The second Sephardic World Conference, attended by 41 delegates from twelve countries including the United States, concluded its sessions today with a decision to raise $500,000 for creation of a Sephardic rabbinical seminary at Jerusalem.
The Seminary will dedicate itself to forming (1) Spiritual leaders, worthy of the name, who will be true guides and supporters of the spiritual life of the Sephardic congregations in the different countries, and (2) teachers who will raise the level of Hebrew instruction to Jewish primary and secondary schools.
The recruiting of students will be effected by means of the competitive examinations, which will ensure the communities sending only those students possessing a thorough knowledge of the language as well as of the general conditions of their respective countries of origin. Later, when they have completed their studies, they will be ready to assume their rabbinical duties.
In addition, the projected Seminary will work towards the creation of an elite of writers and scholars. it would offer to students of religious schools the possibility of completing their studies.
The fund-raising plan provides for creation, by public subscription, of a trust fund of $500,000 in government bonds, established in the name of the Spanish and Portuguese Jews’ Congregation of London.
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