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Back to the Jewish Press Letters Section:

I was fascinated by the article written by two young girls describing a "Day at Nishmat Shana B’aretz Program" ("The Learning Experience In Eretz Israel," Feb 3). I had no idea that there are seminaries that teach Gemara to girls. They actually call their study hall a "beit midrash" and they, quote, "break their heads" over short sugyas in Masechet Baba Batra. The girls go on to write about how they "struggled through the Aramaic text" and how, after about two and a half hours of studying a particular section (one and half hours with the maggid shiur), they were "utterly confused."
I too am utterly confused. Why in the world are girls learning Gemara? Are they planning to become dayanim or shochtim? Most telling in this narrative of a day at Nishmat Shana was the time devoted to tefillah. From 8:00 to 8:30 they davened and ate breakfast and by 8:30 were in class to start Mishnayot. So how much time was relegated to tefillah? 15 minutes? Twenty?
I don’t know what the future of these girls will be, but I can guarantee that wherever life takes them, nothing in the world will be more important to them than tefillah. How sad that that which is most attainable and of real significance is relegated to a mere 15 minutes. But Gemara, which is not the domain of women, is given priority. A mixed-up world indeed.

Perel Olen
Brooklyn, New York

Well, judging by Perel's use of the word "relegated", I guess English isn't that important either. Anyway, it is rather staggering to realize that people who read papers like the Jewish Press and are literate enough to write a letter to the editor, in relatively solid Enligh, even, still aren't aware of the very existence of women's batei midrash. To address her main point, the OC's page for Nishmat says:

At Nishmat, growth in Avodat Hashem comes from learning Torah, and we provide our students with the skills and experience that will enable them to study with depth, passion and insight for the rest of their lives. We want our students to become leaders in the communities they choose later in life. Love of Torah, the love of Israel and the skill in learning they learn in the Shana Ba’Aretz will give them the resources to contribute to the Jewish people wherever they are.

Sounds good to me. Besides, even within Ms. Olen's probable world-view, having independent learning skills could come in handy when the girls are home all day raising their children. Those guys in the year-in-Israel yeshivas who plan to have non-dayan/shochet careers have more explaining to do, if anything. Had they only learned how to daven properly, they could spend their downtime/transit meditating over tehillim. Alas, they leave Israel with nothing but half-baked gemara skills...