JSU’s Bar Ilan Program All Aish’d Up
December 29, 2009 Kiruv
New program, but mostly same Kiruv clowns
NCSY has been touting their Bar Ilan program as proof of their newly Big Tent Orthodoxy to include Modern Orthodox (albeit, right-wing Modern Orthodox) options, and not just ultra-Orthodox and haredi options, as was the case for DECADES until blogs exposed their favored path for public school teens.
But on a closer look, it’s the usual fahfrumpteh suspects. The staff at Israel Experience is seriously Aish’d up. Though JSU/NCSY has been oh-so-careful not to reveal that in their resumes.
Why not? Why would they whitewash that? Why would NCSY ever not reveal something in the name of transparency? How unlike NCSY.
Faculty and featured lecturers include these fine frum folks:
Lawrence Keleman, author of “Permission to Believe,” which is ripped to shreds here.
Rabbi Dovid Orlofsky: He’s not from Aish. He’s from Ohr Somayach! Still there too. Why wouldn’t they mention that? After all, nothing quite says “Modern” Orthodox like the Dark Light does. There was some controversy as well when an email surfaced with him jumping on the anti-Slifkin bandwagon.
Meir Balovsky: He’s an Aish dude, but again, not mentioned on the resume.
Gila Manolson: She’s from Aish. I guess there wasn’t anything else to put in the bio, so they mentioned that about Manolson.
Gerald Schroeder: He’s an Aish guy and a physicist who tries to reconcile creationist literalism and science. Most are not impressed. Not impressed at all.
Rabbi Yosef Chaim (Thomas) Meyer: He’s not an Aish guy! He just got his smicha from Rabbi Weinberg, and made a few tapes. Funny how he didn’t use the name “Thomas” on those…
You don’t say…
UPDATE: This post turned out to be wrong in significant ways. Please see retraction.
12 comments
Bar Ilan is Israel’s most religious secular learning institution. It’s widely known in Israel to be a frum school. Why should it bother you that Aish works there? It’s not Hebrew U., Haifa, or Tel Aviv.
Why did they hide that these are Aish people, Halfsours?
JUst because you think that its necessary to mention it doesnt mean that it is. NCSY has to run all their promotional material by you do they? If anything it would help not hurt the program to have these people mentioned, so your point is, as usual, paranoid
If anything it would help not hurt the program to have these people mentioned
Uh huh. They just forgot, right?
R. Kahn is about as Modern as it gets! He gives ONE outreachy parsha lecture for the Essentials program at Aish. They DISCOURAGED guys like myself in the Beis program from attending!!! The parsha class was filled with academic, Daat Mikra-style parshanut. I had an extensive discussion with him where we literally said to me that he wished critical scholarship would disprove beyond a shadow of a doubt any possiblity of a mabul so people would focus on the text and get passed the historicity of scripture…Gerald Schroeder also is ONLY used in the Essentials program and totes a beatup old “Edah; The Courage to Be Modern and Orthodox” totebag and doesn’t even wear a tallit katan. Look back to when Aish was in hotwater with Sternbuch over teaching anything BUT YE Creationism; R. Gil Student posted on this way back as did Shmarya, sort of.
http://hirhurim.blogspot.com/2.....verse.html
http://failedmessiah.typepad.c.....e_sht.html
WHo says they forgot! Maybe they didnt find it useful to have! Not everyone is out to get you DK! Sure, God probably is at this point, but the ORTHOPOLICE isnt waiting to take you out back and shoot you. You dont scare us! Your points are too illogical and ill conceived! In addition to the fact that we arent out to get people unlike you.
http://failedmessiah.typepad.c.....s-345.html
A couple of issues regarding Bar Ilan.
As of this year Bar Ilan University has a working relationship with “Israel Experience” which is a new independent organization, which has received the blessings of the OU.
The director is Rabbi Tully Bryks who has a great deal of experience working with NCSY and JSU.
The idea of this relationship was to create a strategic partnership between Bar Ilan and the Israel Experience. The OU gave their “blessing” to the creation of the Israel experience, but this new entity does have complete independence.
When the program was first created and various speakers were included on the website, this list included people who were asked to speak.
Rabbi Orlofsky does not teach on the program. At one point there was a discussion of him giving an informal lecture, this has not happened.
The Lecturers on the program are a diverse group of individuals including:
Dr Gil Ariel
Professor Yosef Berstein
Rabbi Tully Bryks
Dr Mike Cohen
Dr Gabriel Danzig
Dr Adam Ferziger
Dr Sy Gottleib
Professor Guttman
Rabbi Ari Kahn
Dr Daniel Kahn
Rabbi Mordichai Machils
Devorah Mantel
Rabbi Tom (Yosef Chaim) Meyer
Rabbi Adam Siegel
Dr Zvi Shimon
Dr.Eliezer Shore
Dr Chana Tannenbaum
Tamar Weissman
Dr Francis Shalit
The idea is to provide a diverse experience; these individuals come from diverse backgrounds and disciplines.
Additionally the Israel Experience runs informal evening programming and weekends. Again the staff here is diverse.
I believe the combination of the formal and informal programs and the various aspects of the program will give students a broad wholesome experience.
As far as myself, I am amused about the discussion of what I am – if someone figures it out then please let me know. In the meantime I suggest buying my books, if possible multiple copies and read them from cover to cover. (Or look at my website where the material is free http://rabbiarikahn.com/)
Rabbi Ari Kahn
should say kahn
Fixed.
[...] Israel Experience Program at Bar Ilan University, the reality appears to be quite different than I reported. As Ari Kahn, the Academic Dean of Israel Experience and the Director of Foreign Student Programs [...]
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