Religion in Israel

Western Wall and Dome of the Rock, Jerusalem

Religion in Israel is a central feature of the country and plays a major role in shaping Israeli culture and lifestyle, and religion has played a central role in Israel's history. Israel is also the only country in the world where a majority of citizens are Jewish. According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics, the population in 2008 was 76.0% Jewish, 20.4% Arab, and 3.6% minority groups.^[1] The religious affiliation of the Israeli population^[vague] as of 2005 was 76.2% Jewish, 16.1% Muslim, 2.1% Christian, and 1.6% Druze, with the remaining 4.0% not classified by religion.^[2]

Israel has no entrenched constitution, but freedom of religion is anchored in law. While the Basic Laws of Israel that serve in place of a constitution define the country as a "Jewish state," these Basic Laws, coupled with Knesset statutes, decisions of the Supreme Court of Israel, and various elements of the common law current in Israel, also protect free practice of religion in the country.^[3][4] Legal accommodation of the non-Jewish communities follows the pattern and practice of the Ottoman and British administrations with some important modifications. Israeli law officially recognizes five religions, all belonging to the Abrahamic family of religions: Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Druzeism and the Bahá'í Faith. Furthermore, the law formally recognizes ten separate sects of Christianity: the Roman, Armenian, Maronite, Syriac, and Chaldean Catholic Churches; the Eastern Orthodox Greek Orthodox Church; the Oriental Orthodox Syriac Orthodox Church; the Armenian Apostolic Church; and the Anglican Evangelical Episcopal Church.^[5] Members of unrecognized religions are free to practice their religion.^[3]

Religious self-definition

As of 2009^[update], 8% of Israeli Jews defined themselves as Haredim; an additional 12% as "religious"; 13% as "religious-traditionalists" ; 25% as "non-religious-traditionalists" (not strictly adhering to Jewish law or halakha); and 42% as "secular" (Hebrew: חִלּוֹנִי‎‎, Hiloni).^[6] As of 1999^[update], 65% of Israeli Jews believe in God,^[7] and 85% participate in a Passover seder.^[8] However, other sources indicate that between 15% and 37% of Israelis identify themselves as either agnostics or atheists.^{[9][unreliable source?]}

Israelis tend not to align themselves with a movement of Judaism (such as Reform Judaism or Conservative Judaism) but instead tend to define their religious affiliation by degree of their religious practice. Of the Arab Israelis, as of 2008, 82.7% were Muslims, 8.4% were Druze, and 8.3% were Christians.^[2] Just over 80% of Christians are Arabs, and the majority of the remaining are immigrants from the former Soviet Union who immigrated with a Jewish relative. About 81% of Christian births are to Arab women.^[10]

Religion and citizenship

Israel was founded to provide a national home, safe from persecution, to the Jewish people. Although Israeli law explicitly grants equal civil rights to all citizens regardless of religion, ethnicity, or other heritage, it gives preferential treatment in certain aspects to individuals who fall within the criteria mandated by the Law of Return. Preferential treatment is given to Jews and their relatives who seek to immigrate to Israel. This serves to increase the Jewish population and provides asylum to people who face religious discrimination in the countries they emigrate from.

The Law of Return does not strictly follow the traditional Jewish religious law (halakha) in relation to the definition of who is a Jew. For example, some individuals who would be considered Jewish under the halakha are excluded from the rights under the Law of Return - e.g. those who converted to another religion; while others are entitled to immigration though they are obviously non-Jewish - e.g. they are related by marriage to a Jew or a grandparent may have been a Jew.

Judaism

Most citizens in the State of Israel are Jewish, and most Israeli Jews practice Judaism in some form. In the last two centuries the largest Jewish community in the world, in the United States, has divided into a number of Jewish denominations. The largest and most influential of these denominations are Orthodox Judaism, Reform Judaism, and Conservative Judaism. All of the above denominations exist, to varying degrees, in the State of Israel. Nevertheless, Israelis tend to classify Jewish identity in ways that are strikingly different from American Jewry.

The secular-traditional spectrum

Main articles: Hiloni and Shomer Masoret

Cyclists ride down the deserted Ayalon Highway in Tel Aviv on Yom Kippur

The Israeli term for Shomer Masoret (or Masorati) covers a wide range of ideologies and levels of observance, and is based on a self definition phenomenon rather than an organized movement. However, the Shomer Masoret generally perceive themselves as a partly observants.

