On Monday morning, March 14, Congressman Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY 8th District) made a special trip to Lakewood, New Jersey to experience firsthand the country’s largest Yeshiva, Beth Medrash Govoha (BMG). Congressman Jeffries represents the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Sea Gate, Coney Island, Brighton Beach, Manhattan Beach, Bedford-Stuyvesant, East New York, Canarsie and continuing on into parts of Queens. The Congressman was accompanied by leading Klal askanim Chaskel Bennett, Leon Goldenberg, Avi Schick, Isaac Sofer, and Yossi Menczer, all of whom spoke of his special and long-standing relationship with the Orthodox-Jewish community going back to his days as an Assemblyman representing parts of north Brooklyn including Williamsburgh.

Rabbi Aaron Kotler, President of BMG, led the Congressman on a personal tour of the vibrant Batei Medrash on BMG’s main campus. As the Congressman savored the palpable intensity of the learning, he was approached by several talmidim who hail from New York’s 8th district who expressed their thanks to him for his efforts on behalf of the Jewish community, and for taking the time to come out to Lakewood to show his support for Yeshivos. The Congressman was glad to hear how BMG talmid Shmuel Kanarek brings the BMG atmosphere back to the district over Pesach vacation by organizing a learning program for bochurim in Sea Gate.

Following the tour, a luncheon was held in Rabbi Kotler’s office in the Congressman’s honor attended by Lakewood Mayor Menashe Miller and Deputy Mayor Isaac Akerman; local askanim; as well as a number of Lakewood residents with deep roots in neighborhoods in the Congressman’s district. Mayor Miller asked several alumni of the Yeshiva to speak of their part in building Lakewood’s businesses and remarkable chessed infrastructure.

Noted askan Chaskel Bennett spoke movingly of Congressman Jeffries’ warm and long-standing relationship with the Jewish community and his staunch support for Israel. He lauded the Congressman for his leadership in spreading an eloquent message against bigotry and hatred. Mr. Bennett highlighted the Congressman’s strong stand on the principle of equity and fairness for all children, and his consistent efforts to ensure that children attending private Yeshivos receive the services to which they are entitled by law and by right.

Congressman Jeffries spoke of how he was deeply impressed with intensity of the learning he had seen, and the incredible growth of Lakewood Township, driven by the students and alumni of the Yeshiva. He spoke passionately of his belief that for those who chose to educate their children in a manner that helps them maintain their religion and culture – government should not be an obstacle to that path – rather government should in an appropriate manner facilitate parents’ ability to make the right choice for their children. He also spoke of the United States Constitution’s dual protections as relates to religion; the Establishment clause which bars the government from establishing a State religion, unlike countries such as Great Britain or Iceland which have official state churches; and the Free Exercise Clause, which is meant to protect citizens in their own pursuit of their own religion. He noted of the attention the Establishment clause gathers and how it is often distorted into interpretations that interfere with religious freedom. In the Congressman’s view of the balance between these two clauses, Yeshivos and religious groups deserve equal treatment – not better, not worse, but equal to that of secular groups.

Congressman Jeffries also spoke of the Founding Fathers’ unusual insertion of Patent Protection into the Constitution. Why he asked was this so important as to merit special attention with the Constitution setting up a Patent Protection office? The Honorable Mr. Jeffries explained that the Founding Fathers understood that the true capital of a nation is not only in its land or labor, but in the power of the people’s minds and intellect. He drew a parallel in this to Beth Medrash Govoha and Lakewood, which has zero resources and which has become a great communal center and economic engine solely as a result of the exercise of the minds and spirits of its students. He shared of his own work on the House Judiciary Committee and on its subcommittees for Patent Protection.

Congressman Jeffries serves on the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Education and the Workforce. The Committee is working this year on the Reauthorization of the Higher Education Act which governs Pell grants and other programs that fund Yeshiva Gedolah education at some 90-plus Yeshivos across the Country, including 50 in Brooklyn alone. The Congressman explained that as one of only two members of the Committee from New York (with none being from New Jersey), he will be looking out to ensure that the concerns and needs of Yeshiva students are heard and addressed as the bill makes its way through Congress in the coming months. He closed his remarks with a rousing call to the large group of guests who gathered in his honor, asking them to continue building their community with faith, honor and dignity. He shared of the impact Lakewood had made on him, reflecting the Divine Spirit here on earth.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)