New York – In a fiery speech, a respected Brooklyn Rabbi called for an all out war against yeshivos that throw talmidim out of their institutions.
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Rabbi Aaron Krausz, a prominent chareidi Rov from Williamsburg, New York, and Rosh Yeshiva of Yeshiva Shaar Hatalmid in Brooklyn, addressed the baalei batim during Shalosh Seudos in his Shul on Shabbos Parshas Lech Licha.
In an explosive speech, which was delivered in Yiddish after the z’man and was recorded, R’ Kraus screamed “Rabosai, there is a fire burning in the Jewish community! All those yeshivos who only take metzuyanim have blood on their hands! We have teens wandering the streets, thrown out because they don’t know a p’shat or a deep Rashba? Stop with the nonsense!” “oh, you wanna build “lomdim”. That’s your goal, right? Look around in shul. Show me all those lomdim you brought up with this system. Show me!!”
Rabbi Krausz continued his stern admonition, urging a financial boycott of all institutions that expel talmidim from their hallowed halls saying, “when they come for you for Tezdokah to support their yeshiva, make it clear to them. Tell them: “I will only support you if you accept everyone, if you care about ALL Talmidim.”
“The Jewish community does tremendous amounts of chesed, but the real chesed of ahavas nefesh yisroel is lacking. NO ONE is doing anything about these children. Everyone sits with closed arms and hands. Rabosai, do you know how many children and teens are in pain? The Jewish community has blood on their hands if we don’t get up and do something.” “If this continues, then Judaism is on the verge of extinction.”
“Yeshivos are not made only for metzuyanim they are made for all Yidden. We need to take to streets and scream of this terrible travesty which is only getting worse. Our hands are guilty for so many teens who are no longer Jewish. We as a community are guilty. We do not do enough.”
Without mentioning any yeshivos by name, R’ Krausz made forceful references to a yeshiva that for years has been known to only accept boys of the highest caliber. “We all know what happened there,” said R’ Krausz cryptically. Without elaborating any further, “I will tell you that they already see the fruits of their labor.”
R’ Krausz concluded by reminding those assembled of the words of “V’haarev na” said every morning in davening, beseeching Hashem to make the words of the Torah sweet in our mouths and that we, our children and ALL the children of K’lal Yisroel should be able to study the heilige Torah.
VIN News attempted to contact Rabbi Krausz directly but was told that the Rov does not wish to be quoted or posted online. As the drasha has been widely publicized and is already circulating on the internet, VIN News is posting audio of Rabbi Krausz’ speech.
Listen to the 15 Minutes fiery speech below in Yiddish.
Updated 3:09 PM
Below is the entire full speech from the Parsha
Honestly, I got chills up my spine reading this. This is a real Rabbi who cares about the important issues. Respect.
How right! How right! I wish this problen would never be!!!
Boy is he right…..
This is one of the most extraordinary speeches I have ever heard. I don’t know the Rov, but his Ahavas Yisrael comes through loud and clear. We should pay attention to what he says.
Seems the only thing some Rabbis understand is the almighty dollar. You can be the biggest registered sex offender and you will get Shishi on Shabbos if you give enough gelt.
Very well said! Couldn’t be said better. I am afraid its a little too late-the zman started already a few weeks ago. I wish some more Rabbis would come out as strong as Rabbi Kraus in the Williamsburg area. Because there are many yeshivas in Williamsburg that only accept boys that are metzuyanim. The situation is only getting worse.
It’s about time that we, the frim community started to think about the health and welfare of our children, all our children (Chasidish, Misnagdish, Sephardish, all frim levels of Yiddishkeit, etc.) and not just worry so much about $$$$$$$$$$.
Unfortunately, many in our community are so obsessed with making “lots” of money and/or saving “all” their money for their great-great-grandchildren that they don’t want to help “yenims’, someone else’s children.
כל ישראל ערבים זה בזה
Hashem Yisborach will eventually even the playing field. Everyone eventually gets what he deserves, both good and bad. No one can hide from Hashem.