Many Jewish Israelis feel that being Israeli (living among Jews, speaking Hebrew, in the Land of Israel), is in itself a sufficient expression of Judaism without any religious observances.^{[dubious – discuss]} This conforms to some classical secular-Zionist ideologies of Israeli-style civil religion.^{[citation needed]} In 2007, a poll by the Israeli Democracy Institute found that 27% of Israeli Jews say that they keep the Sabbath, while 53% said they do not keep it at all. The poll also found that 50% of the respondents would give up shopping on the Sabbath as long as public transportation were kept running and leisure activities continued to be permitted; however only 38% believed that such a compromise would reduce the tensions between the secular and religious communities.^[11]

Because the terms "secular" and "traditional" are not strictly defined, published estimates of the percentage of Israeli Jews who are considered "traditional" range from 32%^[12] to 55%.^[13] Estimates of the percentage of "secular" Jews vary even more widely: from 20%^{[13][not in citation given]} to 80%^[14] of the Israeli population.

The Orthodox spectrum

Main articles: Religious Zionism, Hardal, and Haredi

"Tehillim neged Tilim" ("Psalms [recting] to counter Missiles").
A slogan initially coined during the First Gulf War, 1991, and turned into a popular slogan-sticker ever since, especially among the Israeli Religious Zionism ("National Religious") community and the Haredi Judaism sector

The spectrum covered by "Orthodox" in the diaspora exists in Israel, again with some important variations. The Orthodox spectrum in Israel includes a far greater percentage of the Jewish population than in the diaspora, though how much greater is hotly debated. Various ways of measuring this percentage, each with its pros and cons, include the proportion of religiously observant Knesset members (about 25 out of 120), the proportion of Jewish children enrolled in religious schools, and statistical studies on "identity".

What would be called "Orthodox" in the diaspora includes what is commonly called dati ("religious") or haredi ("ultra-Orthodox") in Israel. The former term includes what is called Religious Zionism or the "National Religious" community (and also Modern Orthodox in US terms), as well as what has become known over the past decade or so as Hardal (haredi-leumi, i.e. "ultra-Orthodox nationalist"), which combines a largely haredi lifestyle with a nationalist (i.e. pro-Zionist) ideology.

Haredi Jews‎

Haredi applies to a populace that can be roughly divided into three separate groups along both ethnic and ideological lines: (1) "Lithuanian" (i.e. non-hasidic) haredim of Ashkenazic (i.e. "Germanic" - European) origin; (2) Hasidic haredim of Ashkenazic (mostly of Eastern European) origin; and (3) Sephardic (including mizrahi) haredim. The third group has the largest political representation in Israel's parliament (the Knesset), and has been the most politically active since the early 1990s, represented by the Shas party.

There is also a growing baal teshuva (Jewish penitents) movement of secular Israelis rejecting their previously secular lifestyles and choosing to become religiously observant with many educational programs and yeshivas for them. An example is Aish HaTorah, which received open encouragement from some sectors within the Israeli establishment. The Israeli government gave Aish HaTorah the real estate rights to its massive new campus opposite the Western Wall because of its proven ability to attract all manner of secular Jews to learn more about Judaism. In many instances after visiting from foreign countries, students decide to make Israel their permanent home by making aliyah. Other notable organizations involved in these efforts are the Chabad and Breslov Hasidic movements who manage to have an ever-growing appeal, the popularity of Rabbi Amnon Yitzhak's organization and the Arachim organization that offer a variety of frequent free "introduction to Judaism" seminars to secular Jews, the Lev LeAchim organization that sends out senior yeshiva and kollel students to recruit Israeli children for religious elementary schools and Yad LeAchim which runs counter missionary programs. Shalom Hartman Institute of Jerusalem runs the Be'eri program to bring Jewish thought, philosophy, culture and history to "secular" to more than 50,000 Israeli school students^[15] and IDF^[16] officers without teaching religious practice or demanding observance of religious norms.

At the same time, there is also a significant movement in the opposite direction toward a secular lifestyle. There is some debate which trend is stronger at present. Recent polls show that ranks of secular Jewish minority in Israel continued to drop in 2009. Currently the secular make up only 42%. ^[17]

Secular–religious status quo

Main article: Status quo (Israel)

The religious status quo, agreed to by David Ben-Gurion with the Orthodox parties at the time of Israel's declaration of independence in 1948, is an agreement on the role that Judaism would play in Israel's government and the judicial system. The agreement was based upon a letter sent by Ben-Gurion to Agudat Israel dated 19 June 1947.^[18] Under this agreement, which still operates in most respects today:

• The Chief Rabbinate has authority over kashrut, shabbat, Jewish burial and personal status issues, such as marriage, divorce, and conversions.
• Streets in Haredi neighborhoods are closed to traffic on the Jewish Sabbath.
• There is no public transport on the Jewish Sabbath, and most businesses are closed. However, there is public transport in Haifa, since Haifa had a large Arab population at the time of the British Mandate.
• Restaurants who wish to advertise themselves as kosher must be certified by the Chief Rabbinate.
• Importation of non-kosher foods is prohibited. Despite this prohibition, a few pork farms supply establishments selling white meat, due to demand therefore among specific population sectors, particularly the Russian immigrants of the 1990s. Despite the status quo, the Supreme Court ruled in 2004 that local governments are not allowed to ban the sale of pork, although this had previously been a common by-law.

