To remove the cloud between the children of Abraham and the children of Abram

November 8, 2017   

I have a nice friend, a kollel averach from all over the world. He has stories from here to Galicia. But they are all valuable, full of good taste and grace. This averach is special, very special. His head and most of his time is in the Talmud and its commentaries all day long, he has no business with anything that does not fall within the Torah category. And yet, it seems that there is no one wiser than him, in the Torah of course, and in all spiritual disciplines. His soul is full of insights, and his spirit is strong with great knowledge in the wisdom of psychology and the theory of the soul. His lectures, which are delivered mainly to the ears of kollel averach, since they have not yet become famous in the world, and the sun has not yet risen in the streets and markets, serve as a beacon for averach who seek to understand the souls of their young children, and as a touchstone for any parent who wishes to know what to say to their son, and especially what not to say. He understands the soul of the child wonderfully, and one could almost mistake him for serving as an educational counselor, or as a child psychologist in one of the local government schools. Exactly so. Another detail you should know, the esteemed man is a Sephardic. Not a Sephardic from the land of Spain, a Sephardic of the Eastern Jewish community. And why is this detail important? You will soon understand. And now, you too, loyal and talented readers, are privileged to be exposed to an amazing story, one of many, that has a profound insight alongside it, a painful and distressing insight. Disturbing because it is apparently unsolvable.

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To the esteemed guest, a son and a daughter. Both are extremely wise and full of insight, as are their parents. The son is studying at the "Machina" compulsory kindergarten in Bela"z. And the daughter, Shloma Yissaga, is in the second grade at the "Beit Yaakov" school. This detail is also important, and you will soon understand why. Last week, the boy was tested on the entire Noah story. The dimensions of the ark, the duration of the flood, the reason for the punishment, and the other details of the story were as clear to the little boy as they were to Nehardea. He received a great award of excellence from the Talmud Torah administration, and of course from his father, who was very pleased with the whole story. The creative father decided to make a "big deal" out of the event, and with great ceremony and pomp appointed his little son as Rosh Yeshiva. He opened, in the imaginary world of course, the "Noah Yeshiva," and crowned the knowledgeable boy with poetry and ceremonies as Rosh Yeshiva of the Noah story. "Any question that is asked about the Noah story, they will bring to you, and you will answer," the Rosh Yeshiva was told at the honorable coronation ceremony, and the city of Shushan burst into joy and happiness. Let's pause for a moment in the middle The story, and we will give the devoted father a kiss on the head. How many of us are truly immersed in the children's schedules at educational institutions? And of those who are, what percentage of them glorify and glorify the child's labor and results? The kind father, in his small act, instilled in the child and those around him the preciousness of the love of Torah and the great satisfaction that can be achieved through investment and labor. May he be blessed.

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This is where the daughter comes into the picture. As mentioned, a young girl, in the second grade at the Beit Yaakov school. At the age of seven, more or less. "Dad," she whispers. "It's all in the blink of an eye," she half asks, half states. "Why is that?" he exclaims. Trying to leave the impressive ceremony intact. "Because our Yitzhak doesn't really know Yiddish, he can't be a real Rosh Yeshiva." Boom, boom.

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""Let's understand," he exclaims in the kollel, between the sedars. "There is no mention of Ashkenazim or Sephardim in our house, no talk of denominations and classes. All are saints, all righteous, all innocent." "Where did that come from," he wonders. He reprimands her, and he breaks down. He makes it difficult, and he makes excuses. "My daughter's place of education, the best of the best, is Ashkenazi. Not intentionally, not by mistake, simply, with no choice. In the elementary schools, as of 2018, there is no alternative to the Ashkenazi 'Beit Yaakov.'" And perhaps it is a good thing, because this means that at least in the first eight years of school you will not find girls sitting at home crying that they were not accepted into the institution because of the color of their skin. "But this great good is wrapped in a very hermetic wrapping, which entirely revolves around Ashkenazi customs. "The 15th of Cheshvan and the 16th of Shevo are days dedicated to stories full of glory about our great rabbis, the Chazon Ish and Rabbi Shach, may you remember the righteous, may God bless them. But no one has heard of the 3rd of Cheshvan. Nor of the 12th of Cheshvan. Rabbi Ovadia and Rabbi Tzedakah? Not here, please. "But it is natural that in such a wonderful place, the product of education will not understand that there is an alternative, and that there are yeshivot heads, many yeshivot heads, who are not at all proficient in the Yiddish language.".

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The long monologue continued for a long time, some sided with it, some raised an eyebrow at the distorted insight, in their opinion. But there was one who decided to think about things with a calm mind, and to take advantage of this honorable stage with a call of affection for teachers and administrators, parents and educators, and perhaps salvation will come from this. Honorable friends, perhaps the time has come? Perhaps the time has come to recognize the Torah-obsessed Sephardic community? Maybe it's time to stop ignoring the Yeshiva Committee's data that in Israel in 2018 there are more Sephardic than Ashkenazi yeshivahs?! Maybe it's time to lower the invisible pillar of cloud that separates the sons of Abraham from the sons of Avraham. Maybe it's time to acknowledge the happy fact that about half of the girls of 'Beit Yaakov' are granddaughters of grandmothers who know how to make homemade matzoh. It's not yet time to talk about absolute Ashkenazi control over Beit Yaakov and independent education. But that too will come. True, you established Beit Yaakov, you established independent education, but please, adapt yourselves to the customers. That's the way of commerce, that's the way of Torah. Friends, it's come. We are here, whether you like us or not. • Menachem Man is a Haredi writer and publicist: [email protected]