Weil: Don’t Name Yeshivos After Those Who Are Dishonest
From a report by Roberto Loiederman of JewishJournal.com: “This has not been a good year for the Jewish community. It seems like not a day went by without hearing of another scandal involving members of the Orthodox community.” These were the words of welcome offered in an agenda booklet for the Orthodox Union’s (OU) West Coast Torah Convention, titled “Recalibrating Our Moral and Ethical Compass,” held Dec. 24-27 in Los Angeles.
“What defines a Jew?” Rabbi Steven Weil, the new national executive vice president of the OU, asked in a fiery speech at the convention’s final plenary session, held at Young Israel of Century City. “It’s the practical application of our theology,” he responded to his own question. “How we engage in business.”
“We have no right to sell our soul. We have no right to put names of donors on yeshivas, names of people who have made their money dishonestly…. When we put the name of such a person on a yeshiva, when this is the koved [honor] that we give, then all the Torah that we teach our children, all the values that we teach our children, we can throw it all out, because bottom line, it’s the money talking. The students see those names, and they say to themselves: These are the people we are honoring, no matter how the money was made…. If we accept the money, and we put the names of those people on buildings, that act speaks loud and clear. We send that message to our children.”
Read the full article at JewishJournal.com.
{JewishJournal.com/Matzav.com Newscenter}
8 Responses to “Weil: Don’t Name Yeshivos After Those Who Are Dishonest”
2. Comment from Anonymous
Time January 5, 2010 at 8:11 PM
I wasn’t aware that we were knowingly naming yeshivos after people who are known to be dishonest, so what’s the chiddush?
3. Comment from Anonymous
Time January 5, 2010 at 8:32 PM
How sad that this needs to be stated. It’s so obvious to anyone with a half ounce of yashrus.
4. Comment from klal yisroel
Time January 5, 2010 at 10:30 PM
Boruch hashem, most yidden are “yashar,” but there are few that can taint the image of Jews, and target animosity towards orthodox Jews because they use stupidity.
Thank you Rabbi Weill for helping with those few.
5. Comment from shlucha
Time January 6, 2010 at 12:19 AM
How sad that this needs to be stated - you’re right.
Where did real yiddishkeit disappear to?
6. Comment from Me
Time January 6, 2010 at 7:35 AM
to 4. Hey stupid, we need people like this Rabbi to be speaking out against the terrible acts that our brothers and sisters or else we will seem complicit. And I use the word stupid very strongly.
7. Comment from Me
Time January 6, 2010 at 8:52 AM
And by the way number 4… How dare you call yourself klal Yisroel, you certainly do not speak for me!
8. Comment from Nachum
Time January 7, 2010 at 1:29 AM
Um, “Me,” he’s *agreeing* with you.
1. Comment from Dave S.
Time January 5, 2010 at 6:55 PM
Forget about naming rights.
No one should be taking money from those who are dishonest.