Rhode Island - Concern As Providence Schools To Stay Open on Jewish ‘High Holidays’ |
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News Source: AP
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Rhode Island - Some of Providence’s Jewish leaders are concerned that the city’s public schools will not count Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur as official holidays this year.
But school leaders say there is no need for concern.
This is the first time in at least 30 years that the two of the most significant holidays in the Jewish calendar won’t be days off.
Marty Cooper of the Jewish Federation of Rhode Island, and Rabbi Wayne Franklin of Temple Emanu-El, were concerned that students who take those days off might be subjected to discrimination or would feel pressure to attend class rather than religious services.
They told 
The Providence Journal they were told by school officials last week that students and teachers who take the days off won’t face negative consequences.
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Read Comments (21) — Post Yours »
1
Aug 18, 2010 at 08:43 AM Anonymous Says:Report as Inappropriate
Yom Kipur this year is Shabbos
2
Aug 18, 2010 at 08:52 AM poshiter yid Says:Report as Inappropriate
I work in a kiruv camp and one of the kids in my bunk are from providence i hope they close the schools that he wont think of going to school instead of shul. You dont realize how much yideshe neshamos are in the public school system especially in providence. may theese boys and theyre familys have a kesiva vechasima tova
3
Aug 18, 2010 at 08:54 AM favish Says:Report as Inappropriate
wnat is a yid doing in public school?
4
Aug 18, 2010 at 10:03 AM skazm Says:Report as Inappropriate
“ wnat is a yid doing in public school? ”
hey Favish, go pay a secular kid's tuition and then make noise....
5
Aug 18, 2010 at 10:44 AM Reb Yid Says:Report as Inappropriate
For the kids, it's a bad thing. But for these non-frum Jewish leaders, it's a good lesson. It teaches them that (a) we live in a non-Jewish country and things aren't going to be so cushy, and (b) that maybe Jewish kids belong in a Jewish school. Complacency is a bad thing and sometimes people need a good dose of reality to shake them out of it.
6
Aug 18, 2010 at 10:46 AM favish Says:Report as Inappropriate
#4 are you trying to take away my free speeeeech...you dont have to read my posts
7
Aug 18, 2010 at 11:03 AM Anonymous Says:Report as Inappropriate
They have very few yiddeshe teachers and students in Rhode Island
8
Aug 18, 2010 at 12:50 PM Anonymous Says:Report as Inappropriate
I am glad if they keep the schools open. It puts the responsibility on the parents and not the school. In France they have school on SHABBOS, so either you vote with your feet and change to a Jewish school or stay in a public school. Fifty years ago you couple be dati and go to public school; this is no longer the option.How the teachers and students behave, speech and activities no longer fits with a dati life. They want to teach sex education in schools from 5 or 6 and have nurses to send teenage girls for abortions if she is gets pregnant. This whole environment in the public school system today is TREIFE
9
Aug 18, 2010 at 02:05 PM Shmuel Says:Report as Inappropriate
Reb Yid is correct. We are in golus in a goyisher medina, although very generous to us so far, and for us to impose our Yomim Tovim on THEIR public schools is the very definition of chutzpa. I support Providence school district for standing up to such unreasonable demands. I wish schools here in Baltimore followed their suit.
10
Aug 18, 2010 at 02:38 PM abbycohen Says:Report as Inappropriate
Having grown up in Providence, i was outraged when i heard this. This is the only time of year when those nonreligious Jews actually go to shul, and now they are probably not going to because they will miss school or work. It is sad. Fayvish, there is a HUGE conservative community in Providence, RI and they send their children to public school. It is not so uncommon there. It is however sad that those who would have gone to shul on Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur probably will not anymore.
Also, until you have experienced life in Providence, RI, one can not say what is right or wrong to be done there. Sometimes people need that way of life to help them see what goes on in the non-Jewish world, and aspire to be the opposite. Please don't judge the town, or the people who send their children to public school. You don't know why they made that decision, and even if you did, G-d runs the world, not you. If he wants these neshamos in public school, so be it.
11
Aug 18, 2010 at 04:06 PM Aryeh Says:Report as Inappropriate
Even goyishe kids lehavdil would take the day off if there were no negative consequenses, something tells me that they won't have to close the schools to get the Jewish children to shul on R"H - Y"K.
