Monday, June 2, 2008

Religion and State in Israel - June 2, 2008 (Section 1)

Religion and State in Israel

June 2, 2008 (Section 1) (continues in Section 2)

Editor – Joel Katz

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


Why I am ashamed

By Rabbi Shlomo Riskin, JPost.com Opinion May 29, 2008

The writer is the founder and chancellor of Ohr Torah Stone Colleges and Graduate Programs, and chief rabbi of Efrat.

I am ashamed of a Chief Rabbinate which can summarily nullify the conversions of thousands of Israelis (even though they were performed by a court of Torah scholars) with crass indifference to the lives they are destroying, and disregarding the manifold biblical directives of how we are to love the proselyte.

I am ashamed of the religious court judges who, in the name of the "purity" of Israel, are impervious of the cries of abused women, captives to husbands who either refuse to grant a get or demand a high ransom for them.

I am ashamed of a politically controlled, coalition-driven system of religious court judges who disregard the compassion of the Talmud and have made our divinely given and just laws a cruel laughingstock for Jews and gentiles alike.


'State can't force rabbis to perform conversions'

The Knesset Law Committee took advantage of a session meant to mark the 70th anniversary of the Union of Local Authorities on Monday to debate the crisis between religious Zionists and Ashkenazi haredim over the legitimacy of the special conversion courts established several years ago to facilitate conversions.

Rehovot Chief Rabbi Simcha Hacohen Kook said the government and the Knesset would be violating the human rights of rabbis if they forced them to recognize conversions they did not believe in.

Rabbi Yoel Bin-Nun, a senior figure in the religious Zionist movement, argued that

"we must return to the point where we decide [whether or not to approve a conversion application] in accordance with the Shulkan Arukh.

If we take a more exacting position beyond that, we will be beset with intermarriage. In the Shulkan Arukh it says not to be too severe or to demand too much. But the rabbinical courts are doing the exact opposite."


Runaway rabbis

Jpost.com Editorial May 27, 2008

This month brought two more reasons - if any were needed - to bolster the case for disbanding Israel's established "church" and its ultra-Orthodox curia.

…This is an institution that cannot be reformed. It must go.

…The Orthodox stream, which comprises a minority of Jews worldwide and perhaps 19 percent of Israelis, is convinced that the future of "authentic Judaism" is in its hands.

So even if the rabbinate were in the hands of Orthodox modernizers, the institution would still see itself as God's oracle imposing its definition of Divine will upon the rest of us.

Orthodox Judaism has many qualities to recommend it, but the 60-year-old experiment in which the state entrusted its functionaries with control over our personal and spiritual lives has failed.


Love The Convert

By Rabbi Eliezer Melamed, www.jewishpress.com Opinion May 28, 2008

Rabbi Eliezer Melamed, a graduate of Merkaz HaRav yeshiva in Jerusalem, is the rabbi of Har Bracha and its hesder yeshiva.

The foremost condition of conversion is that the convert accept upon himself the Torah. It is unthinkable that a person convert without embracing the Torah.

Just as the Jewish people became a nation by accepting the Torah at Mount Sinai, so must one who wishes to join the Jewish people accept upon himself the Torah as an individual before a rabbinic court.

…Just as a Jew who does not yet observe all of the commandments of the Torah is nonetheless considered Jewish, so a convert who subsequently neglects the Torah remains Jewish.

…Conversion under Reform or Conservative auspices, however, is no conversion at all because the convert does not accept all of the commandments in principle.


All-out confrontation

By Yair Sheleg, Haaretz Opinion May 28, 2008

Only the presentation of an alternative basic perception - one that is not afraid of a wholesale confrontation with the ultra-Orthodox (over conversion, the sabbatical year, women who are refused religious divorce, and so forth);

an approach that portrays religious Zionism as the successor to the ways of the sages of Yavne, who were wise enough to change halakha from beginning to end to adapt it to the times,

and an approach that portrays the ultra-Orthodox as Sadducees, who adhered zealously to the text and were rejected - will be correct, not only from the matter-of-fact point of view but also from the point of view of achieving clear practical gains.


