Religion and State in Israel: June 13, 2013

Religion and State in Israel

June 13, 2013

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Editor – Joel Katz

Religion and State in Israel is not affiliated with any organization or movement.

Special edition on Women of the Wall coming soon

Non-Orthodox Movements

Israel's top court rejects bid to speed up recognition of non-Orthodox Judaism

http://www.haaretz.com/

The Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected a petition that sought to speed up the process whereby local communities could choose Reform and Conservative rabbis funded by the state.

The court had heard a petition by Reform and Conservative Jews seeking state recognition of their movements and public funding. But the petition for a temporary injunction, filed by attorney Orly Erez-Likhovski, failed.

Poll: 7.1 percent of Israeli Jews define themselves as Reform or Conservative

http://www.haaretz.com/

Some 7.1 percent of Israeli Jews define themselves as Reform or Conservative, according to the soon-to-be-released Israeli Democracy Index for 2013.

This figure might sound surprisingly high, considering that there are only 110 Reform and Conservative synagogues in Israel. But it is actually slightly less than the figure found by a different survey published last year: In that survey, 8 percent of Israeli Jews considered themselves Reform or Conservative.

Opinion: Yes, There Are More Reform and Conservative Israelis than You Think (But Who Are They?)

http://www.jewishjournal.com/rosnersdomain/

By Shmuel Rosner

Religious pluralism

Q&A with Natan Sharansky

http://www.jewishjournal.com/

JJ: The Kotel was one of the first places you went to when you first arrived in Israel. How do you describe it? As a place of prayer?

NS: That’s what people don’t understand; they try to make the Kotel much less than it is. Many in American Jewish federations will say, “Why don’t we have this problem at the Lincoln Memorial?” Or, to the contrary: “Nobody will think to try to change the prayer in the Vatican, so why are we trying to change it here?”

The Kotel is not the Lincoln Memorial; it’s not the Vatican. There is no other civilization that has such a symbol, which at the same time is the central symbol of their national identity, the central symbol of their historical redemption and at the same time the most important religious place, the closest to God.

Judaism and State: Separating Religion and Reconnecting Culture

http://shma.com/

A Jewish State for all the Jewish People

http://shma.com/

The new equality

http://thejewishchronicle.net/

At AJC Global Forum, Rabbis Discuss Religion-State Relations in Israel

http://www.ajc.org/

Marriage

Israel Civil Marriage Ban Blocks Those Not Considered Jewish From Wedding

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/

See also article on: http://themedialine.org/ and http://www.ynetnews.com/

Gender discrimination

Amendment: Prison term for women's humiliation

http://www.ynetnews.com/

Opinion: Gender Inequality Is Not Just An Ultra-Orthodox Issue

http://www.thedailybeast.com/

LGBT, Gay community

Israel’s Rabbis Head to the Bar

http://www.tabletmag.com/

Click here for VIDEO

Bringing holiness to the hedonism of Tel Aviv Pride

http://www.haaretz.com/

And God created gays: The first openly gay Orthodox rabbi talks about coming out, pain, and parenthood

http://www.haaretz.com/

Gay, Religious, and Proud in Tel Aviv

http://www.thedailybeast.com/

Pray and go: Highway synagogue opens on Route 6

http://www.jpost.com/

Godspeed: Portable synagogue established on national toll road

http://www.israelhayom.com/

Rabbinate

Amar bill buried by Rabbi Ovadia Yosef's opposition

http://www.jpost.com/

Women added to rabbinical judge selection c'tee

http://www.jpost.com/

Women to get more say in appointing religious judges

http://www.timesofisrael.com/

In a first, women to sit on rabbinic judges selection panel

http://www.israelhayom.com/

'Law allowing Amar another term may be illegal'

http://www.jpost.com/

New rules allowing chief rabbi to be re-elected may be struck down

http://www.israelhayom.com/

David Stav: the Naftali Bennett of the chief rabbi race?

http://www.jta.org/

Opinion: David Lau won’t be everyone’s rabbi

http://blogs.timesofisrael.com/

Opinion: Israel's Rabbinate - a disaster already happening

http://www.haaretz.com/

Supreme Court: Why Postpone Chief Rabbinate Elections?

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/

Israel’s Next Chief Rabbi Has Illustrious Shoes To Fill—From Long Ago

http://www.tabletmag.com/

Opinion: Are you my rabbi

http://www.jpost.com/

By Barbara Sofer

The greening of the rabbinate

In Israel, locales with high concentrations of Anglo immigrants such as Beit Shemesh, Efrat and Ra’anana have led the way in establishing community synagogues that employ their own rabbis.

http://www.jpost.com/

Can Jerusalem keep all its residents happy on Shabbat?

http://www.timesofisrael.com/

Religious times are a-changin’

http://www.jpost.com/

IDF and Haredim

Ultra-Orthodox soldier assaulted by Haredim in Jerusalem

http://www.timesofisrael.com/

Budget Cuts May Result in Dismissal of Dozens Serving in IDF Rabbinate

http://www.theyeshivaworld.com/

At Massive Anti-Draft Protest, Haredi Jews Came Together — But Not on Zionism

http://blogs.forward.com/