12
Aug 19, 2010 at 03:51 AM favish Says:Report as Inappropriate
#10 last 2 line 'if he wants these neshomos in public schools so be it ' this is the most stupid statement i ever heard regarding oivrei torah, but im tired of rehashing torah haskafa. if you want see article aug 16-, reform movement regarding conversion and state of israe,l. see all posting there. so lets review your brilliant comment. if i desecrate the tora,h g-d runs the world not me and its ok, huh? whats that supposed to mean?
13
Aug 19, 2010 at 08:26 AM Berl Says:Report as Inappropriate
abbycohen,
I think I am a lot older than you and remember when Temple Emanuel first began with disgruntled members of The Sons of Zion Shul and the Howell St. Shul who wanted a Yom Kippur night dance
It seems that Wayne Franklin and Alvin Koifer I mean Kaunfer aren't doing a good enough job of convincing his membership to put their kids into the Solomon Sheker School which they founded to try to destroy the Providence Hebrew Day School.
Be honest and smell the coffee. If they were teaching Judaism, the poor mislead sheeple would have been taught that driving to Temple on Rosh Hashana is as bad as kids going to school and writing. They would have been taught that it is worse to desecrate Shabbos than Rosh Hashana and that Rosh Hashana is not holier than Pesach Shavuos and Sukkos.
Why didn't these problems occur during Rabbi Bohnen's days? Rabbi Bohnen even sent his own children Michael and Judy to the Day School( So did Rabbis Braude and Gutterman of Temple Beth El the Reform Temple) and had excellent relations with everyone from the Orthodox to the Catholics and they always joined him in anything where interfaith cooperation was needed.
In any case perhaps this will make the good people of Providence return to Judaism and start giving their kids a proper Jewish Education instead of being content with "Shande School"
I wonder why the holy Bureau of Jewish Education is not complaining? Or does that no longer exist?
14
Aug 19, 2010 at 09:16 AM ALLAN Says:Report as Inappropriate
If we really live in a country where church and state are separate..then why are any public schools closed for a holiday of any religion....with that in mind why is Christmas a legal holiday and most non essential governmental services shut down? The answer is that this is still an mostly a Christian country and certain cities such as NYC have had large amounts of Jewish teachers so the system had to close down on the main holidays.
To the poster who asked that why is a Yid in a public school...
As one who attended NYC public schools it is my feeling that you can still be a good Jew and a good person even without a formal yeshiva education.
15
Aug 19, 2010 at 09:44 AM favish Says:Report as Inappropriate
#4 so i should pay the differace bet kosher and neveila food for those secular otherwise they can blame it on me after 120..yes, you make alot of sense
16
Aug 19, 2010 at 09:47 AM favish Says:Report as Inappropriate
#14 its not whether you can still be a good jew or not .....
17
Aug 19, 2010 at 09:51 AM favish Says:Report as Inappropriate
#14..just noticed see #8 so you have another reason among mutitudes of reasons
18
Aug 19, 2010 at 11:22 AM ALLAN Says:Report as Inappropriate
Favish..I think see where you are going with this and it's from an observant point of view (which I do respect). Many including myself are products of a non frum lifestyle but still have strong feelings and ties to our Jewish identity. I am saying that one can still be a good person and yes a good Jew without living a totally frum lifestyle. I hold to the belief that a formal Jewish education can and will make you know all the rules but will it make you a good person?
19
Aug 19, 2010 at 03:06 PM favish Says:Report as Inappropriate
#18 see article regarding reform rabbis and conversion in israel(dated Aug 16, 8:32 am)and read posts over there my signiture and another fella' ..
20
Aug 19, 2010 at 03:11 PM favish Says:Report as Inappropriate
#18 you can be a good christian, hindu, etc etc too who are all fine people, honest, up standing citizen that doesnt make them practicing judaism. so if you dont mind judaism is not what you feel good about observing..but for thatyou need a major education...
21
Aug 19, 2010 at 03:39 PM Shmuel Says:Report as Inappropriate
ALLAN #14. Yes, it is possible, against overwhelming odds, to "be a good Jew and a good person even without a formal yeshiva education" by which you mean without any kind of Jewish education. However, there is a prohibition in Torah against directing you daughter or your son into prostitution, are we all understand, the way public schools are today, be honest!, that you are violating this issur by sending your child to a public school.