Victory for the Haredim

By Avraham Poraz, Haaretz Opinion June 1, 2008

The writer served as Interior Minister (Shinui) in the years 2003-2004.

The government should therefore change the decision it made back when the recommendations of the Neeman Committee were adopted, and stipulate that the Interior Ministry register as Jews also people who underwent Reform or Conservative conversion.

The appropriate solution of course is civil marriage and divorce, but if that is not possible yet, then the Conservative and Reform movements should be allowed to marry people and end marriages, by means of religious courts to be established by them and recognized by the state.

Granting legal recognition to both of these important streams would put an end to the Orthodox monopoly, and to the sense of alienation and disaffection of hundreds of thousands of Israel's citizens.

We cannot rely on conversion administrations of Rabbi Druckman's sort, particularly since the battle over conversion between Orthodox Zionism, as reflected by Rabbi Druckman, and the ultra-Orthodox will end in my opinion with a victory for the Haredim.


The conversion debacle: good or bad for Judaism?

By Maskil, www.blog.altneuland.info May 29, 2008

Have the latest efforts to bar the gates of Judaism to all comers by the Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) Religious-Bureaucratic Complex in Israel turned out to be a good thing or a bad thing for Judaism (and for Israeli society)?

Looking at some of the likely or possible outcomes, the answer might be – surprisingly –a good thing, at least in the long run.


Widespread Support for Firm Stance against Conversion Breaches

By Yechiel Sever, Dei’ah veDibur May 28, 2008

The Vaad is calling on the heads of the Chief Rabbinate not to submit to public pressure and rather to ensure that conversion requests are handled solely by reputable, fixed conversion courts that adhere to halacha and examine every case with due seriousness.

The Vaad HaRabbonim also notes that the Chief Rabbinate is authorized to block the appointment of the Conversion Authority chairman, which is supposed to be a rabbinical and spiritual post.

The Chief Rabbinate should publicly declare that large-scale conversion is impossible and government officials must seek alternative solutions to the demographic issues.


The Conversion Crisis

Torah in Motion Online Interactive Video Program

June 3, 2008 21:30 U.S. EST

Discussion Speakers:

Rabbi Yitzchok Adlerstein, member of the Beit Din l'Giyur of the Rabbinical Council of California

Rabbi Seth Farber, Founder and Director, ITIM: The Jewish Life information Center

Rabbi Barry Freundel, Head of the Gerut Commission of the Rabbinic Council of America

Rabbi Benny Lau, Director Beit Morasha


Rabbi says deaf 'ineligible for conversion'

By Rivkah Luvitch, Ynetnews.com Opinion May 27, 2008

Anyone inflicted with a severe hearing and speech impediment cannot undergo Jewish conversion. This harsh statement was recently made by Rabbi Avraham Sherman of the Chief Rabbinical Court, in a ruling now made public.

…The thought that parts of Jewish law categorically prevent admission of the deaf into the flock sent shivers down my spine.

What happens if a family wants to adopt a deaf child? The Rabbinical Court would not agree to convert the child.

And what if a family wishes to convert and one of its sons is hearing impaired? Will the court convert all but one?


German student to be deported for alleged 'missionary work'

By Ofri Ilani, Haaretz May 29, 2008

A student from Germany is set to be deported Friday, after the Interior Ministry determined that she was doing missionary work.

Barbara Ludwig, 32, who has been living mainly in Israel for the past decade, completed her undergraduate degree in philosophy here, and is now working on her master's degree in religious studies at the Hebrew University.

Interior Ministry spokeswoman Sabine Haddad said Ludwig was being deported because she had not arranged her residency status.

However, the head of the Population Administration's central region, Elinor Golan, sent two letters to Ludwig's lawyer stating that Ludwig's repeated requests for residency status had been denied because she was "doing missionary work."