To those who say they were rejected by rabbi krauss: he may have come to realize that the truth is, every bucher deserve a chance.
Also talking about a boycott is not enough, there should be a list of yeshivahs and schools posted.
Blood on their hand? It is Helige Yiddishe Nefashos and generations thereafter they are ruining. Sof-kol-sof everyone wants and needs to have his son, his bochur learn in Yeshive. Everyone wants his son in a good Yeshive. Otherwise it is beyond me why one would even call on a Rosh(e) Yeshive that is having a selection (selektzia) process. They will pay the price. But what’s with the doires(generations) that they are killing.
It’s about time something should be done. TY Rabbi Krausz for speaking out.
I don’t know who he is and what he does in his school but he absolutely right
and all rabbis will have to give a cheshbon for who they did not want to accept because of money or politics or even for slower boys
People when a fire is burning everyone should pour water, same here who ever can make this system change will get rewarded from has-hem for taking care of HIS boys
All those yeshivos who rejected all bucherim and now are empty are now crying that the successful ones reject average boys…where were you all when you rejected loads of bucherim.?
good & right he is probably the first rosh yeshive to indorse that big & massive killer
good
This is only the tip of the iceberg
The problem goes much further than just not accepting Metzuyanim
There is a lot more wrong with “our system”, where each yeshiva put primacy emphasis on scholastic acceleration at the expense of all ordinary Talmidim who can’t keep up with it
This causes teens to drop out of school because they feel inferior or worthless “in a system” which respects only high scholastic achievement
A Yeshivas primary role must be to produce YIDDEN, frum Yidden and Chassidishe Buchrim, where not everyone is cut out to be a Big Talmid Chuchcem and not everyone is a born genius and not everyone can compete with the high standards of accelerated learning
Any bucher who feels “out of place” or is made to feel like “a looser” because he can’t match up to the highest standard and highest level of learning, feels totally worthless in such a system and ends up dropping out of Yeshiva, even if the Yeshiva reluctantly accepts him
What happens next to such dropouts is that they are at risk of dropping out of Yiddishleit altogether Rachmuna Litzlan
The Priority has to be to Make Yidden as best as can be rather than the KOVOD seeking Yeshivos, for having “Metzuyanim”
Let me make it clear to some critics on here : I have a neighbor whos son was thrown out from a yeshiva this summer and a very popular yeshiva accepted that kid..The parents ganged up and threatened the rosh yeshiva that if he dosent throw out that kid they all will take their kids out to another yeshiveh,,The rosh yeshive fell for that threat and nebech the kid was sent away…The rosh yeshiveh gave a speech to the parents and told them they are guilty of shefiched dumim..he could of worked with this kid and with his parents but the parent body gave him no chnace…So its not always the yeshives..ITS the parents who bring all lushen horas and the school has no choice…..
One of my best friends and closest talmidim committed suicide after he was thrown out of a yeshiva in Monsey and told “that if they ever saw him again, they would call the police”.
This problem causes so many problems in our community! How can you throw away a person who wants to learn?!
This is long overdue, but people DON’T get carried away with Rabbi Krausz about his own yeshiva, its clearly irrelevant, his words are non-arguable, stay focused on the main topic which is the out cry of today’s Yiddish Establishments like Yeshivas,Boys Schools and Girl Schools of rejecting and even expelling jewish children for their own prejudice reasons or self image, sixty years ago a politician in Germany practiced selections and it lead to the worst, WAKE UP!!! these so-called Rabbanim or “Vadds” are destroying our future generations, just stand up and say ITS WRONG and don’t support them, our very dear father does not justify these horrible things, its from the very basics of judiasim, this ongoing system will lead to a total destruction.
post all those names and names of the hanholas who expell bocherim from yeshivas let the names be made public!!! let the world know!!
There are a lot of BP yeshivas and one (or many) Big Yeshiva(s) in Flatbush that are guilty of this crime! And let’s not talk about when you are starting off to enroll your little one, they don’t even care to interview the child, they interview the parents as if it was a shidduch and the family’s Yichus have to match the yeshiva’s expectations. Forget about that innocent 3 year old who is still so innocent and pure, but if they know that you have a sister-in-law’s once removed cousin who was divorced because so and so, or that you don’t come from the most well-to-do family they will not even give you a chance!
excellent and well said, rabbi krausz!
