel Museum in 2007. The Jewish Museum in New York exhibited his "Ner Mitzvah" in 2006, acquiring the work for its permanent collection and the Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco exhibited "Six Hundred and Thirteen" in 2010.
Born in the U.S., Dov moved with his modern Orthodox family (his father is a Yeshiva University-ordained rabbi) to Israel when he was 8-years old. He graduated from a well-respected Jerusalem yeshiva but veered off the conventional path by entering the army in a non-religious framework.
He went on to study art at Jerusalem's Bezalel Academy where his final project was re-designing a page of Talmud.
"My first paying job was for the TALI Education Fund, designing the Weekly Torah portion pages and then contributing content as well," remembers Dov. Working for TALI for 10 years, Dov became familiar with Schechter's degree program, where he is now enrolled. "From the first moment, Schechter was exactly what I was looking for...the bridge between my yeshiva studies and Bezalel."
Dov lives and breathes religious pluralism using his art to force dialogue on the most salient issues confronting Israeli society today. His clients range from a Reform synagogue in Tel Aviv to an Orthodox yeshiva in the Etzion bloc.
In pieces like ‘Do We Have a Minyan?' "I put the cards on the table. I am saying to the viewer, ‘we have a problem, now, you come and deal with it.'"
Neve Schechter in Neve Zedek to open for spring classes
The new Legacy Heritage Center for Jewish Culture in Neve Zedek will open for second semester classes, including the Actors’ Bet Midrash and a co-existence study group, “The Path of Abraham” which brings together Muslims and Jews in a study of our common religious texts. The center received two Torah scrolls which will serve the new Masorti Kehillah in Neve Zedek also located on the premises.
Granovsky Family Dedicates Atid Sanctuary
Toddy and Irving Granovsky, Toronto, Canada, celebrated a family Bar Mitzvah together with children and grandchildren at Neve Schechter in the Atid Sanctuary, dedicated in memory of Toddy Granovsky's parents, Bettee and Joe Hillman. The beautiful sanctuary serves the Masorti Kehila in Neve Zedek.
"Judaism in Evolutionary Perspective" and ‘Women as Agents of Social Change" Conferences
Judaism in Evolutionary Perspective, which showcased Prof. Melvin Konner, anthropologist from Emory University, Atlanta, GA, launched a trailblazing project at Schechter devoted to the study of human religious behavior in general and Jewish behavior in particular using the tools of Evolutionary Psychology.
In the picture: Judaism in Evolutionary Perspective main speakers (from left to right): Mr. Rick Goldberg, founder of Binah Yitzrit Foundation; Prof. Mel Konner, Emory University, Atlanta, GA and Dr. Paul Shrell-Fox, Schechter Institute.
Women as Agents of Social Change brought together an impressive list of women activists including former Prof. Alice Shalvi, former MK Geula Cohen, Dr. Hannah Kehat and others to debate this timely subject.
In the picture: “Talking Tachles” at the Schechter Institute conference were, from left: Dr. Hannah Safran, Prof. Renee Levine Melammed, Prof. Alice Shalvi, Dr. Bat-sheva Margalit Stern, Dr. Yael Shemesh, Dr. Hannah Kehat and Leah Shakdiel.
Health Care Chaplaincy - New M.A. Specialization
Health Care Chaplaincy is a new specialization inaugurated at Schechter that combines certification in CPE (Clinical Pastoral Certification) with an M.A. degree from the Family and Community Studies track. The unique program's objective is to further develop the nascent field of pastoral care and crisis intervention in Israel.
Center for Jewish Peoplehood Education at Schechter
The Center for Jewish Peoplehood Education (CJPE) is now located at the Schechter Institute.
The Center does professional training programs for Jewish educators in Israel and abroad and is exploring the establishment of an academic track in Peoplehood Education.
Mishlei Program Enters 2nd Year
The new Mishlei study framework entered its second year with 20 full-time students. The program combines study of Jewish sources with academic courses leading to an M.A. in Jewish Studies from the Schechter Institute. Outstanding students will continue on for two years of full-time study culminating in rabbinic ordination.
