THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS
Friday, January 16, 1981 61
Beit HaKerem's New Synagogue Technion Effort Aids Sephardim
in Gaining University Admission
By DVORA WAYSMAN
World Zionist Press Service
JERUSALEM — The
dedication of a new
synagogue in Jerusalem, a
city of synagogues, is not
usually a newsworthy
event, but for the hundreds
of people who recently
attended the ceremony at
Beit HaKerem's new Cen-
tral Synagogue this time
was different — and not
only because of the striking
modernistic look of the new
building.
The congregation began
its dedication by attending
afternoon prayers in the
d Yellin Teachers'
nary, where they had
"temporarily" been praying
for the last seven years.
From there, the eight Torah
scrolls were removed and - 2—
under a nuptial canopy sig-
nifying Israel's marriage to
the Torah — were brought
in honor to their new home,
accompanied by dancing
and singing in the streets.
Designed by architect
Mordechai Ben-Horin, the
building is an elegant and
striking domed structure,
very modernistic in design.
The exterior is still to be
finished with mosaic tiles,
but the interior is complete
to the last detail . . . the
Ark supported by a large
menora; a tall panel of
stained glass; stippled
Beit HaKerem's Central Synagogue
mushroom carpeting; rich
children. The middle level
burgundy velvet and gold
will be a club for varied ac-
embroidered coverings for
tivities — cultural and so-
the desk and the curtain in
cial — for women, youth and
front of the Ark.
elderly
citizens.
The
The synagogue furniture,
synagogue itself seats 275
functional and very attrac-
men,
and
has
a
tive, was designed and
beautifully-designed
made in Israel by Kibutz
ladies' gallery with extra
Lavi.
seating downstairs for 133
The new synagogue is
women.
also unusual for Israel
The synagogue was a
in that it is to be more joint project of the congre-
than a place of prayer.
gation and the Jerusalem
Like many such
Muncipality. The Ladies'
structures overseas, it is
Guild is active and another
planned as a ',complete
first for Israel is that the
community center on
women -have full repre-
three levels.
sentation on the synagogue
On the ground floor, two
committee and are involved
kindergartens are already in all phases of decision-
operating — large, airy
making.
rooms in a garden setting
with all kinds of outdoor
climbing equipment for the
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HAIFA — The percent-
age of students of Sephardic
background at the Technion
- Israel Institute of Technol-
ogy has risen in recent years
from five percent to close to
25 percent. This increase is
a result of a special compen-
satory education program
established at the institute
in 1964 for army veterans
from disadvantaged
families, who might other-
wise not meet the Techn-
ion's admission require-
ments.
Students take part in in-
tensive classes in math-
ematics, physics, chemistry,
English and Hebrew. At the
completion of this preparat-
l'Imud Put on Microfiche
NEW YORK (JTA) — A
technique for greatly reduc-
ing the size of units of
printed materials, called
microfiche, has been
applied to creation of an
educational tool to encour-
age the study of Jewish sac-
red lore, according to the
developers, the Rudman
Foundation of Far Rocka-
way, N.Y.
Rabbi Joseph Rudman,
president of the Founda-
tion, and his son, Reuben,
president of Orthodox
Jewish Students, are the
major figures in the de-
American Sees the Chinese
Softening Towards Israel
NEW YORK — An
American Jew who has
spent the last 35 years in
China, including 16 years in
Chinese prisons, says that
China is no longer seeking
the destruction of Israel or
parroting the Arab line.
Sidney Rittenberg of
Charleston, S.C. told Re-
form Judaism magazine,
"Until recently, China sup-
ported the Arab position in
the Middle East with no
publicly-stated reserva-
tions about a policy seeking
the destruction of Israel.
"Today, however, China
openly supports secure bor-
ders.for all Middle East na-
tions and has reacted favor-
ably to the Camp David ac-
cords, which it believes de-
fused a potentially explo-
sive superpower confronta-
tion in the area."
Rittenberg said the
1978 rescinding of the
rule prohibiting U.S. citi-
zens from teaching in
China has helped to end a
number of stereotypes in
China.
He added that a Chinese
official referred to the coun-
try's cultural revolution as
a "second Holocaust" in a
magazine interview earlier
this year. Rittenberg said
the Holocaust had never be-
fore been publicly men-
tioned in China.
"The Jews, like the
Chinese, are an ancient
people with an ancient reli-
gion that has survived since
the beginning of recorded
time," he said. "We share
many traditions and out-
looks, including the impor-
tance of family, the supre-
macy of scholarship, and an
emphasis on a life of right-
eous actions rather than
words.
The program is part of a
nationwide project under
the auspices of the Ministry
of Education, the Israel
universities and the Israel
Defense Forces. All costs
are covered, and bed, board
and academic tutoring are
provided as part of the pro-
gram.
"If this were more
widely known among the
Chinese," he said, "it
would bring about better
Israel-China relations as
well as improve U.S.-
China ties."
Rittenberg was sent to
China by the U.S. army in
1945. He joined the United
Nations Relief Agency just
as China and the U.S. se-
vered relations. Despite his
16 years in prison, he plans
to remain in China.
velopment of the Torah
Microfiche Library. Reuben
is a professor of chemistry at
Adelphi University.
Rabbi Rudman, an active
businessman, said the li-
brary contains the entire
13,000 folios of the Babylo-
nian Talmud, with com-
mentaries, on a packet of
186 four-inch by six-inch
microfiche cards totalling
one-and-a-half inches in
thickness. He said the non-
profit foundation was mak-
ing the TML available at
cost to interested individu-
als and organizations.
The cards are used with a
hand-held portable reader-
projector, weighing less
than 1 1/2 pounds./
ory work, they compete in
the Technion's entrance
exams with all other candi-
dates; 80 percent of them
succeed in passing the ad-
mittance test, as compared
to 30-40 percent of other
candidates.
"Our experience shows
that these students par-
ticipate in study in every
faculty, with success,
once -they have earned
admission," explains
Yael. Rom, head of the
unit for Advancement of
Students.
Research done by Mrs.
Rom showed that students
of Asian and African des-
cent who received preparat-
ory training to make up for
disadvantages in their edu-
cational background scored
virtually the same in their
academic work as their
counterparts born in Israel,
or of European background,
who had all theadvantages
of academic high schools.
The program was origi-
nally conceived in the early
1960s after the late Prime
Minister David Ben-Gurion
noted that though Sephar-
dic Jews made up 50 percent
of the general Israel popula-
tion — and 60 to 70 percent
of the kindergarten popula-
tion — they made up only
five percent of Israel's uni-
versity students.
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WE'VE JUST
Education Films
NEW YORK (JTA) —
The first comprehensive
guide to films for children to
use in Jewish education —
in schools, camps, Jewish
community centers, and
youth groups — has been
prepared by the Jewish
Media Service (JMS).
Compiled and edited by
Nama Frenkel, a program
associate of the JMS, the
25-page guide — "Films for
Children of All Ages" — de-
scribes 90 films in 10
categories.
From:
Paste in old label
Move Opposed
JERUSALEM (ZINS) —
Foreign Minister Yitzhak
Shamir has issued a state-
ment opposing the transfer
of the prime minister's
office to the Old City of
Jerusalem.
Shamir said such a move
would have no practical
significance and would only
complicate Israel's diploma-
tic relations with a number
of countries.
Similar views were ex-
pressed by Zevulun Ham-
mer of the National Reli-
gious Party and by Moshe
Dayan.
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