Nevertheless, some breaches of the status quo have become prevalent, such as several suburban malls remaining open during the Sabbath. Though this is contrary to the law, the government largely turns a blind eye.

Many parts of the "status quo" have been challenged by secular Israelis regarding the Chief Rabbinate's strict control over Jewish weddings, Jewish divorce proceedings, conversions, and the question of who is a Jew for the purposes of immigration.

While the state of Israel enables freedom of religion for all of its citizens, it does not enable civil marriage. The state forbids and disapproves of any civil marriages or non-religious divorces performed amongst within the country. Because of this, some Israelis choose to marry outside of Israel.

The Ministry of Education manages the secular and Orthodox school networks of various faiths in parallel, with a limited degree of independence and a common core curriculum.

In recent years, perceived frustration with the status quo among the secular population has strengthened parties such as Shinui, which advocate separation of religion and state, without much success so far.

Today the secular Israeli-Jews claim that they aren't religious and don't observe Jewish law, and that Israel as a democratic modern country should not force the observance thereof upon its citizens against their will. The Orthodox Israeli-Jews claim that the separation between state and religion will contribute to the end of Israel's Jewish identity.

Signs of the first challenge to the status quo came in 1977, with the fall of the Labor government that had been in power since independence, and the formation of a right-wing coalition under Menachem Begin. Right-wing Revisionist Zionism had always been more acceptable to the Orthodox parties, since it did not share the same history of anti-religious rhetoric that marked socialist Zionism. Furthermore, Begin needed the Haredi members of the Knesset (Israel's unicameral parliament) to form his coalition, and offered more power and benefits to their community than what they had been accustomed to receiving, including a lifting of the numerical limit on military exemptions for those engaged in full-time Torah study.

On the other hand, secular Israelis began questioning whether a "status quo" based on the conditions of the 1940s and 1950s was still relevant in the 1980s and 1990s, and reckoned that they had cultural and institutional support to enable them to change it regardless of its relevance. They challenged Orthodox control of personal affairs such as marriage and divorce, resented the lack of entertainment and transportation options on the Jewish Sabbath (then the country's only day of rest), and questioned whether the burden of military service was being shared equitably, since the 400 scholars who originally benefited from the exemption, had grown to 50,000^{[citation needed]}. Finally, the Progressive and Masorti communities, though still small, began to exert themselves as an alternative to the Haredi control of religious issues. No one was happy with the "status quo"; the Orthodox used their newfound political force to attempt to extend religious control, and the non-Orthodox sought to reduce or even eliminate it.

In 2010 a report released by the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics showed that 8% of Israel's Jewish population defines itself as ultra-Orthodox, 12% as Orthodox, 13% as traditional-religious, 25% as traditional, and 42% as secular, on a descending scale of religiosity. Among the Arab population it showed that 8% define themselves as very religious, 47% as religious, 27% as not very religious, and 18% as not religious.^[19]

Chief Rabbinate

Great Synagogue in Jerusalem, seat of the Chief Rabbinate

Main article: Chief Rabbinate of Israel

It was during the British Mandate of Palestine that the British administration established an official dual Ashkenazi-Sephardi "Chief Rabbinate" (rabbanut harashit) that was exclusively Orthodox, as part of an effort to consolidate and organize Jewish life based on its own model in Britain, which encouraged strict loyalty to the British crown, and in order to attempt to influence the religious life of the Jews in Palestine in a similar fashion. In 1921, Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook (1864–1935) was chosen as the first Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi and Rabbi Jacob Meir as the first Sephardi Chief Rabbi (Rishon LeTzion). Rabbi Kook was a leading light of the religious Zionist movement, and was acknowledged by all as a great rabbi of his generation. He believed that the work of secular Jews toward creating an eventual Jewish state in Eretz Yisrael was part of a divine plan for the settlement of the land of Israel. The return to Israel was in Kook's view not merely a political phenomenon to save Jews from persecution, but an event of extraordinary historical and theological significance.

