Chief Rabbi in Israel claims science and math are nonsense

Israel's Sephardic Chief Rabbi, Yitzhak Yosef on Tuesday criticised Israel’s education curriculum calling it “nonsense” by arguing it would be better if the students study in yeshivas instead. 

Yeshiva, which means ‘sitting’ in Hebrew, is a Jewish academy that focuses on studying religious texts like the Torah, Talmud and Jewish law. 

During his speech, the chief rabbi stated how proud he is not to have finished school and said that learning the Torah has more importance than scientific education.

Following his comments, the Sephardic chief rabbi found himself at the centre of backlash across the country and accused of promoting dependence on government handouts and charitable donations instead of advancing self-reliance.

In the address at a synagogue first reported by the Kikar Shabbat news website, he said, “There is nothing like the holy Torah, the Torah is above everything.”

“If a pupil is asked where do you want to go, a yeshiva high school [where religious studies are taught together with the core curriculum] or a holy yeshiva, there is no doubt, a holy yeshiva, there is no doubt,” he added.

Emphasising the yeshiva’s function to avoid secular subjects, “There, they learn Torah without secular subjects, without the core curriculum, without all this nonsense, they sit and learn,” Yousef continued. 

Giving his educational background as an example, the Sephardic chief rabbi proudly said: “I myself, did I learn the core curriculum? Did I finish school? Until today, I have never had a graduation certificate, not a high-school diploma and not a graduation certificate, did I miss anything? It’s nonsense, the most important thing is our holy Torah.”

In Israel, a large majority of ultra-Orthodox boys don't study the core curriculum of several areas such as math, English, computer studies and science at the primary school level. According to the same article an overwhleming majority of high school students also don’t study the same curriculum. 

According to the Jerusalem Post, experts warn about the lack of a basic education in the ultra-Orthodox population’s youth which could threaten Israel’s economy in the future.

According to Ne’emanei Torah Va’Avodah (NTA), a nonprofit in Israel that focuses on education, research and policy in the “Religious Zionist community”, the chief rabbi’s comments are disconnected with the broader community.

“His disparagement of yeshiva high schools is testament to how the chief rabbi is out of touch with the broader community that he is supposed to serve,” the organisation said. 

The NTA added that Yosef has turned himself into the rabbi of a small group of people “who withhold from themselves and their children the possibility of getting an education and earning an income with dignity, and [instead] making them dependent on donations and cronyism.”

It also said that the chief rabbi’s recent comments reveal the need for change in electing the chief rabbis.