On the House? Personal Use of Office Supplies
Secular journalists in Israel were recently introduced to the way the other half lives, and discovered that there is more to “chareidim” (ultra- Orthodox Jews) than the hostile media reports. Yerachmiel Toker, parliamentary aide to Knesset member Moshe Gafni, invited
groups of secular journalists to chareidi population centers to actually meet and observe the community firsthand. On one occasion, journalists from Haaretz, a paper with little love of chareidim, visited Bnei Brak. They spoke to the mayor, stopped in at a number of religious schools, and went to see a hi-tech company staffed by kollel wives. Rabbi Toker related that “they were very impressed by [the employees’] quiet modesty and the confidence they radiated that what they’re doing [working to support their husbands’ Torah study] is the best thing in the world.
“But I think what impressed them most was what the non-religious boss had to say about her workers. She told the journalists how the women come and ask for permission before they use the fax machine for something not work-related, so it shouldn’t be gezel [theft], and other examples of their high ethical standards regarding their work and the use of other people’s property. This made a tremendous impression on the journalists… they’d encountered another civilization.” (Mishpacha Magazine, Mind-Cleansing Encounters, Rabbi Moshe Grylak, Wednesday, February 22, 2012)
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