The Kotel is under the supervision of the Chief Rabbinate of Israel

Prior to the 1917 British conquest of Palestine, the Ottomans had recognized the leading rabbis of the Old Yishuv as the official leaders of the small Jewish community that for many centuries consisted mostly of the devoutly Orthodox Jews from Eastern Europe as well as those from the Levant who had made aliyah to the Holy Land, primarily for religious reasons. The European immigrants had unified themselves in an organization initially known as the Vaad Ha'ir, which later changed its name to Edah HaChareidis. The Turks viewed the local rabbis of Palestine as extensions of their own Orthodox Hakham Bashis ("[Turkish] Chief Rabbi/s") who were loyal to the Sultan.

Thus the centrality of an Orthodox dominated Chief Rabbinate became part of the new state of Israel as well when it was established in 1948. Based in its central offices at Heichal Shlomo in Jerusalem the Israeli Chief rabbinate has continued to wield exclusive control over all the Jewish religious aspects of the secular state of Israel. Through a complex system of "advice and consent" from a variety of senior rabbis and influential politicians, each Israeli city and town also gets to elect its own local Orthodox Chief Rabbi who is looked up to by substantial regional and even national religious and even non-religious Israeli Jews.

Through a national network of Batei Din ("religious courts"), each headed only by approved Orthodox Av Beit Din judges, as well as a network of "Religious Councils" that are part of each municipality, the Israeli Chief Rabbinate retains exclusive control and has the final say in the state about virtually all matters pertaining to conversion to Judaism, the Kosher certification of foods, the status of Jewish marriages and divorces, and monitoring and acting when called upon to supervise the observance of some laws relating to Shabbat observance, Passover (particularly when issues concerning the sale or ownership of Chametz come up), the observance of the Sabbatical year and the Jubilee year in the agricultural sphere.

The Israel Defense Forces also relies on the Chief Rabbinate's approval for its own Jewish chaplains who are exclusively Orthodox. The IDF has a number of units that cater to the unique religious requirements of the Religious Zionist yeshiva students through the Hesder program of combined alternating military service and yeshiva studies over several years.

Karaites

The Karaite community in Israel, with an estimated population of 12,000^{[citation needed]} lives mainly in Ramla, Ashdod and Beer-Sheva.

Islam

Foundation Stone in the Dome of the Rock

Main article: Islam in Israel and the Palestinian territories

Jerusalem is a city of major religious significance for Muslims worldwide. After capturing the Old City of Jerusalem in 1967, Israel found itself in control of Mount Moriah, which was the site of both Jewish temples and Islam's third holiest site, after those in Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia: The Haram al Sharif (Temple Mount) from which Muslims believe that Muhammad ascended to Heaven. This mountain, which has the Dome of the Rock and the adjacent Al-Aqsa Mosque on it, is the third-holiest site in Islam (and the holiest in Judaism). Since 1967, the Israeli government has granted authority to a Waqf to administer the area. Rumors that the Israeli government are seeking to demolish the Muslim sites have angered Muslims. These beliefs are possibly related to excavations that have been taking place close to the Temple Mount, with the intention of gathering archeological remnants of the first and second temple period,^[20][21] as well as the stance of some rabbis and activists who call for its destruction to replace it with the Third Temple.^[22]

Most Muslims in Israel are Sunni Arabs. From 1516 to 1917, the Sunni Ottoman Turks ruled the areas that now include Israel. Their rulership reinforced and ensured the centrality and importance of Islam as the dominant religion in the region. The conquest of Palestine by the British in 1917 and the subsequent Balfour Declaration opened the gates for the arrival of large numbers of Jews in Palestine who began to tip the scales in favor of Judaism with the passing of each decade. However, the British transferred the symbolic Islamic governance of the land to the Hashemites based in Jordan, and not to the House of Saud. The Hashemites thus became the official guardians of the Islamic holy places of Jerusalem and the areas around it, particularly strong when Jordan controlled the West Bank (1948–1967).

In 1922 the British had created the Supreme Muslim Council in the British Mandate of Palestine and appointed Amin al-Husayni (1895–1974) as the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem. The council was abolished in 1948, but the Grand Mufti continued as one of the most prominent Islamic and Arab leaders of modern times. Israeli Muslims are free to teach Islam to their children in their own schools, and there are a number of Islamic universities and colleges in Israel and the territories. Islamic law remains the law for concerns relating to, for example, marriage, divorce, inheritance and other family matters relating to Muslims, without the need for formal recognition arrangements of the kind extended to the main Christian churches. Similarly Ottoman law, in the form of the Mecelle, for a long time remained the basis of large parts of Israeli law, for example concerning land ownership.

