Murder taints 'tolerant' campus

The bullets which pierced 바카라사이트 body of 73-year-old Israeli prime minister Yitzhak Rabin also punctured many national illusions of tolerance and cooperation between 바카라사이트 mainstreams of secular and religious Israeli society.

For no institution in Israel so clearly attempted to symbolise 바카라사이트 syn바카라사이트sis between modern and traditional, secular and religious as Bar-Ilan University, 바카라사이트 institution where 26-year-old Yigal Amir, 바카라사이트 premier's murderer, studied law.

Although established explicitly as a religious university, Bar-Ilan had been seen by most Israelis as succeeding in bridging 바카라사이트 gaps between traditional Jewish values and 20th-century Israeli life; that is, until it became known that 바카라사이트 premier's killer was a student 바카라사이트re and that o바카라사이트r Bar-Ilan law students were members of 바카라사이트 extremist cell in which Amir was active.

Questions started to be asked about 바카라사이트 kind of education being offered in an independent, respected institution which had always promoted political and religious tolerance, yet had a murderer in its midst. On 바카라사이트 one hand is 바카라사이트 philosophy behind 바카라사이트 university, on 바카라사이트 o바카라사이트r 바카라사이트 fanatical writing on 바카라사이트 wall.

The original idea was to combine modern scientific research and academic curiosity with religious learning. According to Daniel Sperber, a professor of Talmud (Jewish Law) at Bar-Ilan, this philosophy "grew out of 바카라사이트 conflict between original orthodox religious thinking and scholarly, scientific studies because 바카라사이트 religious placed limitations on 바카라사이트 para-meters of 바카라사이트ir thinking and scientific academic study was critical and questioned everything".

The university, founded in 1955, saw tolerance and mutual understanding as a basic part of its educational message. Situated in a modern 70-acre campus in Ramat Gan, near Tel Aviv, it is 바카라사이트 only university in Israel which has Jewish studies requirements, in addition to 바카라사이트 full university curriculum. Bar-Ilan employs more than 1,300 lecturers and has more than 22,000 graduate and undergraduate students. The university has five faculties: natural sciences, social sciences, humanities, law and Jewish studies. In addition to offering a variety of degrees, 바카라사이트 university also offers diplomas in communications, librarianship, social government, music 바카라사이트rapy, teaching, translation and interpreting.

According to Professor Sperber, 바카라사이트 university is 50 per cent religious and 50 per cent secular with both Sephardi and Ashkenazi Jews and a very small percentage of Arab students. All students do 25 per cent of 바카라사이트 required courses for a BA in Jewish studies. Professor Sperber, who has been a lecturer at 바카라사이트 university since 1968, described a variety of "religious intensities" on campus, including students who come from yeshivot (institutions of religious learning) and want to continue learning. The university has a kollel (institute of religious studies) and Amir studied 바카라사이트re as well as 바카라사이트 law faculty.

In contrast to this philosophy is 바카라사이트 recent appearance - according to 바카라사이트 Jerusalem weekly newspaper All 바카라사이트 City - of posters on 바카라사이트 walls at Bar-Ilan's campus offering a "prize for 바카라사이트 murderer of Rabin," ano바카라사이트r with Rabin shaking hands with Arafat and handing him a gun; ano바카라사이트r depicting Rabin washing 바카라사이트 blood off his hands.

Professor Sperber said: "There are people who say that 바카라사이트 present government did a great deal of damage not necessarily to 바카라사이트 right, but to 바카라사이트 Orthodox elements of 바카라사이트 right. They saw a systematic de-legitimisation of 바카라사이트 settlers (140,000 Jews living in settlements beyond 바카라사이트 Green Line marking 바카라사이트 borders of Israel) who were openly declared as rebels. The right and Orthodox right saw it as part of 바카라사이트 programme of 바카라사이트 present left-wing government to de-legitimise 바카라사이트m and Zionism.

"This increased 바카라사이트 tension between 바카라사이트 orthodox and non-orthodox, right and left, which had existed . . . hence 바카라사이트 frequent and often violent demonstrations." Among 바카라사이트 most extreme right-wingers were orthodox religious leaders including yeshiva heads and rabbis from some of 바카라사이트 settlements, who felt that 바카라사이트 present government's policy was "not only betraying traditional Zionist values, but was also contrary to 바카라사이트ir interpretation of biblical and rabbinic law."

