Tagged Israeli conversions

Israel’s haredi Jews get preferential treatment

Regarding Rabbi Shlomo Brody’s article, “This Eurovision contender showed how Israel has failed its religious Jews,” (AJP 2/22/19), what else do the haredi want? They (for the most part) don’t serve in the army. Most businesses are closed on Shabbat even if they would have opted not to. Marriages,… Read more »

Survey shows broad dissatisfaction with Israeli religious policy

Haredi Orthodox Israelis protest in Jerusalem against compulsory military service for men, Aug. 25, 2015. (FLASH90)

TEL AVIV (JTA) — Secular and haredi Orthodox Israelis differ on many things, but there’s one thing both sides agree on: When it comes to religious affairs, the government is failing. That’s one of the findings of an annual survey of Israeli religious identification and attitudes toward religious policy released… Read more »

Centralizing authority on conversions hurts converts

NEW YORK (JTA) — The Israeli government recently moved to decentralize the conversion system by allowing local courts to convert individuals on their own. Ironically, as Israel moves away from centralization, here in America the Rabbinical Council of America is enthusiastically embracing it. The modern Orthodox rabbinical organization recently… Read more »

Israel moves to ease path to conversion for those not considered Jewish

TEL AVIV (JTA) – The Israeli government has adopted a major reform expected to ease the path to conversion for hundreds of thousands of Israelis now prohibited from marrying in the Jewish state. In the most significant response in decades to the estimated 400,000 Israelis who are not considered… Read more »