What kind of education is that?

come on, let's get serious, in Russia they don't do this in school.

who know nothing about their own Jewish heritage. Why are Israeli Jews so illiterate in Jewish studies? Where's the education minister? Instead of learning Zionist stupidites it's about time they learn about their own Jewish heritage.

It doesn't look like they are wearing uniforms in the picture. Anyway, it's pretty simple: don't go to school that day. If the school has indeed become a Russian Ghetto, as one teacher put it, they won't fail everybody for missing one day. Reminds me of the "Wonder Years" episode, they were worried something would go on their "perminant record". 20 years from now, nobody will care what they did in high school.

I am so tired that when someone doesn't get what they want they are so fast to shout racism. I taught over 30 years in the NYC public school system. Many of the schools have dress codes. In the buildings with such codes ( generally the buildings that were successful) students would NOT have been allowed to wear Santa hats--and this is in the US, in what is basically a Christian country!) They would not even have been allowed to wear them between classes. It is time for these kids to stop acting like big babies. We all have to learn that sometimes we need to hear the word no and just accept it!

Without the LAND you would not have ISRAEL. Without ISRAEL you would not have the mitzvot that JEWS are able to do in THE LAND WITHOUT THE LAND YOU WOULD BE CALLING THE TORAH A FALSE DOCUMENT Without your comment, I would be much happier. I bet you support livni and obama

deity. It is a sign of false religion and should not be allowed in Israel, the nation dedicated to the Lord of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Joshua and David and Yahoshua of Nazareth. Burn those caps of Mithra and forbid the wearing of them. Many things the Russians do are an offense to haShem, such as eating pork and other unclean foods, fornicating and prostitution and now this idolatrous cap of Mithra being worn in schools. Stop it! Stop it right now or go back to Russia!!!

So who cares? I wouldn't allow my kids to wear one because we are religious & proud Jews

It's just a hat and has no religious significance for them. By making a big deal out of it, the school has caused it to become a 'cause.'

If you can't see that wearing a santa hat is wrong then you are not a proud Jew.

I agree with the princical - Actually the red hats shown are for Xmas - nothing to do with the New Year - those hats are usually more colourful (more like clown hats)

it is a way of counting days. It is not the only one, but we all use it. Just as we can be devoted Jews and use the c.E. counting, we can be Jews and celebrate the end of 2013. It ended for everyone. And, btw, Jesus was a Jew, he was even circumcised after 8 days.

Different traditions? In country that exists since 1948? What "traditions" are you talking about? Israel is a patchwork of different cultures Why feel threaten by a hat or a tree?

Santa’s hat is Mithra’s hat only in your overactive imagination. In antiquity it was called the Phrygian cap and had two connotations: for the Greeks as showing a distinctive Eastern influence of non-Greek "barbarism" and among the Romans as a badge of liberty. It looked like traditional hats of elves and sprites, those mythical beings that predated Santa Clause by centuries. The Santa Claus hat as we know it first developed in the 19th and 20th centuries. It was hinted at by Thomas Nast’s [an illustrator and cartoonist] Santa Claus who often had a short, brown fur hat, or a sprig of holly and no hat. It came to fruition with Haddon Sundblom's [another illustrator and cartoonist] depiction of him for The Coca-Cola Company's Christmas advertising in the 1930s. Your post is fraught with your own wishful thinking.

'without violating school regulations' ? Who makes the regulations? The same people can adjust the regulations. Some schools in return for a charity contribution allow pupils once a year to come in mufti or casual dress instead of uniform. One medical charity raises money with 'Jeans for Genes Day' when for a contribution pupils can wear jeans to school. Shevach School should do some consultation for options.

Some years back the Israeli media published a photo of Purim in Meah Shearim with a Hasidic father and his children dressed as Santa Claus and his elves!!! If these Russian Israelis are non-Jews and this is part of their Russian culture, the school should find some way of incorporating it into the school.

Surprisingly the comments of English speaking readers were even more ignorant than of their Hebrew mates. That doesn't happen often :). For the darkest of you, let me shed some light on the issue. NYE (New Years Eve) has nothing to do with religion (probably same goes for your own countries, unless you are special). Each country celebrates it differently, and so happened that in Former Soviet Union (which banned any kind of religion anyway - yes, even Christian one) NYE was celebrated by putting a tree with a red Kremlin star at the top (not Bethlehem star), and receiving presents from "Grandpa Frost" (that looks a bit like Santa, but still is a totally different bloke). A a Jewish person celebrating NYE the Russian way each year I have absolutely no idea who's that Silvester guy everyone has the urge to discuss. And frankly, I wish all your daughters to find a Kosher Jewish hubby like me. Don't take life too seriously, we will all meet at the same place in the end.

When Communist Russia tried to get rid of Christmas, they couldn’t get rid of Christmas trees and the fact that it was a holiday. So many Russians grew up with a New Year’s Tree (aka Sylvester Tree), and customs that we associate with Christmas but they associate with New Year’s/Sylvester. The students are learning about their Jewish heritage in school. They also don’t want to forget the heritage of their parents. Would you?

Let me shed some light for you :) Ever day of the Catholic calendar has a saint attached to it. Sylvester was a Pope who died on that day and was canonized. In Europe, which is mostly Catholic, New Year's Eve became known as Sylvester. This pseudonym became the common name for New Year's Eve.

I know who Silvester was :). The line in my comment was to emphasize that Soviet NYE had nothing to do with him. Moreover, in Russian Orthodox Church, Silvester day was celebrated on the 2nd of January, not that any of us was born in Tsar's Russia to associate NYE with this day. We first learnt of the guy's existence after we left Russia (and the new locals tried to convince us that we were worshipping the devil instead of taking a moment to listen to what we had to say - which still continues 20 years later to this day). Liked the general mood of your comments though :).