He is so right. Although I might understand that a good yeshiva does not take in a bochur who might be a bad influence, a bochur who is willing to learn and keep up with the yeshiva but does not got accepted because his father/mother. It is the same by the girls. There are so many kids without schools/yeshivas it is a shame. Then who klaps al-cheit for these lost neshumos. There is today a mosad for every kind of kid. Nobody cares from the rabbanim on down. It is a shame.
i as a talmid of his yeshivah for 6 zemanim could say he realy eccepted and worked with every bucher as his own child he never rejected a bucher becuase his look. or from what home he is coming from poor or rich. may hashem bless him with alout of siyate dishmaye and harchuves hadas.
Oh my! I had goose pimples reading what this Rebbe said !!! Finally someone standing up and telling it like it is. I see these bochurim wandering the streets because they have been rejected by yeshivos and end up in “special” yeshivos where they take in all the “rejects”–these boys feed off each other and nothing good comes from it. The same can be said for the girls schools although I don’t think it’s quite as bad as it is with the boys. These kids are marked forever and the scars stay with them throughout their lives. They can’t make decent shidduchim and many never get married because they don’t want to forward the pain to the next generation–I have been told this by more than one boy. My heart aches for them and their parents. Maybe now that Reb Krausz has so openly cried for these kids that something will be done. I challenge all the other Rebbes and principals, teachers, Rabbanim to follow suit.
I think that alot of complaints here are unjustified and some are ….Yeshivos have an obligation to secure the enviroment of the principals its been established for…A chasidishe or litvishe yeshiva does NOT accept children from homes who have Television,Internet or if the parents go to movies or dress immodest. Most yeshivas have a internal vaad hachinuch who oversee that the parents meet their standards.
If anyone chooses a life that is different then their standard why do u want your kids in a yeshiveh that wont accept them.? Why do u enroll them to find out you are NOT welcome.? Most parents dont want those kids in their childs class room..so why complain when the yeshives are doing exactly what you want them to do.?
We live in a FREE world where every one wants to live their life style and they want the yeshivas to go along with it..
This Rabbi is 100% correct.
I will add that if every parent would do the homework every day with their child it would do wonders and your child would grow up a metzuyon.
In my humble opinion better to learn with your Child Alef Bais, Chumosh, Mishnayot and Talmud in Shul then to attend a Daf Yomy Shiur. First of all (umitalmidai yoser mikulom) so the parent would benefit you will understand the chumas and Rashi or Mishnayot or gemoro alot more then listening to the Daf Yomi. Second future generations are dependent that your child grows up a confident child knows the material in class. Beleive me the nachas from a succssesfull child outweighs all material narishkeiten.
Seems that all the yeshivas forgot one major thing: Chanoch Le’Naar al pi DARKO. not al pi DARKECHA! Very obvious that they only care about the top 3-5 boys in the class. The rest they dont care about. And since secular education and college are shunned, what are we left with? I agree with this rav whole heartedly, the ribbono shel olam will pay these guys (and the gedolim they follow) their due share.
there is another MAJOR PROBLEM in that many young couples cant afford incredibly high TUITION BILLS and thus minimize having children .WE are doing tremendous harm to our future.
