It was announced yesterday that the Israeli Government would take on a major role in enhancing Jewish education in the Diaspora in the coming years. Science Minister Modi Zandberg of Shinui, who has been interviewed on Arutz-7 in the past and who was present at the meeting, told Arutz-7 today that he did not know how much money the government had agreed to allocate to this cause. Jewish Agency officials, however, informed Arutz-7 that because of the worldwide national Jewish importance of fighting assimilation, the government had agreed to provide $100 million over the next four years - beginning with $10 million in 2004 and increasing by $10 million every year thereafter, until reaching a ceiling of $50 million annually starting in 2008. The Jewish Agency, which itself spends some $70 million annually on Jewish education around the world, will work together with the government on allocating the extra funds.
In a related item, Israeli scholars, leading rabbis from the Diaspora, and leaders of the Reform, Conservative and Orthodox movements participated in a two-day International Conference on "Rabbis and the Challenge of Assimilation" this week. Hosted by Bar-Ilan University’s Rappaport Center for Assimilation Research, it dealt with historical and contemporary approaches to the dangerous phenomenon of Jewish assimilation. Among the speakers were Dr. Zvi Zohar, the Director of the Rappaport Center; Rabbi Dr. Shlomo Riskin, Chief Rabbi of Efrat; Prof. Ismar Schorch, Chancellor of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America; and more.
In a related item, Israeli scholars, leading rabbis from the Diaspora, and leaders of the Reform, Conservative and Orthodox movements participated in a two-day International Conference on "Rabbis and the Challenge of Assimilation" this week. Hosted by Bar-Ilan University’s Rappaport Center for Assimilation Research, it dealt with historical and contemporary approaches to the dangerous phenomenon of Jewish assimilation. Among the speakers were Dr. Zvi Zohar, the Director of the Rappaport Center; Rabbi Dr. Shlomo Riskin, Chief Rabbi of Efrat; Prof. Ismar Schorch, Chancellor of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America; and more.