Yesterday, history was made in Arizona — and, in large part, due to Congregation Beth Tefillah of Scottsdale, Arizona!
This will enable our children, in this age of distraction inundated by Tik Tok, Instagram, Snapchat, and so many other intrusions, to take a moment at the beginning of the day, to focus inward, and anchor themselves in the moral and spiritual values that will be suggested to them by their parents, so that they can thrive not just intellectually, but also spiritually and emotionally; not just as human doings, but also, as human beings.
This bill was inspired by our late Lubavitcher Rebbe — whose 120th birthday falls today — who called upon the United States of America to implement this bill in all public schools, after the attempted assassination of President Reagan in 1981, in the hopes of restoring emotional and spiritual health, sanity and accountability, to our children and to a society that can produce such an assassin.
In the words of the Arizona Governor in his address today:
“This new exercise will let our kids escape from all their distractions — if only for a minute or two — so they can think, feel, reflect, and breathe. I’m confident this will have a significant impact on the mental and emotional health of our kids.
I want to thank Representative Alma Hernandez for sponsoring this legislation and leading on this issue. I also want to thank Rabbi Pinchas Allouche from Congregation Beth Tefillah of Arizona for your hard work and support to help get this bill to my desk.
And I would be remiss if I didn’t recognize Rabbi Schneersohn — also known as the Lubavitcher Rebbe — an influential figure of the Jewish community…. I’m eager to sign this bill today, which will further the vision of the great Rebbe, enhance the education of our children, and contribute to their emotional and spiritual well-being.” (For the full transcript of the Governor’s remarks, click here: https://tinyurl.com/
Thank you to AZ representative Alma Hernandez for sponsoring this bill, to Adam Kwasman, for stewarding this bill through its many hurdles along the way, to Maria Cristina Fuentes, for her ongoing guidance and assistance, and to Governor Doug Ducey for her inspiring leadership and friendship.