Harvey L. Miller Family Bet Midrash Receives Sonshine Family Ark
The Harvey L. Miller Family Bet Midrash received a majestic Ark donated by the Sonshine Family from Toronto who were in Jerusalem for the dedication ceremony. In the picture (from left): Ellen Pike, Mildred Sonshine, Barry and Paula Sonshine and Robert Pike.
TALI Adds 7 schools and 17 pre-schools
The TALI Education Fund (TEF) added 7 schools and 17 pre-schools bringing the total number of TALI schools and pre-schools in Israel to 188. Providing enriched pluralistic Jewish studies to more than 40,000 children in Israel's public school system, TEF has entered a partnership with the Ministry of Education in providing textbooks and teacher training to non-TALI schools throughout the country.
Textbook Sales Soar
TEF recorded impressive growth in sales of their TALI textbooks to over 200 Israeli public schools. Earnings from the sale of more than 36,000 books more than tripled last year's figures.
The Wednesday Pilgrimage to Jerusalem
Yaffa Oukanin is a veteran educator. She has been the principal of the TALI Oranim school in Yokneam for 16 years. Once a week a mini-bus picks her up from her home at 6:30 a.m., and together with ten colleagues from neighboring TALI schools in Israel's north, she travels to Jerusalem and to the Schechter Institute for the TALI Educational Leadership Program, now in its 13th year, with close to 200 program graduates. "We don't get home until after 8:00 pm, but the quality of the program and lecturers more than compensates for the distance and duration!" she smiles.
This year, 35 TALI principals and lead staff are enrolled in the program which develops a cadre of TALI educational leadership conversant with Jewish texts and capable of achieving the goals of TALI schools. The impact on participants is profound. Empowered to bring the world of Jewish sources into the classroom and the school community, they are TALI education's strongest advocates.
"Schechter provides us not only with a meaningful way to study our Jewish culture and history, but it enables us to find our own individual way to express our Judaism, which is just as important, if not more important," she confides.
Yaffa immigrated to Israel from Morocco with her family at the age of five, living in Yokneam every since. She has watched her city grow from a struggling development town to one of Israel's prime locales for high-tech research and development. TALI Oranim reflects these demographics. "Our school is truly heterogeneous, with a large group of immigrants from the former Soviet Union and Ethiopia and stronger populations who have chosen TALI because of its reputation."
Yokneam is close to becoming a "Totally TALI" town with three of its four public schools part of the TALI network. "The mayor has pushed for TALI since the beginning and I supported him," explains Yaffa. In addition to the regular TALI Jewish enrichment program of textbooks, teacher training and visits by a TALI rabbi, Oranim is also a full partner in the TALI co-existence program "Dialogue and Identity" which has been running for six years. "We meet regularly with an Arab school in Nazareth," says Yaffa. "It is a comprehensive program that builds concentric circles of understanding, starting with the teachers, filtering down to the pupils and up to the principals."
In short, "14-hour" Wednesdays do not frighten Yaffa, they uplift her. "Schechter and TALI are simply giving me the tools to intelligently define who I am and help my school community do the same," she says.
Installation of First Masorti Rabbi in Ukraine
The installation of the first Masorti rabbi in Ukraine, Schechter-ordained Reuven Stamov, will take place in Kiev on July 15. Join Schechter and Masorti Olami leaders from around the world in this historic event which is part of the 7-Day (Odessa and Kiev) or a 5-Day (Kiev) UKRAINE MISSION 2012.
Ukraine Mission-July 10-17 will provide an unforgettable week of Jewish exploration and discovery that highlights the educational work of Midreshet Yerushalayim and Masorti Olami.
- Visit Jewish sites in Odessa and Kiev
- Participate in the installation of the first Masorti Rabbi in Ukraine
- Celebrate Shabbat with local Jewish families at Ramah Ukraine Family Camp.
Register for the Ukraine Mission July 11-17. Be a part of Jewish history-in-the-making.