MK Gal-On seeks to save German student from deportation

By Ofri Ilani, Haaretz May 30, 2008

MK Zahava Gal-On asked Interior Minister Meir Sheetrit yesterday to rescind the decision to deport a German national living in Israel for more than a decade.

The Meretz MK argued that Barbara Ludwig, 32, be allowed to stay in the country and complete her studies at the Hebrew University. Ludwig was slated for deportation after she was accused of involvement in missionary work, a claim she has denied.

"I don't see how a student's private activities should have any affect over whether she is given permission to stay as a student," Gal-On wrote.


Book burnings a despicable desecration

www.washingtonjewishweek.com Editorial May 28, 2008

The students and [Deputy Mayor Uzi] Aharon were upset with the proselytizing that had come to their community.

But destroying the texts of another's faith is not the way to fight against missionaries, and every rabbi in Israel, including the most fervently Orthodox, should vociferously condemn it.

Teaching about Judaism in a positive way is. Welcoming immigrants to the Jewish community, rather than quibbling over their Jewish ancestry, is.

Israel may be the Jewish homeland, but it also is the birthplace of Christianity and Islam.

And, if Israel -- and the Jewish people -- are to fulfill our role to be a light unto the nations, then we must not forget Hillel's dictum: Do not do unto others what is hateful to you.


Israel Foreign Ministry condemns bible burning

JTA May 30, 2008

"The Foreign Ministry condemns the recent burning of the New Testament in Or Yehuda and views it as contrary to the values of the State of Israel as a democratic Jewish state that grants freedom of religion and freedom of worship to all its citizens."


Messianic Jews in Israel

Front Page Jerusalem radio is a production of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem (ICEJ).

Messianic Jew David Ortiz describes the events leading up to the attack on his family in Ariel.

Click here for AUDIO interview


Israeli Orthodox Jewish Center Begins Dialogue with Christians

By Joshua Goldberg, Christian Post May 28, 2008

In an unparalleled historical development, a major Orthodox Jewish institution has announced its decision to begin theological dialogue and fellowship with Christians.

Shlomo Riskin, Chief Rabbi of Efrat, Israel, and founding member of The Center for Jewish-Christian Understanding & Cooperation, said that the center would help bridge gaps between Jews and Christians while emphasizing their common heritage and shared Judeo-Christian values that emphasize harmony, the sanctity of human life and dignity, and world peace.

See Press Release: 'Rescuing God from Extremism:' First Orthodox Jewish Center to Dialogue with Christians Opens in Israel


Jewish-Christian Relations

Front Page Jerusalem radio is a production of the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem (ICEJ).

Rabbi Shlomo Riskin highlights new developments taking place in Jewish-Christian relations

Click here for AUDIO interview


FM Livni meets with religious leaders

www.mfa.gov.il May 27, 2008

Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Tzipi Livni met today with the Forum of Leaders of Monotheistic Religions in Israel, comprised of the chief rabbis of Israel, the archbishops, and important sheikhs.

"You as religious leaders can and should spread one interreligious message that expresses the religious values of all of us."


The Agreement for Mutual Respect: A Prenuptial Agreement for the Prevention of Get-Refusal

The Council of Young Israel Rabbis in Israel, in cooperation with Rabbi Yonah Reiss and Rabbi Prof. Michael Broyde--both of the Beth Din of America, has translated the “Agreement for Mutual Respect”, developed in Israel, into English.

An additional clause has been included which assigns jurisdiction to the Beth Din of America (as an arbitrator) should either of the parties not reside in the State of Israel, or should the agreement not be deemed enforceable in the jurisdiction that the parties reside.


Prof. Kaveh: Religious Zionism has not settled in our hearts

By Kobi Nahshoni, Ynetnews.com May 26, 2008

“Religious Zionism has settled in many places, but not in our hearts,” Bar-Ilan University President Prof. Moshe Kaveh Monday during the opening of the conference “60 years of religious Zionism in Israel” held at the university.