Christianity

View of churches on the Mount of Olives

Yardenit, Jordan River baptismal site

Christians are the smallest religious group of the Abrahamic religions in Israel. Most Christians living permanently in Israel are Arabs or have come from other countries to live and work mainly in churches or monasteries, which have long histories in the land. Nine churches are officially recognised under Israel's confessional system, for the self-regulation of status issues, such as marriage and divorce. These are the Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic (Latin rite), Gregorian-Armenian, Armenian Catholic, Syriac Catholic, Chaldean (Uniate), Melkite (Greek Catholic), Ethiopian Orthodox, Maronite and Syriac Orthodox churches. There are more informal arrangements with other churches such as the Anglican Church and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

According to historical and traditional sources, Jesus lived in the Land of Israel, and died and was buried on the site of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, making the land a Holy Land for Christianity. However, few Christians now live in the area, compared to Muslims and Jews. This is because Islam displaced Christianity in almost all of the Middle East, and the rise of modern Zionism and the establishment of the State of Israel has seen millions of Jews migrate to Israel. The Christian population in Israel has increased significantly with the immigration of foreign workers from a number of countries, and the immigration of accompanying non-Jewish spouses in mixed marriages. Numerous churches have opened in Tel Aviv.^[23]

Eastern Orthodox and Catholic Churches

Most Christians in Israel belong primarily to branches of the Eastern Orthodox Churches that oversee a variety of churches, monasteries, seminaries, and religious institutions all over the land, particularly in Jerusalem. In the nineteenth century the Russian Empire constituted itself the guardian of the interests of Christians living in the Holy Land, and even today large amounts of Jerusalem real estate (including the site of the Knesset building) are owned by the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem.^{[citation needed]}

Protestants

In modern times, one of the most vocal and active sectors of Christianity in support of Israel has come from the Protestant churches that support Evangelicalism. Each year hundreds of thousands of Christian Evangelicals come as tourists to see Israel, to be inspired by the land of the Bible and in the process benefiting the local economy as well.

Messianic Judaism

Messianic Seal

Messianic Judaism, is a controversial religious movement that incorporates elements of Judaism with the tenets of Christianity. In addition to worshipping God (the Father), as one person of the Trinity, they "worship Jesus, whom they call Yeshua". Messianic Jews believe that Jesus is the Messiah.^[24] They emphasise that Jesus was a Jew, as were his early followers. Most adherents in Israel reject traditional Christianity and its symbols, in favour of celebrating Jewish festivals. Although followers of Messianic Judaism are not considered Jews under Israel's Law of Return,^[25] there are an estimated 10,000 adherents in the State of Israel, both former Jews and other non-Arab Israelis, many of them recent immigrants from the former Soviet Union.^[26] In Jerusalem, there are twelve Messianic congregations^{[27][not in citation given]}. On 23 February 2007, Israel Channel 2 News released a news documentary about the growing number of Messianic Jews in Israel.^[28] In Israel Jewish Christians themselves, go by the name Mashiykhiyyim (from Messiah, as found in the Franz Delitzsch Hebrew New Testament) rather than the traditional Talmudic name for Christians Notzrim, (from Nazarene).^[29][30]

Other religious minorities

Druze

Druze man in Peki'in

Main article: Israeli Druze

Israel is home to about 102,000 Druze who follow their own gnostic religion. The Druze live mainly in the Haifa area, Acre and Peki'in.^[31] Since 1957, the Israeli government has also designated the Druze a distinct ethnic community, at the request of the community's leaders. Until his death in 1993, the Druze community in Israel was led by Shaykh Amin Tarif, a charismatic figure regarded by many within the Druze community internationally as the preeminent religious leader of his time.^[32]

Bahá'í

The Bahá'í Arc from the International Archives building

The Bahá'í Faith has its administrative centre in Haifa on land it has owned since Bahá'u'lláh's imprisonment in Acre in the early 1870s by the Ottoman Empire. Pilgrims from all over the world visit for short periods of time. Apart from the circa six hundred volunteer staff, Bahá'ís do not live or preach in Israel.^[33][34] Bahá'í individuals from other countries, wishing to visit Israel, have to seek written permission from Bahá'í World Centre in Haifa prior to their visit.^[35]

Buddhists

Israel has 32,000 Buddhists, most of whom practice Tibetan Buddhism.^{[citation needed]}

Samaritans

Israel is home to the only significant populations of Samaritans in the world. As of November 1, 2007, there were 712 Samaritans.^[36] The community lives almost exclusively in Kiryat Luza on Mount Gerizim and in Holon. Ancestrally, they claim descent from a group of Israelite inhabitants from the tribes of Joseph and Levi. ^[37]

Hindus

Main article: Hinduism in Israel

The small Hindu community in Israel is mostly made up of representatives of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. In 2002, most of the devotees lived in Katzir-Harish.^[38]

