This story goes back to January 2012, when government officials first knocked on the door of the Namdar family's home in Gothenburg, Sweden. The Namdars are Chabad emissaries who had lived and worked in Sweden since 1991. The reason for the visit was the fact that Rabbi Alexander and Leah Namdar chose to home-school their children, giving them a Jewish education and ensuring they could live full Jewish lives. One might think that the reason for this government intervention was the desire to guarantee that the Namdar children got a good general education, but that would be incorrect. Six of the family's 11 children have been home-schooled in the secular common core curriculum through international online schools and now attend international high schools abroad, pursuing careers in education. The children study math, social studies, geography and science just like any other child in the country and in addition to attending the online school are privately tutored to pass national standardized tests. So why would the city of Gothenburg and the Swedish government try to force these children into public school? The Namdar kids, who by age five are fluent in Swedish, English, Hebrew and Yiddish, are most likely more well-educated than most Swedish children, so their well-being cannot be the motive. What is- Ultra-secular Sweden has very tight restrictions on home schooling, allowing it only in what is deemed "extraordinary circumstances. Religion is not considered an extraordinary circumstance, and the issues of freedom to practice one's faith or and being openly, uncomfortably Jewish are not a priority for the legislators. In short: Home schooling is legal unless you believe in God. The city of Gothenburg is threatening to fine the Namdar family $2,400 per week if they do not comply and put their children in public school, which to me seems nothing short of forced assimilation. If, God forbid, the Namdar children are placed in public school, they would not be able to maintain their Orthodox Jewish lifestyle. The city of Gothenburg is not only taking radical steps to assimilate the Namdar family, it is also putting the children at risk of anti-Semitic bullying, or worse. The crime the Namdars are committing is trying to give their children a Jewish education and ensuring they stay Jewish in a secular society, while being a haven for other Jews in the area, providing kosher meals, religious services and study. For this, they are being persecuted. For this, they may have to leave. The Namdar family won the first round against the city of Gothenburg, but the city appealed and the case is slated to be heard in the Supreme Administrative Court on Jan. 27. If they lose, they might end up having to leave Sweden in order to live a Jewish life and raise their children according to their faith and tradition. The country would lose yet another Jew to the oppression of the secular consensus. Sweden as a country has a fear of religion, especially of the uncomfortable orthodox variety, and in rejecting the rights of this Jewish family, the city of Gothenburg is also rejecting religious pluralism in society as a whole. One-size-fits-all secularism is seen as the bedrock of a healthy society, while the values instilled in children through religion -- charity, peace, globalism and education -- are the values being lauded by liberal societies everywhere. It's a shameful thing to withhold human rights, whether it is the right to speak your mind, write your truth, or worship according to the dictates of your heart. Sweden is making a choice to use bureaucracy to assimilate Jews and force them out. It is doing so openly, without a hint of hesitation. If the events of recent weeks have taught us anything, it should be that human rights are worth fighting for, and that oppression must be fought in daylight as well as in the shadows. The case against the Namdars is not merely about education, but about secular nations waking up to the idea that God is a factor in many people's lives, and a factor that can contribute to society and help shape a world for the better. As such, it should not be driven out of town, but be used as a tool to build it. Annika Hernroth-Rothstein is a political adviser, activist and writer on the Middle East, religious affairs and global anti-Semitism.
Freedom of worship on trial
מערכת ישראל היום
מערכת "ישראל היום“ מפיקה ומעדכנת תכנים חדשותיים, מבזקים ופרשנויות לאורך כל שעות היממה. התוכן נערך בקפדנות, נבדק עובדתית ומוגש לציבור מתוך האמונה שהקוראים ראויים לעיתונות טובה יותר - אמינה, אובייקטיבית ועניינית.