The university president used the occasion to express his full support of Rabbi Druckman and denounce his objectors and disqualifiers on the issue of conversion.

Rabbi Prof. Nachum Rabinowitz, head of the Yeshivat Hesder in Ma'ale Adumim and one of the heads of the Committee of Yesha Rabbis, said in the conference that the Jewish Law is democratic and encourages separation of powers between the rabbinical and political leaderships.

Therefore, he determines that Israel as a Jewish state has no room for religious legislation, and that the religious institution has no right to force its position on the public.


Rabbis, intellectuals against private schools

By Kobi Nahshoni, Ynetnews.com May 30, 2008

Every religious child is entitled to study in any religious education system, and we must not allow the classification of students for irrelevant reasons, states a new petition signed by dozens of rabbis, educators, academicians and public figures calling on the government to strengthen the state-religious education.

Due to the multitude of private schools, the petition signatories urge the State to "stop the privatization process religious education is undergoing," explaining that "this is our responsibility for social justice."

The document, which was recently composed by the Ne’emanei Torah VaAvodah movement, goes on to say that "we, men and women from all parts of Religious Zionism, believe that religious education should be shared by everyone.


Accommodations for Frum Soldiers under Attack

www.theyeshivaworld.com May 27, 2008

Once again there is a stir in the military, this time surrounding a program implemented by the army’s Chief Rabbinate, intended to accommodate the needs of frum soldiers.

The Rabbanut has decided to arrange for separate vacation locations for frum soldiers who would like to go swimming and be surrounded by a Torah atmosphere and not the opposite G-d forbid. The vacation areas offer shiurim, minyanim and an opportunity to relax.


A new national service?

By Avirama Golan, Haaretz Opinion June 2, 2008

All signs point toward national service undergoing a natural process of development in Israeli society, both within itself and by itself, transforming it from a controversial solution for Orthodox girls to a comprehensive civilian service.

This is a path of enrichment, contributing to equality in a society that in the past would evaluate its citizens solely based on a militaristic standard.


Halachic decree: Olmert must quit

By Efrat Weiss, Ynetnews.com May 28, 2008

"The people Israel must rise as one and purge from within these leaders, and therefore in accordance with Torah law, anyone with information regarding or who himself is involved in bribing the prime minister - and there are many of those in Jerusalem and throughout the country – it is a mitzvah to share this information with the police authorities."

The aforementioned ruling is that of Rabbi Yisrael Ariel, a founding member of the 'Temple Institute' and one of Religious Zionism's most prominent leaders, following the recent corruption allegations against Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.


Lapid never attacked religion

By Rabbi Israel Meir Lau, Ynetnews.com Opinion June 2, 2008

Tommy always emphasized that he is not against religion or the religious, but rather, rejects religious coercion.

Therefore it hurt me a little when he joined the Shinui party and focused on struggling against issues that are dear to the heart of many Jews.


How Lapid's Shinui legacy lives on

By Calev Ben-David, Jpost.com June 2, 2008

Sitting in the opposition for the following four years, Lapid was able to effectively slash at the Barak and Sharon governments for their concessions to the religious parties, especially the generous funding of yeshivot, expansive child allowances for large families and continued expansion of religious draft deferments.

…Joining the government meant Shinui temporarily forsaking some of its key positions, especially introduction of civil marriage and an end to religious draft-deferments (or at least repeal of the Tal Law).

Although Lapid was criticized for these compromises, he felt Shinui could bring about more change working on the inside.

…His rhetorical style, especially the tough (some would say incendiary) anti-haredi rhetoric he utilized in Shinui's election commercials, was a development whose impact on local campaigning will remain controversial.


Religion and State in Israel

June 2, 2008 (Section 1) (continues in Section 2)

Editor – Joel Katz

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

Religion and State in Israel - June 2, 2008 (Section 2)

Religion and State in Israel

June 2, 2008 (Section 2) (continued from Section 1)

Editor – Joel Katz

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


Reform Judaism should not enter Israeli politics

By Rabbi Michael Marmur, JPost.com Opinion June 2, 2008

The writer is Dean of the Jerusalem school of the Hebrew Union College - Jewish Institute of Religion

We Reform Jews should visit the Knesset often, but as a Movement we should not try to get a permanent address there.