I won’t say the names but you can find out yourself: Just in the past few years 4-5 famous yeshivas (taking in only matziunim) closed down, 3 in monsey, 1 in boro park (and another almost closing in b.p for terrible rumors)
Although at first this Rov sounds so perfectly on the mark, in reality it’s not so simple! If you look at the letters in the back of the third volume of the Michtav Mei’eliyahu you can see this inside. He explains that the difference bet. the way of R S R Hirsch ZTL and the others was exactly on this point. RSR’H was of the opinion that better to make all of Klal Yisroel frum then to make a few Gedolei Yisroel while the others disagreed on this point. Look there to see this AMAZING letter!
finally some sanity someone with love in his heart for all gods children not the few special and wealthy children
rabbi the real problem stems from the fact that most yeshivas today are private business and guess what they are not producing a great product by any means especially when they are driving hundreds from our doors never to return
I personally know of a little kid who wasn’t accepted into any yeshiva because the more litvish yeshivas thought the parents were too chassidish for them and the chassidish yeshiva’s thought that the parents were too modern for them! so the only yeshiva that did accept him didn’t allow him back after the first year because he was a little too ADHD for them. So this poor kid is now in a Yeshiva for special kids when he is a bright intelligent little boy! I am surprised that the parents didn’t enroll him to public school at least over there they wouldn’t be labeled and he wouldn’t have to be in the special class.
Metzuyanim VS Non Mitzuyanim?
Or discipline learning boys VS troubelmaker boys who can bring down the good boys?
Please clarify!
thanks you
Last I checked…. there are Yeshivas for all difefrent types today.
Example: Chavrei Hakollel in Lakewood NJ
In this economy, all Yeshivos are in extreme dire need of every donation dollar they can get and so the power is with us the people who donate.
And don’t think you need to be a big millionaire to matter to the Yeshiva. Fact is the 99% of all donations every Yeshiva gets comes not from the rich. Most of the contribution every Yeshiva gets is primarily from the non-rich, smaller donations.
If it is true that those making such policy “have blood on their hands” then the same can be said about each one of us, that we are “partners in crime” and we too have “blood on our own hands” if we contribute even 1 cent to such a yeshiva.
To Number 33: Virtually all homes have the internet now on the basis of the parents owning cell phones and Blackberrys. Even the cheapest cell phone nowadays can access all of the internet. Therefore virtually all frum homes now have access to the internet. It is very disingenuous of you suggest otherwise.
Wow amazing. Over 30 comments on an article and all positive, nobody is saying anything negative about Rabbi Krausz, that maybe he has an agenda. Yes he has an agenda, educating yiddishe kinder al pi darkei Hashem and Torah. The majority of yeshivos today only want to work with the top 10%: top 10% bochur and/or top 10% parents wealth. The rest of klal yisroel is considered to be garbage. What an unbelievable travesty. The headline here was asid litein es hadin. So very true.
I am a Talmud, and I was at the drusha. He never mentioned a name or directed any statement against any specific yeshiva or even location of any, he raised each and every issue, and left it for the klal to ask each yeshiva that they know does any of the wrongs mentioned. He gave the answers for all their lousy answers!!! Also note; the drusha took 33 minutes, and posted here is only 15 minutes. It’s very important to listen to the entire drusha to really understand what he said, and how to stay in the right tracks when dealing with these PIKUACH NEFESH issues!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
reply to # 33, I wholeheartedly disagree. while no family is perfect. it is not the place of our yeshivas to play modern day Dr Mengela. Most “internal vaads” have skeletons in their closet bigger that the ones of those applying . it is a sad fact !!! , when given the choice in a normal respectful way … agree to our conditions and we gladly accept your child. No parent would refuse that. But, no ! our yeshivas and their vaads are all holier than thou !!! it is time to get a unified board run by respected elders of our community to run the acceptance system . NO YESHIVA OPENS UP UNLESS EVERY JEWISH CHILD IS PLACED !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Oh please! Bochurim are not thrown out for not understanding a tosfos, usually they are caught acting in a extremely bad manner usually sexually active etc. We just tell parents he can’t understand a tosfos…
We live in a world that Kiruv Rachokim consumes Millions of dollars from hardworking Yiden annually, did anyone stop for a moment and give thought, Kiruv?? what ?when?? While we are with our own bare hands taking beautiful yiddisha families, kinderlach that read shema before bed and say Modah Ani when waking up to this uncertain world, Why do we need kiruv organizations to travel the world to bring BACK neshumas?? LETS CREATE A ANTI RICHUK ORGANIZATION!!! it will not need any donations no chinese actions JUST SOME YIDDISH HARTZ!!!! stop destroying entire families, lets create a environment where tolerance will dominate and the divine presence will return!!! AMEN!!!
well said!!
