When the strike was called 2 and a half weeks ago, students greeted it with a mixture of both relief and contempt. From one perspective, most of the Orthodox students at York University had been through a grueling few weeks of midterms and post-chag catch-up, and everyone needed a break. On the other hand, it left everyone in a position of uncertainty. At the very least, it meant inconvenience, at the most, difficulty for graduating students and those hoping to study in Israel during the second semester. Whatever the case was, most students began the strike by embracing some much needed time to breathe.
As Rav Aharon Lichtenstein teaches in By His Light, a person’s true self is not necessarily shown in his day to day actions, rather, his essence is revealed by what he does when he has some moments to himself. Rabbi Aaron Greenberg, the JLI-C Rabbi on the York University campus, provided an avenue for York students to spend that downtime in an incredibly positive way. In the “Shteig through the Strike” program, 20-30 students meet at the BAYT shul in Thornhill to begin the day with an 8:30 minyan followed by breakfast and 2 shiurim given by talmidei chachamim from all over Toronto, including Rabbanim from across the city, as well as peer shiurim given by the students themselves. This program has definitely been a breath of fresh air in the city of Toronto. For many students, it is a unique opportunity to daven in a minyan and set the tone for the rest of the day that follows 2 hours of learning. It has definitely helped to create a sense of community that is difficult to form on a commuter campus, which was even further reinforced during our recent shabbaton with Rav Moshe Taragin of Yeshivat Har Etzion.
After 2 and a half weeks of strike, students are still torn between the itch to return to school and a desire to continue the “extended reading week.” As many students have realized though, the most that we can do for the situation is to value the time that we have to learn and spend time with our friends during a period of weeks when most people would be studying in their houses, or buried under a pile of books in the York library. Negotiations will continue this week, but for the time being, York students will continue to embrace the much-needed time to learn, get some extra time in with NCSYers, and even catch up on work.