The following was published on the front page of Yated
Ne'eman in Hebrew last week.
We regard it as a spiritual necessity for us to publicly
express our opposition to the various types of photograph
albums that have been distributed in the past and are
currently being distributed.
At first glance, such albums seem to have some educational
merit, as they occupy children playing with collected
pictures of our Torah giants, recalling the verse, "Let your
eyes behold your teachers." Experience has taught us,
however, that children take no interest whatsoever in the
pictures themselves, but are merely interested in collecting
the cards. The value of a card is determined by its rarity on
the market, without any connection to the actual picture.
Instead of education to values, the end result is usually
contempt. As a result, any benefit possibly to be derived
from such cards is distant and unlikely, but the damage they
cause is both immediate and concrete.
In addition, such cards have had many negative ramifications.
Among them:
A. The children become totally absorbed in the pictures.
During davening time, during cheder, and in
their free time that had up until now been used to pore over
their studies, they are busy trying to acquire more cards.
This has had the immediate result of many students' studies
taking a dramatic downturn.
B. This phenomenon causes the waste of huge sums of money --
as small sums add up -- and this in itself would be cause
enough to prohibit the whole business. In addition, this is
often accompanied by the sorry phenomenon of children
obtaining money from their parents by dishonorable
methods.
C. Children buy and sell the cards among themselves. This is
often accompanied by deceit and fraud; sometimes even by
violence and theft. Even if these negative elements were not
present, the mere fact of dealing in buying and selling and
developing their business acumen at a young age is very
undesirable.
We fervently call upon parents: Have mercy upon the children,
our children, and do not let them have anything to do with
these albums.
May it be His Will that, "for our sons are like saplings,
nurtured from their youth . . . Our oxen are laden; there is
neither breach, nor outburst, nor wailing in our streets!"
Talmud Torah Livinei Ha'avreichim Ohel Moshe; Talmud Torah
Ohel Torah; Talmud Torah Ohr Zoreach; Talmud Torah Emes
Vi'emunoh-Slonim; Talmud Torah Bobov; Talmud Torah Be'er
Yehoshua; Talmud Torah Beis Aharon; Talmud Torah Belz; Talmud
Torah Breslov; Talmud Torah Darkei Ovos Tzanz; Talmud Torah
Vizhnitz; Talmud Torah Chug Chosom Sofer; Talmud Torah Yitav
Lev-Satmar; Talmud Torah Ksav Sofer; Talmud Torah Lekach Tov;
Talmud Torah Maharitz Dushinski; Talmud Torah Monkatsh;
Talmud Torah Mekor Boruch-Seret Vizhnitz; Talmud Torah
Mishkenos Ya'acov; Talmud Torah Pnei Menachem-Gur; Talmud
Torah Pri Chodosh; Talmud Torah Karlin-Stolin; Talmud Torah
Rabbi Akiva-"Merkaz"; Talmud Torah Rabbi Akiva "Zichron
Meir"; Talmud Torah Shtilei Zeitim; Talmud Torah Sha'ar
HaTorah; Talmud Torah Kiryas Herzog; Talmud Torah Toras Emes;
Talmud Torah Tashbar-Chazon Ish; Talmud Torah Talpiot
