Thanks to the Rabbi

B"H

Some years ago, when I was a little younger, I went on a short trip to Safed (Northern Israel) where I met two Yeshiva girls at the Chabad hostel Ascent.

Just a brief clarification in between: In Israel usually womens' Torah study institutions are not called Yeshiva but Michlalah. However, I am using the expression Yeshiva here.

It turned out that the girls I met became religious later in their lives and besides work, participated in evening classes in a haredi Yeshiva in the Kiryat Mattersdorf haredi neighbourhood. At that time, I wanted some changes in my life but didn't know exactly what and where to start. So far, I had been in a national religious study institution and also went to evening haredi Shiurim (classes). I have never felt particularly connected to the national religious movement although I like studying Rabbi Kook. However, the national religious mentality is somehow not for me.
Then I met the girls in Safed and they invited me to have a look at their haredi institution. First, they invited me for Shabbat and a some time later, I went to check out the evening classes.

Kiryat Mattersdorf is an entirely haredi neighbourhood. You can find anything, from chassidic to litvish. Nearby is Kiryat Belz with its huge synagogue and the other haredi neighbourhood of Sanhedria and the whole Bar Ilan Street area.

In order to get to the Yeshiva, I had to pass a certain backyard and climb down some stairs in order to get into the Yeshiva facilities. One of the girls, Y., was already anxiously waiting for me. She was of sephardi origin and very warm hearted. Proudly she showed me around and introduced me to some of the other girls / women. The Yeshiva is somehow the Hebrew sister school of Ohr Sameach and all classes are in Hebrew. The girls had become religious later in their lives whereas their parents were still secular.

Already in the staircase we met a rather strange woman. She had this flair of the Hippie - Flower - Power movement and her thoughts were anywhere but not in this world. She must have been in her fifties or so. Before Y. introduced me to her she whispered to me: "This is Alona"

I said: "Oh, okay".

Again Y. whispered very meaningful: "This is Alona".

I said: "Yeah, I got you. This is Alona"

Y. continued her whispers about Alona and finally asked: "Don't you know the story ?"

Well, as someone not born in Israel, I indeed didn't know the story.

It turned out that Alona was the former wife of the famous Israeli pop singer Arik Einstein. Arik Einstein' s best friend, Uri Zohar, became religious over more than twenty years ago. Uri Zohar was an actor who mostly acted in trivial beach movies. Suddenly he decided to leave his great career, study in a Yeshiva and become a rabbi. This was a big thing in Israel and a scandal as well. His fans didn't understand how the popular Uri Zohar could do such a crazy thing. Giving up a career and becoming one of those Haredim who study all the time, dress funny and don't work. This is more or less the stereotype opinion of the average secular Israeli.

Arik Einstein couldn't face a religious friend and for some reason the friendship fell apart. Furthermore, Arik Einstein's wife Alona decided to become religious as well. Together with the kids. In the end, Arik lost his friend Uri and part of his family. Until today, Arik Einstein and Alona are in touch because of the kids, but both have a completely different life. When Arik lost his friend Uri Zohar, he even wrote a famous song about the whole story.

This is the famous story Y. told me about Alona and here I was. Standing in front of Alona Einstein who was somewhere else with her thoughts. We briefly said "HI" and this was it.

The classroom, if I may it call so, was packed with at least twenty girls. I cannot remember the subject being taught but before the Shiur, the rabbi asked the girls how they spent the Shabbat. At the beginning, I didn’t get that this was supposed to be an ironic question because all of their parents were secular. Of course, the parents had watched TV etc. and not really kept Shabbat yet. It bothered me a lot that the girls and the rabbi were making fun of this. So, you became religious and the parents not. This is not a reason to make fun of your parents.

During the Shiur, the girls were knitting Kipot or whatever. I could just see their eyes shining with a Shidduch (match) in mind. To me it looked like a housewife club although Y. was a little different. She insisted on me speaking to the head of the Yeshiva in order to get accepted. She really dragged me into his office.
He was American and spoke Hebrew with a heavy American accent. I felt sorry for him that he was suffering through and offered to speak in English. He looked at me angrily and wasn't too friendly anyway.

What I was planning to learn ? When I mentioned Talmud he looked at me as if I had said something seriously wrong. He said that then I am obviously in the wrong place. I felt that he never wanted me anyway. Maybe I looked too much like a troublemaker or having my own thoughts instead of knitting Kipot and walking around with shiny eyes.

At first, I was angry at the rabbi but more than a year later when I was back in Germany, I seriously thought about sending him a postcard with a "Thank You - greeting". Being accepted at the Yeshiva would have turned out as a great disaster.

I am not a pressure or shiny eye person and I cannot even knit. A few weeks later, I found a great Yeshiva where we studied Gemara and I was happy.

Sometimes when something goes wrong we turn to be upset, as I was a little about this rabbi. However, later on in life we find out that the refusal was actually the best what could ever happen to you.

After I participated for three days, I left the Yeshiva and never went back. I heard that Y. is happily married and I suppose that Alona is still there. Arik Einstein still sings very successfully and Uri Zohar is a haredi rabbi gossiping about ashkenazim although he is ashkenazi himself. But he supports the sephardi Shass - party. He gives Shiurim on a religious radio channel.
The Yeshiva is probably still there and I am still glad that I wasn't accepted. I still don't have shiny eyes and I still don't know how to knit.