Those who remind us that as long as we stay outside the political system we will remain powerless to effect change and to channel state resources are accurate - but the price to be paid for becoming yet another political party is too high.

I predict that in the coming years some of the extraordinary men and women studying for the non-Orthodox rabbinate in Israel and in other leadership development programs will become Members of the Knesset and in time government ministers.

They will do so, however, through the channel of existing political parties.

As a Movement, our challenge is to find a way of being relevant and responsible, while avoiding the usual scourges of the political life: compromise, mediocrity, and corruption.


Education Minister Urges Reform Figures to "Take Advantage" of Her Term in Office

By Yechiel Sever, Dei’ah veDibur May 29, 2008

"Yuli Tamir has failed as Education Minister in all she has done," MK Rabbi Moshe Gafni commented in response.

"During her term the education system has not elevated itself or succeeded in any area.

Now she is trying to make use of the Reform Movement which, like her, has not succeeded in its educational institutions. At the same time she is not helping chareidi education at all.

[Her remarks at the conference] demonstrate she is totally desperate and has given up on her post. My heart goes out to her, but here too there is no cause for alarm. Be'eizer Hashem nothing will come of this either."


UJC halts aid to Falash Mura in Ethiopia

By Ruth Eglash, Jpost.com June 2, 2008

The United Jewish Communities (UJC), the chief fundraising arm of American Jewry, officially halted its sponsorship of aid programs in northern Ethiopia last week, The Jerusalem Post has learned.

The funds provided relief to thousands of Falash Mura hoping to make aliya under Israel's Law of Entry.

In an internal memo recently sent to executives of the nineteen largest federations in the UJC system, UJC President and CEO Howard Rieger informed the federations that funds raised in a special campaign dubbed Operation Promise (OP), which was intended in part to help Ethiopian Jewry, have run out.


Cabinet to rethink Falashmura immigration

By Anshel Pfeffer, Haaretz May 27, 2008

The cabinet is set to reconsider its decision to cease bringing members of the Ethiopian Falashmura community to Israel, and it may order evaluating the eligibility of another 8,700 Falashmura.

…The government has so far remained adamant about ending the Falashmura immigration, but after Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was pressured, it decided to revisit the issue.

"If the government changes its decision, it will cause total chaos," a senior Jewish Agency official said.

"If all the set frameworks are broken, it will never be possible to stop them coming, although they are not Jews and have no connection to Judaism."


Gates to close on Falashmura Jews

By Gabi Newman, Ynetnews.com May 27, 2008

If a change in policy does not occur soon, the Falashmura aliyah from Ethiopia will be officially halted next month.

In the meantime, however, 8,700 members of the denomination wait in total lack of certainty while practicing the Jewish faith in the designated camp in the Gondar area of their home country.


Leviev refusing to open Africa Israel tower parking lot in Tel Aviv on Shabbat

By Guy Liberman, Haaretz May 27, 2008

Lev Leviev, an observant businessman, doesn't want to bow to the dictates of Tel Aviv's high life.

The Tel Aviv municipality and Leviev's flagship company, Africa Israel Investments, will soon attempt to bridge their differences over the operation of a public parking lot in the Africa Israel building on the city's Ahad Ha'am St.

"Lev Leviev is an Orthodox Jew," states a letter sent to city hall recently by Uriel Azran, director of Africa Israel's Income-Yielding Properties Division, "and opening the parking lot on Shabbat would contradict his worldview and Africa Israel's policy of not operating income-yielding properties on Shabbat or Jewish holidays."


Rabbis: Rafael can work on Iron Dome on Shabbat

By Yaakov Katz, JPost.com May 27, 2008

Rafael Advanced Defense Systems has received special rabbinic permission to work on Shabbat on the Iron Dome anti-Kassam missile defense system, defense officials said Monday.

