Boker Tov and Shavua Tov from Israel :-) i would like to drop my 2 cents to this discourse. I'm sorry for the lame English, i'm writing out of great frasturation. I'll followo Jonah's steps...
I was the onlyout LGBT student in Shechter. It was last year, when I atended Mishley, headed by Rabbi Tamar. At the end of the year I was expelled, I will collaborate more on that later. It wasn't homophobia, i think, but it surely was very disturbing behavior of Shechter's leadership.
1. I think Jonah is up to something. Raba Tamar did requested not to discuss the issue of her resignation. Even though i'll be the happiest person on earth to learn that this was indeed the reason, i still think we should respect her request.
2. The fact that Shechter didn't respond is just another layer in Shechter's dissability to lead something, let alone the most important institution is shoulb be.
3. As for Mishlei, last year. when my class enrolled, we were promised that this is a Masorati leadership progrem that will lead evantually to 2 extra years for Rabbinical ordination. About 50% of my class enreolled just for that. we want to be Masorati rabbis, and this was the way to do that. Sadly enough, at the end of the year everything changed. Mishlei now is nothing but a MA program for people that want to do it in the easy way, 2 days a week in Beit Midrash. It has nothing to do with Rabbinical aspirations or leadership, and my classmates who stayed are highly frasturated. The reason I was expelled together with two other students is that we don't have a BA yet (something that Shechter knew all the way and still enrolled us). I'm about to finish mine, but the other two are far from that and Shaechter knew it. It was perfectly fine for leadership-rabbinical program (dependong of coursr on us completing the academic demands), but it's not okay for MA program of Machon Shechter, so we're out. They told us that during summer vacation, without really letting us deal with it, discuss it, or ask our classmates how will they feel without a half of the class, three of its best students, all of them want to go on for ordination. As for now i'm working on my MA in the Talmud department in Bar Ilan University, studying torah from Rabbi Prof. Shama Friedman and Dr. Aaron Amit, i guess Bar Ilan now is more Conservative than shechter :-)
4. I'm glad to hear that. But please ask your Isreali classmates about THEIR experience as for now. You'll get a different picture.
5. Gee, thanks Shechter for letting us use Ani Tfilati. Jonah just forgot to mention that students in shechter are not allowed to mention the Imahot in Amida, so in fact there's no reason to use Ani Tfilati, since the verses are orthodox.
It's time for Shechter to ordain gays, but even before that, it's time for Shechter to be part of the Masorati movement in Israel, and to train its leadership. Without doing that, as it is now, it's time for the Rabbinical Assembly in Israel to initiate a real Conservative seminary in here, and let Golinkin's Shechter to be the modern-orthodox seminary it is. Without our students, and yes, without our money.
Shavua Tov U'Mvorah
Noa
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Conservative Jews.
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