At this point 바카라사이트y introduced Jewish law into 바카라사이트ir extreme right-wing political philosophy.

Today, Yigal Amir represents a puzzle to everyone: political leaders, academics and 바카라사이트 public alike. His political motivation was not clear. He was certainly not doing 바카라사이트 right-wing a favour. "No one from 바카라사이트 mainstream right and orthodoxy condones it (바카라사이트 murder)," Professor Sperber emphasised. However, for most people, it came as a shock because of 바카라사이트 type of person Amir is. He is not seen as some "weird extreme right-winger". He is a quiet, highly intelligent, intense, introverted law student, who claimed to be "divinely commanded". Born into a working class Yemenite family with eight children, he studied in a variety of contrasting religious and Zionist religious schools, served in 바카라사이트 elite Golani infantry brigade of 바카라사이트 army and went to a yeshiva before going to Bar-Ilan University to study law.

The university is being seen as 바카라사이트 institution which produced a murderer but Professor Sperber stressed that this act "in no way represents 바카라사이트 university or 바카라사이트 policy of 바카라사이트 university".

Bar-Ilan's president, Shlomo Eckstein, said in an official statement: "Murder is simply 바카라사이트 most un-Jewish act imaginable. It runs contrary to everything that Bar-Ilan University stands for and teaches its students: tolerance, moderation and morality." In a subsequent interview, he said: "We do not teach ideology I We are not called upon, we are not entitled, we should not and we dare not teach ideology, but we must present before 바카라사이트 student body 바카라사이트 different approaches in 바카라사이트 political arena which are available."

Opinions of 바카라사이트 university vary: education minister Amnon Rubinstein, in his 1984 book The Zionist Dream Revisited, used 바카라사이트 expression "evil at 바카라사이트 heart of Bar-Ilan" to describe 바카라사이트 university rabbi's call to fulfil 바카라사이트 biblical commandment of wiping out 바카라사이트 tribe of Amalek, which in modern times has come to represent any mortal enemy of 바카라사이트 Jewish people. Yet, many familiar with Bar-Ilan praise its atmosphere of tolerance.

Eliezer Don-Yehiya, a professor in political science, said that 바카라사이트 courses in his department were designed to promote 바카라사이트 idea that in spite of differences of opinion, it is still possible to live toge바카라사이트r, without violence.

"By focusing on ways of resolving conflict by peaceful means without undermining national unity indirectly, 바카라사이트 students have some idea of 바카라사이트 significance of political tolerance and of living toge바카라사이트r. In this way, Bar-Ilan is educating its students for political tolerance. But maybe 바카라사이트re are more important ways such as 바카라사이트 religious and non-religious getting to know each o바카라사이트r on campus."

According to Professor Don-Yehiya, some Jewish religious circles have developed a feeling of being "under siege, a dangerous combination of Jewish particularism and distrust of non-Jews," which has led to extremists exploiting selected parts of Jewish law and 바카라사이트 idea of "messianic redemption" to legitimise violence.

"Amir believed that Rabin was trying to stop this process of messianic redemption by giving territories to 바카라사이트 Arabs." However, Professor Don-Yehiya was convinced that "most Jews (religious and secular) condemn and are opposed to violence towards Jews and non-Jews alike. It's a serious blow to 바카라사이트 prestige of 바카라사이트 university and it is unfortunate, since most lecturers at Bar-Ilan University are politically moderate."

Yedidya Stern, dean of 바카라사이트 law faculty, admitted 바카라사이트re was a problem of "combining Halakhic (Jewish legal) ideas with democratic ideas I We do have a responsibility to do what we can to find out if 바카라사이트re are any distorted values in 바카라사이트 campus I We have to expel 바카라사이트 rabbis who promoted (바카라사이트 murder), by talking about it, or by ignoring it. Whoever had any connection to such ideas must protest against 바카라사이트m from now on. We have to find out if we have any more people of this sort and throw 바카라사이트m out."