Why Jews, many Christians are opposed to adding Esther to the curriculum in Texas schools
Rabbi Neil Blumofe speaks at a press conference outside a hearing of the Texas State Board of Education on adopting a Bible-infused curriculum for public schools, November 18. (Texas Freedom Network/Facebook)
This story was originally published in the Forward. Click here to get the Forward's free email newsletters delivered to your inbox.
Neil Blumofe, dressed in a dark suit and white cowboy hat, was standing near dozens of worshippers—one shouting, "In Jesus's name!," another carrying a Christian flag, someone else blowing a shofar—in a scene that could easily have been confused for a Pentacostal tent revival.
But it was actually a gathering in the lobby of a Texas state office building in downtown Austin ahead of a vote by the state board of education. Blumofe was not surprised by the scene. “It’s not my first rodeo,” said the rabbi of Congregation Agudas Achim, a Conservative synagogue with 700 families.