However this problem has recently been penetrating into talmid torahs and girls schools as well,
the situation is unacceptable, that a few Koleel yingaliet that have no experience in life at all, are making decisions that kill families, i know an example of the oldest chasidisha talmid torah in williamsburg that has spilled so much yiddish blood in the past few months that there is no way to justify these actions!!!! WAKE UP!!!
Yasher Koach Rav Krausz. I workl in an out of town Yeshiva where we have diverse levels, metzuyanim and non metzuyanim. Yehivas all need a mix. If the metzuyanim are all in one place they can’t be good chaverim to the boys who need the chizuk! Part of the problem is that every parent thinks his son is the next gadol hador and has to be in the top top of everything. It is healthier for all children to be in a diverse group for part of the day and challenge the metzuyan to his potential for the rest of the day. To the writer who quoted the Michtav about Rav Hiesch. It is difficult to say that the same applies today.
Rabbi Krauz – ASHRECHA!!!! The problem is that the ones who agree with you are not in control of the yeahiva system. Many yeshivas are privately held. Those yeshivos do not feel that they need to listen to you because it is their money and organazation. the donors are convinced to give the money because f the kavod and status that they will have the community.
I hear so many critics about this issue the last 10 years and how come NO one yet opened a Talmud Torah which had a KOL DICHFIN policy..? The answer is because once a yeshiva gets a name of accepting every kids who the parents want them to go learn then WE and i repeat WE (including all people who write comments on here) refuse to send our own kids there…We are so full of self hate and blame the world for our own failure..Shame on US not on the roshei yeshivos
What? All yeshivas always gave a faher to see if the Bochur is eligible, so do every collage lehavdil. This guy is crazy. Why should every mosod be the same? Don’t make sense. It’s not public school!
we need to post names of the reshu’im sitting on the vaads. Name their business in public…BOYCOTT THEM!!!
Can somone please explain why all Bucherem have to go to yeshiva? I have a very chusheva zeyda who was a working bucher and was still zoche to be married into a rebbishe family. All his children and grandchildren are frum and ehrlich.
I think the system has failed us becuase we try to force bucherm to be at a place that they dont belong in the first place wasting away time that they could have spent lerning a profession.
The Lubliner gaoin Harav Shapiro dident exept all bucherim in his yeshiva ( Actualy Harav vosner is a well known example of a bucher whom he dident want to take in to his yeshiva.) The Vayaged Yakov Z”L, also rejected many bucherem, I heard this first hand. and the list goes on.
I read in the cssovim from the Brissker Rov , that once you take in a bucher into a yeshiva you are responsible for his well being.( you cant through him out). However I think there are NO yeshives with only Metiyonim, and I firmly beleive that Yeshivas have a right to sort out who you take in.
One point I did not see mention here is about shidduchim. The parents only want the top bochur fpr their daughter.The parents only want the best of the best seminary student with good yichus, and smart. They parents want to see her report cards The parents only want top talmudim with their “gedol” in the yeshiva. The other side wants and wants and wants. In Eretz Yisrael a top bochur gets an apartment in Yerusalem, or Bnei Brak and maybe even two. If he does not go to the best yeshiva his parents would not be able to demand so much Lets get normal. Lets save every Yid.
KEEP THIS PINNED 4EVER – it is the most important and honest piece of news you reported – it s/b heard until EVERY YIDDISH CHILD, BUCHER or GIRL has a school or yeshiva to attend.
ONE important point is Parents; Parents don’t cry if your child does not get into the best yeshiva or seminaries if you yourselves don’t act properly. Women look at your level of tznius. are your clothes tights, short, a little too too modern; Men do you learn everyday, do you daven with a minyan, are you talking in shul during davening, is your television hidding good enough in your home, are you straight in buisness and are you know for the shtick that you are pulling.
The entire drusha is now up on top, please listen to it again; it will answer all your questions!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!