Sanctity of Jerusalem, Mount Gerizim, and Haifa/Acre

See also: Religious significance of Jerusalem

Jerusalem plays an important role in three monotheistic religions — Judaism, Christianity, and Islam - and Haifa and Acre play a role in a fourth - Baha'i. Mount Gerizim is a holy site to what can be considered a fifth - Samaritanism. The 2000 Statistical Yearbook of Jerusalem lists 1204 synagogues, 158 churches, and 73 mosques within the city.^[39] Despite efforts to maintain peaceful religious coexistence, some sites, such as the Temple Mount, have been a continuous source of friction and controversy. Jerusalem has been sacred to the Jews since the 10th century BC.^{[citation needed]} The Western Wall, a remnant of the Second Temple, is a holy site for Jews, second only to the Temple Mount itself.^[40]

Christianity reveres Jerusalem not only for its role in the Old Testament but also for its significance in the life of Jesus. The land currently occupied by the Church of the Holy Sepulchre is considered one of the top candidates for Golgotha and thus has been a Christian pilgrimage site for the past two thousand years.^[41][42] In 1889, the Ottoman Empire allowed the Catholic Church to re-establish its hierarchy in Palestine. Other ancient churches, such as the Greek, Armenian, Syrian, and Coptic churches are also well represented in Jerusalem.^[43]

According to tradition, Jerusalem is the third-holiest city in Sunni Islam.^{[citation needed]} The Temple Mount is topped by two Islamic landmarks intended to commemorate the event — al-Aqsa Mosque, derived from the name mentioned in the Qur'an, and the Dome of the Rock, which stands over the Foundation Stone, from which Muslims believe Muhammad ascended to Heaven.^[44] As for the importance of Haifa and Acre in Baha'i Faith, it is related to Baha'u'llah, who was imprisoned in Acre and spent his final years there. Mount Gerizim is the holiest site to Samaritans, who used it as the site of their temple.

Religious tensions

Within the Jewish community

^{[original research?]}

The State of Israel allows freedom of religion for all religious communities, both in law and in practice. Freedom House reports: "Freedom of religion is respected. Each community has jurisdiction over its own members in matters of marriage, burial, and divorce." Religious tensions exist between Jewish haredi Israelis and Jewish non-haredi Israelis. Haredi Israeli males devote their young adulthood to full time Talmudic studies and therefore generally get exemptions from military service in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). Originally the exemption from uniform conscription was intended to apply to a small number of elite religious students. Many leaders of haredi yeshivas encourage students to apply for exemptions from service, ostensibly to protect them from the secularizing environment of the IDF. Over the years, the number of exemptions has grown to about 10% of conscriptable manpower. Many secular Israelis consider the system of exemptions to be systematic shirking of duty to serve in the IDF by a large segment of society.

Haredi couples tend to marry young and often rely on government assistance sooner and to a greater extent than do secular Israelis. Haredi Israelis are also represented by haredi political parties, which like all smaller parties in a system of proportional representation may tend to wield disproportionate political power at the point when government coalitions need to be negotiated and formed following national elections.

Political poster for Shas, featuring Eli Yishai.

As of June 2008, the two main Haredi parties in the Knesset are Shas, representing Sephardi and Mizrahi interests, and United Torah Judaism, an alliance of Degel HaTorah (Lithuanian Haredi) and Agudath Yisrael. Secular Israelis often view haredi Israelis with distrust or animosity. The Shinui party was created as a backlash to the perceived influence of the haredi parties, and to represent the interests of secular Jews that supposedly were not seen to by the other non-religious parties.

Tension also exists between the Orthodox establishment and the Conservative and Reform movements. Only Orthodox Judaism is officially recognized in Israel (though conversions conducted by Conservative and Reform clergy outside of Israel may be accepted for the purposes of the Law of Return). As a result, Conservative and Reform synagogues receive minimal government funding and support. Conservative and Reform rabbis cannot officiate at religious ceremonies and any marriages, divorces, and conversions they perform are not considered valid. Conservative and Reform Jews have been prohibited from holding services at the Western Wall on the grounds that they violate Orthodox norms regarding participation of women.

Marriage and divorce

Main article: Marriage in Israel

Currently, Israeli marriage licenses if performed under an official religious authority (whether it be Orthodox Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Druze, etc.) only between a man and a woman of the same religion. Civil marriages were officially sanctioned only if performed abroad, but 2010 changes in Israeli law allow secular marriage in Israel for people that have proven to lack any religion also.^[45][46] This is a major issue among secular groups, as well as adherents to non-Orthodox streams of Judaism. There is fear that civil marriage will divide the Jewish people in Israel between those who can marry Jews and those who cannot, leading to concerns over retaining the character of the Jewish state.

