If this question strikes you as strange and confusing, please know that it struck us the same way. An investigation by NCCI found an essay “Why Hanukah is for Muslim Jews” among many interesting articles provided to teachers in Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools.
How did we come across this and other odd teaching materials? Many groups, most notably CAMERA and Americans for Peace and Tolerance, have encouraged citizens to check with local schools to see what they are teaching young people about Israel and Judaism. The reason? If we understand what students are taught early on, we can see why so many become easy prey to anti-Israel lies and propaganda once they get to college.
NCCI therefore requested pertinent materials from the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools, which they promptly provided. We are still sifting through various sources, but since Hanukah is here, we thought the following might be of particular interest.
Class Materials Confuse Teachers and Students
Included in the resources for teachers is an online program “Religious Tolerance.” If teachers and students weren’t confused about religion and history before the course, they are sure to be afterwards. Historical facts play little role in this program where Judaism is primarily just another “Abrahamic religion” rather than the foundation for Christianity more than a millennium after its founding and 600 years after that, Islam.
Anyone who clicks on the section about Judaism on this site will be learning a lot about Islam instead, since about half of the material is submitted by Rabbi Allen Maller. Rabbi Maller understatedly claims an “appreciation of Islam” although his history and writings could be from a Muslim convert. He says that he had an appreciation of Islam from the time he was 10 years old, and that he studied Islam at UCLA and later during rabbinical school. Maller’s writings are filled with reverential quotes from the Quran, and he spends almost as much time teaching about Islam as he does Judaism.
Maller says:
“Thus, the Qu’ran states that: “Abraham was neither a Jew nor a Christian, but he was inclining toward truth, a Muslim [a person who submits to G-d]…..(3:67)”
Maller goes on to write “This is why I think of myself as a Reform Rabbi and a Muslim Jew. Actually, I am a Muslim Jew, i.e. a faithful Jew submitting to the will of G-d, because I am a Reform Rabbi.”
Jewish Holidays Converted into Islamic Ones
Maller’s essays are filled with quotes from the Quran and Hadiths. His contributions include “A Rabbi warns against Islamaphobia.” His writings are filled with commentary about Islam, under the section that is supposed to be about Judaism. He refers to the Jewish holiday of Sukkot as “Haj Sukkot” – adding the Islamic term haj, thus changing the Jewish holiday to an Islamic one. Given this, and his essay “Why Hanukah is for Muslim Jews,” how could teachers, and therefore students, NOT be confused after reading these materials? With so many rabbis to choose from, why was Maller selected as the featured writer for this site?
There is a great deal of material yet for us to process. If you are interested in helping, please let us know. We also encourage you to request similar materials from your own school district. You don’t have to have children enrolled in school to do this. We will be glad to help you. It’s critical that young people are properly educated about Israel and Judaism. We’re sure you’ll agree that the next generation will determine the future of the Jewish people.
East Chapel Hill High School
