In rare public conversation, haredi organization leaders of TATYA open up about the community

Yisrael Goldschmidt, Kikar Hashabbat founder and co-chairman of TATYA, and Yehuda Neuberger, Advisory Board Member of TATYA spoke in depth at the Jerusalem Post 2024 Annual Conference about the organization’s critical role in the development of the haredi (ultra-Orthodox) community as it evolves.

The name TATYA, Neuberger explained, referred to the Hebrew year 2050, when the haredi community is expected to reach one-third of Israel’s population.

This privilege, he notes, comes with responsibility, and the organization is dedicated to working alongside the haredi leadership to prepare it to serve and lead when the time comes.

Neuberger notes that TATYA is unique because it works from the inside, creating collaboration with the haredi leadership, and providing haredim with the tools and the motivation to create future leaders. “While I’m quick to admit that we want to create change in culture,” says Neuberger, “that change in culture doesn’t consist of us dictating what it should look like or how the society should lead.” He adds the TATYA made a conscious decision to not focus on the “modern haredi” crowd, but rather on the mainstream.

Empowering haredi leadership for change

Goldschmidt went on to explain how TATYA is engaging with the mainstream haredi crowd through the multifaceted role of rabbis within their communities. “The rabbi is everything in every community. Besides being a spiritual authority, he’s also a social worker, psychologist, and finance adviser,” he said. To qualify for TATYA’s programs, says Goldschmidt, participating rabbis must lead a minimum of 600 families, ensuring that the initiative reaches a significant portion of the haredi population.

Goldschmidt also addressed the inherent challenges in bringing about change within a traditionally conservative community. “Rabbis understand very well there are big changes, but like everyone else, they fear these changes. The more conservative you are, the more afraid you are because you don’t know where it’s going to lead,” he explained.

Despite their concerns, these rabbis are deeply committed to their communities and recognize the need to proactively initiate change to ensure the independence and future of both the haredi community and the state of Israel.

Neuberger noted that the haredi leadership is evolving and requires dedicated effort from within the community. “The issue of leadership is not something that’s going to solve itself. It needs to be done by working within the community to produce change,” he stated. This change, he said, relies on a foundation of information, tools, interaction, and integration.

The advisory board member shared an example from a recent TATYA initiative where rabbis were given an overview of Israel’s state budget, where the goal was not to discuss haredi society or subsidies but to provide a complete picture of the nation’s financial realities. This kind of comprehensive education enables rabbis to understand their role within the larger context of Israeli society and enhances their ability to lead effectively. “I think they all care about Israel,” he concluded.

The two speakers were moderated by journalist Avital Chizhik-Goldschmidt, an editor at The Real Deal and rebbetzin co-founder of the Altneu Synagogue in Manhattan.

ISGAP sponsored a portion of the Jerusalem Post Annual Conference 2024.www.jpost.com/AC24