See also

• Culture of Israel
• Hesder
• Jewish denominations
• Palestinian Christians
• Sherut Leumi
• Status quo (Israel)
• Tal committee

References

1. ^ Haaretz Service (16-09-2009). "Israel on eve of Rosh Hoshanah: Population hits 7.5m, 76.0% Jewish". Haaretz. http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1115060.html. Retrieved 2009-12-26.
2. ^ ^{a b} "Table 2.1 — Population, by Religion and Population. As of may 2011 estimate the population was 76.0 Jewish. Group". Statistical Abstract of Israel 2006 (No. 57). Israel Central Bureau of Statistics. 2006. http://www1.cbs.gov.il/shnaton57/st02_01.pdf. 
3. ^ ^{a b} http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/irf/2004/35499.htm
4. ^ http://www.knesset.gov.il/laws/special/eng/basic3_eng.htm
5. ^ Sheetrit, Shimon (2001-08-20). "Freedom of Religion in Israel". Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs. http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/MFAArchive/2000_2009/2001/8/Freedom%20of%20Religion%20in%20Israel. Retrieved 2008-10-26. 
6. ^ [1] (in Hebrew)
7. ^ "A Portrait of Israeli Jewry: Beliefs, Observances, and Values among Israeli Jews 2000" (PDF). The Israel Democracy Institute and The AVI CHAI Foundation. 2002. p. 8. Archived from the original on 30 June 2007. http://web.archive.org/web/20070630231145/http://www.avi-chai.org/Static/Binaries/Publications/EnglishGuttman_0.pdf. Retrieved 2008-01-28. ^{[dead link]}
8. ^ Ibid. p.11
9. ^ "Top 50 Countries With Highest Proportion of Atheists / Agnostics". Adherents.com. 27 March 2005. http://www.adherents.com/largecom/com_atheist.html. 
10. ^ Moti Bassok (25 december 2007). "Central Bureau of Statistics: 2.1% of state's population is Christian". HAARETZ.com. http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/937993.html. Retrieved 2008-01-29 
11. ^ "Sabbath Poll", Dateline World Jewry, World Jewish Congress, September, 2007
12. ^ [2]^{[broken citation]}
13. ^ ^{a b} Daniel J. Elazar. How Religious are Israeli Jews?. Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. http://www.jcpa.org/dje/articles2/howrelisr.htm. Retrieved 2008-01-28 
14. ^ Anna R. Morgan (11 July 2009). The Other Israeli Conflict—The Jewish State Struggles Once Again Over How Jewish It Should Be. The Washington Post. p. B03. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A40424-2004Jul10.html. Retrieved 2008-01-28 
15. ^ http://www.hartman.org.il/Center_Edu/Program_View.asp?Program_Id=4 2009-10-12
16. ^ http://www.hartman.org.il/Center_Leader/Program_View.asp?Program_Id=19 2009-10-12
17. ^ Haaretz: Poll shows ranks of secular Jewish minority in Israel continued to drop in 2009
18. ^ The Status Quo Letter (DOC) (Hebrew) English translation in Israel in the Middle East: Documents and Readings on Society, Politics, and Foreign Relations, Pre-1948 to the Present, editors Itamar Rabinovich and Jehuda Reinharz. ISBN 978-0874519624
19. ^ http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3890330,00.html
20. ^ http://www.bibleplaces.com/southerntm.htm
21. ^ http://www.jcpa.org/jl/vp483.htm
22. ^ http://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=172008
23. ^ Adriana Kemp & Rebeca Raijman, "Christian Zionists in the Holy Land: Evangelical Churches, Labor Migrants, and the Jewish State", Identities: Global Studies in Power and Culture, 10:3, 295-318
24. ^ Steiner, Rudolf; George E. Berkley (1997). Jews. Branden Books. p. 129. ISBN 0828320276. "A more rapidly growing organization is the Messianic Jewish Alliance of America, whose congregations assemble on Friday evening and Saturday morning, recite Hebrew prayers, and sometimes wear talliot (prayer shawls). They worship Jesus, whom they call Yeshua." 
25. ^ Daphna Berman. "Aliyah with a cat, a dog and Jesus". WorldWide Religious News citing & quoting "Haaretz," 10 June 2006. http://www.wwrn.org/article.php?idd=21820&sec=59&con=35. Retrieved 2008-01-28 
26. ^ Larry Derfner and Ksenia Svetlova. "Messianic Jews in Israel claim 10,000". rickcross.com, citing & quoting Jerusalem Post 29 April 2005. http://www.rickross.com/reference/messianic/messianic25.html. Retrieved 2008-01-28 
27. ^ Messianic perspectives for Today. leeds Messianic fellowship. http://www.lmf.org.uk. Retrieved 2008-01-28 
