Monday, March 07, 2016

A Non Jewish - Jewish School

Head of School Matt Culberson next to list of the Jewish values taught at his school
I don’t know whether to be flattered, anxious, or downright disturbed. Maybe I am a little of each. There is a school in Salt Lake City, Utah, that teaches non Jews to be – well… Jewish. Not to become Jews. But to practice Jewish ethics in their lives.

Originally a  Jewish school (non denominational – I assume) sponsored by the JCC in that city, it has morphed into a an independent school. And after a sizable donation from the non Jewish McGillis family, it changed its name from the Jewish Community Center Elementary School to the McGillis School. Only 10% of the staff is Jewish and only 25% of the students are Jewish. None of the administrators are.

What makes this school extremely unique is that it teaches only Judaism to its students. From a JTA article
…walk into the school in midwinter and you’ll find McGillis’ main gathering space festooned for Tu b’Shvat, the Jewish Arbor Day. Mezuzahs are on every doorway alongside benedictions penned by the children. Student-made Hebrew art adorns the walls, and the hallways are lined with prints of Israeli landscapes.
“We’re trying to teach Jewish values broadly,” said Liz Paige, the school’s ethics and cultures teacher. “Though they are in Judaism, they are universal, and we’re teaching them to a very wide community.
“We’re not proselytizing here. We’re teaching Torah as literature, philosophy, ethics – but not religion. 
Although I would not call this a proper Jewish education I am amazed to what degree Judaism is taught at a non Jewish school and where 75% its student body is not Jewish. Leaving aside the fact that the 25% Jewish children in the school are not being taught Judaism properly, it is amazing that a non Jewish school exists and teaches only Judaism to its majority non Jewish students. No other religion is taught there. Amazing! Non Jews are teaching non Jewish students about the beauty of the Torah. Something we Jews should be doing.

I am glad to see that there are non Jews that actually appreciate the ethics and values of the Torah so much they want to internalize them in their children. If there was ever a way to preach brotherly love, this has got to be it.

But as I indicated in my opening paragraph, I am somewhat circumspect about this. Are there unspoken motives that can harm us? Mormons are Judeophiles. They see us more positively than they see any other group. So much so that a few years ago they decided to baptize us after we die – seeing this as an act of love and kindness. They believe that this enables us to experience a positive afterlife when we die. If I recall correctly they were motivated by the 6 million Jews that were slaughtered in the Holocaust who according to them cannot be accepted into paradise without being baptized. So that now after their posthumous baptizing -  in their minds these Jewish souls are now ‘saved’ and living in paradise.

Now this does not in any way affect us religiously. People can say whatever they want and believe whatever they want. It does however belittle our belief system to say that we need their salvation techniques in order to achieve paradise… that we cannot achieve it through our own Judaism.  

And another thing. If they are so concerned with our spiritual well being in the afterlife, they might be trying to do something about it before we die. Which puts an entirely different light onto this school. Are they merely appreciating us – trying to learn our values and put them into practice in their own lives? This is the claim. They say they want to universalize Judaism.

If that is their true and only purpose, God bless them. As long as they understand that having Jewish values does not make you a Jew. Which I think they do. A school like this can then turn their students into great friends of the Jewish people via their better understanding our values and practicing our ethics. If on the other hand this is some sort of ploy to ingratiate themselves with the Jewish people for purposes of proselytizing us, than this is a bad deal we ought to protest it.

Where does the truth lie? I’m not sure. But I hope it’s the former. Just some of my thoughts.