My daughter The education of the House of Jacob was not established to teach the daughters of Israel a profession for their livelihood, nor to provide for the livelihood of the House of Israel. This is what the secretary of the Hasidic "Council of Torah Scholars" of the Agudath Israel movement wrote: To the important rabbis, directors of the Beit Yaakov seminaries'.
What is the secretary saying here? What is the meaning of the decision? Since it is not the role of women to support the family, not even so that the husband can sit and study, therefore the educational institutions should not be exploited to teach them a profession, but rather to restore their former glory and adhere to the purpose of establishing educational institutions in the Hasidic sector, which is as stated in the wording of the decision: The "Beit Yaakov" educational institutions were established as educational institutions to educate the daughters of Israel in Torah and the fear of God along the path paved for us from generation to generation.
The decision of the Rebbe's Council came in the wake of other concepts that contradict the Hasidic concept regarding the worship of God, livelihood, the roles of men and women, etc., which slowly infiltrated Hasidic institutions and took over the spiritual agenda of Hasidic educational institutions.
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These perceptions or norms originate from other sectors of the Haredi community (and some would say due to the influence of educators belonging to these sectors). These sectors have adopted a different approach, according to which the role of men is to study Torah all day long, even after marriage, throughout their lives, and the household will be supported by the woman.
In these sectors, this is how girls are educated from a young age, according to the teachings of their elders.
We do not, God forbid, reflect on the sages and teachers of these sectors, but as mentioned, this is not the path of Hasidism.
In the Hasidic sector, it is true that immigrants are treated with due respect, as they dedicate themselves to serving God in a variety of ways, whether it is through Torah, prayer, or charity. Yet, they do not forget what the Sages said: "I have seen immigrants and they are blessed" and "Rabbi Yishmael did many things and they made Aliyah.".
This is why the majority of men who are not among the "Mu'atin" will take on the role assigned to them by the Creator and will take care of providing for their families, according to the path of the founder of the teachings of Hasidism, the holy Baal Shem Tov, who guided and emphasized the ruling in the Shulchan Arukh and based on the verse "In all your ways acknowledge Him" (Proverbs 3:6), and the sages said: All your actions will be for the sake of Heaven, so that even things of permission, such as eating and drinking, etc., will all be for the service of your Creator, or for the cause of His service.
In this way, the Hasidic sector educates both boys in Torah Talmuds and yeshivots, and girls in schools "and the Torah will speak for the most part.".
If a couple decides between them, and the woman wants to help support the household or the man will devote his days to studying Torah alone, and the woman wants to take on the burden of supporting herself completely - this is their right. However, this is a private matter between the couple and does not fall under the category of 'teaching to the public'.
And what is the teaching for many?
As has been customary since ancient times, it is the husband's duty to provide for his wife and children as required by the Torah, and as every man commits and seals on the most sacred day of life, in the most sacred moment under the chuppah: "Be my wife according to the law of Moses and Israel, and I will be your wife, and I will provide for you and feed you, and I will take care of all your needs." - and in a loose translation from Aramaic: Be my wife and I will serve you, provide for you, and feed you, and take care of all your needs.