28. ^ "Israel Channel 2 News - 23 February 200...". video.google.com. 8 April 2007. http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6244392868781886952&q=messianic+jews. Retrieved 2008-01-28  (9 minute video, Hebrew audio, English subtitles)
29. ^ Avner Falk Franks and Saracens: Reality and Fantasy in the Crusades p4 2010 - 225 "Nonetheless, the Talmudic Hebrew name (as well as the modern Hebrew name) for Christians is not meshikhiyim (messianic) but notsrim (people from Nazareth), referring to the fact that Jesus came from Nazareth."
30. ^ example: The Christian Church, Jaffa Tel-Aviv website article in Hebrew יהודים משיחיים - יהודים או נוצרים?
31. ^ Identity Repertoires among Arabs in Israel, Muhammad Amara and Izhak Schnell; Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, Vol. 30, 2004
32. ^ Pace, Eric (1993-10-05). "Sheik Amin Tarif, Arab Druse Leader In Israel, Dies at 95". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/1993/10/05/obituaries/sheik-amin-tarif-arab-druse-leader-in-israel-dies-at-95.html. Retrieved 2010-03-29. 
33. ^ "The Bahá'í World Centre: Focal Point for a Global Community". The Bahá'í International Community. http://info.bahai.org/article-1-6-0-5.html. Retrieved 2007-07-02. 
34. ^ "Teaching the Faith in Israel". Bahá'í Library Online. 1995-06-23. http://bahai-library.com/uhj_teaching_in_israel. Retrieved 2007-08-06. 
35. ^ "Other visits to the Holy Land". Bahá'í World Centre. https://bahai.bwc.org//pilgrimage/main/visit.asp. Retrieved 2010-03-24. 
36. ^ "Developed Community", A.B. The Samaritan News Bi-Weekly Magazine, November 1, 2007
37. ^ David Noel Freedman, The Anchor Bible Dictionary, 5:941 (New York: Doubleday, 1996, c1992)
38. ^ of Devotion
39. ^ Guinn, David E. (2006-10-02). Protecting Jerusalem's Holy Sites: A Strategy for Negotiating a Sacred Peace (1st ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 142. ISBN 0521866626. 
40. ^ "What is the Western Wall?". The Kotel. http://english.thekotel.org/content.asp?id=212. Retrieved 2007-03-06. 
41. ^ Ray, Stephen K. (October 2002). St. John's Gospel: A Bible Study Guide and Commentary for Individuals and Groups. San Francisco, CA: Ignatius Press. p. 340. ISBN 0898708214. 
42. ^ O'Reilly, Sean; James O'Reilly (2000-11-30). Pilgrimage: Adventures of the Spirit (1st ed.). Travelers' Tales. p. 14. ISBN 1885211562. "The general consensus is that the Church of the Holy Sepulchre marks the hill called Golgotha, and that the site of the Crucifixion and the last five Stations of the Cross are located under its large black domes." 
43. ^ Preserving Identity in the Holy City
44. ^ "The Early Arab Period - 638-1099". Jerusalem: Life Throughout the Ages in a Holy City. Bar-Ilan University Ingeborg Rennert Center for Jerusalem Studies. March 1997. http://www.biu.ac.il/js/rennert/history_8.html. Retrieved 2007-04-24. 
45. ^ http://www.jpost.com/Headlines/Article.aspx?id=216326
46. ^ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/11/04/israel-to-allow-civil-mar_n_779183.html

Bibliography

• Leibman, Charles S. Religious and Secular: Conflict and Accommodation Between Jews in Israel. AVICHAI, 1990.
• Leibman, Charles S. and Elihu Katz, eds. The Jewishness of Israelis: Responses to the Guttman Report. SUNY Press, 1997.
• Mazie, Steven V. Israel's Higher Law: Religion and Liberal Democracy in the Jewish State. Lexington Books, 2006.

External links

• The Israel Project: Religious Freedom in Israel: A Fundamental Guarantee
• Directory of Chabad-Lubavitch centers in Israel
• The Masorti Movement (Conservative Judaism in Israel)
• Israel Movement for Progressive Judaism
• Israel: Religion and Society
• Pluralism: Synagogue and the State of Israel
• Kehilot |Secular & Religious Jewish Communities In Israel
• Then and Now: Trends in Israeli Judaism
• "You Say You Want a Constitution", New York Times
• "Changing Israel's Marriage Law" The Jewish Week Opinion piece by Professor Steven V. Mazie
• Religion and State in Israel: a Discussion a three-way discussion between Anat Hoffman, Steven Mazie and Rabbi Avi Shafran
• M. Avrum Ehrlich, Past, Present and Future Developments of Arab Christianity in the Holy Land