Jerusalem – Rabbi: Decision by Court to Fund Reform Conversions Will Cause Rift in Jewish Nation

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    Jerusalem – Chief Rabbi Shlomo Amar warned today that the decision by the High Court of Justice to order the state to stop discriminating against Reform and Conservative conversion institutes in favor of Orthodox ones with regard to funding, could lead to a rift in the Jewish nation.

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    Until now, non-Orthodox conversion programs have not been eligible for funding, which is provided by the Immigration Absorption Ministry to Orthodox schools.

    The decision was handed down unanimously by the panel on Tuesday, comprising Supreme Court President Dorit Beinisch, and justices Miriam Na’or and Edna Arbel.

    According to Israel Radio, the chief rabbis of Israel, Yona Metzger and Amar, held an emergency meeting today following the ruling that calls for the state to fund Reform and Conservative conversion institutes.

    At the meeting, Amar reportedly said that the struggle on the conversation issue is a halakhic [Jewish religious law] dispute from time immemorial, and warned that the court’s decision might lead to a rift in the Jewish nation.

    The chief Sephardi rabbi added that the government has already decided that state conversation must be done according to Halakha.

    Minister of Religious Affairs Yaakov Margi also slammed the ruling, and said that the High Court is pushing anyone who observes the Jewish religious law and who is concerned with keeping his Jewish identity to keep a genealogy book.

    Shas MKs who took part in the meeting, together with representatives from the Habayit Hayehudi and UTJ parties, have decided to demand the implementation of a coalition agreement that will set in law the state’s recognition of Orthodox conversion alone.


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    30 Comments
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    esther
    esther
    14 years ago

    R”L! now is the time for the law in ey to clearly state mee hu yehudi must be k’halacha!!!!!this terrible situation has been brewing for many years!!!!

    Yosele Pondrek
    Yosele Pondrek
    14 years ago

    This is worse than swine flu. Similar but worse.

    Babishka
    Member
    Babishka
    14 years ago

    Will “Jews for Jesus” get funding too?

    Let's Face Facts
    Let's Face Facts
    14 years ago

    The facts are that in the USA half of the “Jewish” Population are not jewish. There are Cohen Families that are not Jewsih, Levy Families that are not Jewish and so on. That is the fact. The Reformed and Not Conservative organizations have destroyed the Unity of the USA Kehilla. That is a fact. Now, if goyim visiting Israel can get instant gerus, there will be a similar situation, R’L. Is there anything that can even be done anymore? I don’t know. The Israelis keep electing liberals and the courts are packed with socialists. The Gadolim need to act now and we need to back them with Torah, tefillah, and tzedukah.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    14 years ago

    The Cohen and the Levy family is not to blame the reform movement! It’s the quite the opposite, it’s because we use to be too extreme in Europe, and they Throw everything away.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    14 years ago

    There is no such thing as “Jewish nation.” There are frum Jews and Jews who are not yet frum. We lost the Karaites and Sabbatians and Reform, and we’ll lose others too. It’s always been like that. Soon anyone who has no frum ancestors for 4 or 5 generations will have to undergo geirus if he wants to join us.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    14 years ago

    Shouldn’t we be worried that if Israel a Jewish country can do this that others will follow C”V?

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    14 years ago

    There should be a new list of names that are jewish according to orthodox judasim like dor yeshorim.

    Shmeel from East 7th Street
    Shmeel from East 7th Street
    14 years ago

    You’re all a bunch of hypocrites. In a democracy everyone is intitled to equal status. You are not forced to agree with them, but you must respect their right to believe as they wish. What would you say if their position was to only fund Reform and Conservative, but not orthodox. Well, you are doing the same thing by seeking to deny them funding. The rule is, “Live and let live”.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    14 years ago

    “R”L! now is the time for the law in ey to clearly state mee hu yehudi must be k’halacha!!!!!this terrible situation has been brewing for many years!!!!”

    Yes it has. Every time the charedim upset the rest of the population by taking large government handouts, not working, not serving in the army, and throwing stones at cars, it makes it more and more likely that everyone else will do their best to upset the charedi monopoly.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    14 years ago

    Here’s a solution. No more state funding of religion. Then taxes can be lower and working people and other donors will have more to give to the denomination of their choice. Those who want to fund the charedi can and those who want to fund the reform can.

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    14 years ago

    Eli Yishai: Palestinians will use Reform conversion to sneak in

    Anonymous
    Anonymous
    14 years ago

    Why doesnt the Goverment declare Reform and Conservative serperate religions along the lines of Moslims, Druze, Eastern orthodox Christians and Samaritans?
    They would then be free to form thier own communites under thier own religious jurisdiction.

    This move would have the following benefits:
    1- Legally seperate these people as a faith community from Judaism. Call them Reformers and Converservatists. Whatever you want. Any conversion, marriage, bris, and kashrus (not that they do these things anyway) would be recorded as seperate. This would allow Rabbonim to clarify who is halachically Jewish without the whole ideological battle coming into play. People who convert Reform would be listed as Reform. If they wish to marry Jews, they would need proper conversion.
    Its the same if someone from another religion wants to marry a Jew in Israel.
    2- No Bagatz intervention. Reform and Conservtivatists would lead thier own affairs. Female clergy: do your own thing. No mechitza: do your own thing. Bar mitzva your dog? whatever. Give smicha to giraffes? go ahead,
    They could run thier affairs as they like without resorting to legal publicity stunts attacking Orthodox.
    3- Funding. As a seperate faith from Judaism, they would be entitled to funding for thier communities based on thier population in the same was that other faiths get state funding. Need the funds for your community? Ok as a seperate faith group you are entitled to build your temple as you see fit. This would eliminate accusations that the Orthodox “hold a monopoly” on state funding.
    4- It also would have the added benefit of bringing proporation to the size of these communites in Israel. Lets be honest: these communities are tiny compared to the relative population in Israel. They mostly Anglos and a fellow sabra travelers in Ramat Aviv. As a small community, they would not be entitled to equal state funding that is entitled to larger faith communities. The arguement that funding should be made available for thier temples in areas were they do not have a significant presence would be eliminated. For example, Want to build a Reformist temple in Jerusalem? hmm ok lets see the population count of reform lists 2 people. This does not qualify for state funding for a bulding. Ok Ramat Aviv? you have 50 people who qualify for small state funding. Want a Reform school in Ashdod? sorry there is 1 person listed as conservative. You dont qualify.
    5- No proslytising. Its against the law to prosletize another religion in Israel. Want to practice Reform? Ok fine in private. Just dont go to the Bagatz demanding funding to teach Reform in schools to Jewish children as a valid Jewish choice.
    6- Aliyah. Want to make aliyah and bring your non-Jewish spouse. Sorry you converted Reform or your father converted Reform.

    Something similar has been done before recently in Jewish history. If Im not mistaken Rav Hirsch z’tl legally seperated the German Orthodox community from the Reformers of his day in Germany.

    Its a painful idea and we should seperate the individual halachic Jews as Jews from these groups and give them kavod and mekarev them the same as we do for Jews involved with Christian groups or cults. But these groups are not Jewish. They do not belive in the written or oral Torah. All they do is bring moral and ethical confusion to Jews and confuse uneducated Jews with thier ideas. Set the standard for Judaism

    What does everyone think about this idea?