The rare rabbinic approval was granted following a Defense Ministry request that Rafael speed up its work on the development of the system.

"Peoples' lives are at stake here," an official said. "Rafael does not usually work on Shabbat but they received permission to work as much as needed to get the system operational as soon as possible."


The children will vote tomorrow

By Nehemia Shtrasler, Haaretz Opinion May 27, 2008

Instead of opposing the Education Ministry's core curriculum, [Shas Chairman Eli Yishai] should have been the first to bring science, math, history and English at the highest possible level to Shas' El Hamaayan system, in order to advance his community.

But Yishai does not want education or work. He wants ignorant, weak, docile supporters who are dependent on him.

Yishai is looking only at the short term, at the upcoming elections.

But he must understand that the secular donkey will not be able to carry an increasingly large Haredi community on its back forever if its members do not go out and work.

The burden will be too heavy. And one day, the crisis, and the budget cuts, will arrive, as happened in 2003.


Child welfare doesn't benefit society

By Shahar Ilan, Haaretz Opinion June 2, 2008

Minister Eli Yishai should remember that raising the child welfare benefits from the dead is quite likely to resurrect the Shinui party or lead the anti-Haredi party to reinvent itself in another form.

He would also do well to prepare himself for another round of protests sounding the call of "Just Not Shas."


World Congress of Russian Jewry to open branch in Israel

By Anshel Pfeffer, Haaretz May 27, 2008

The World Congress of Russian Jewry (WCRJ) decided at its general assembly in Jerusalem last week to open a branch in Israel, headed by former MK Gennady Riger.

Backed by the Russian government, the WCRJ seeks to maintain Russian expatriates' ties with their former country.

The governing council of the organization's new branch will include Knesset members from Kadima, the Likud and Yisrael Beiteinu.

The WCRJ's head, Russian parliamentarian Boris Shpigel, told Haaretz that the group is financed by private contributions.


UK Zionist Federation chairman makes aliya

, Jpost.com June 1, 2008

Andrew Balcombe wears many hats: he is a successful businessman, the chairman of the UK's Zionist Federation, and a new oleh, depending on the time zone. Last week, he and his wife, Jean, made aliya from London to Jerusalem.

In discussing the growing trend of young families making aliya from England, Balcombe described a "deteriorating" Jewish community.

Many chose Israel because of its "vibrant Jewish environment," he said, and Israel provided a freedom for children to be Jewish and to express it proudly.


Cloistered Shame in Israel

By Tim McGirk with reporting by Aaron J. Klein, www.time.com May. 28, 2008

"The Haredim are shocked by these cases," says Noach Korman, a Haredi attorney in the rabbinical court that adjudicates family and religious law, and the director of a shelter for battered wives.

"At first they said, 'These people are crazy, they don't belong to us.' But now I hear Haredi voices saying: 'We should examine ourselves and not close our eyes to why these things are happening.'


Haredi protests stymie autopsy

By Yair Ettinger, Haaretz May 30, 2008

A Haredi man from Jerusalem was laid to rest without an autopsy yesterday, ending four days of protests by his community against the prosecution's original decision to perform the post-mortem. David Williger's car went up in flames on Monday after it was struck by a truck.

The prosecution wanted to conduct an autopsy to determine whether he died in the crash, or from other causes before the accident occurred, as some evidence indicated.

His family, however, objected, and community rabbis sanctioned a series of protests that eventually led to the post-mortem being shelved.


Haredi workers in Jerusalem factories up sixfold since 2000

Factories across the country employ about 20,000 haredim, out of which 11,000 are women.

According to a survey conducted by the Israel Manufacturers' Association in the capital, the majority of haredim are employed in the hi-tech and computer programming industry.

In the majority of factories employing haredim, they make up between 2% and 10% of the total work force.


Where rabbis may tread

By Anshel Pfeffer, Haaretz May 30, 2008

…Poor McCain, and poor Hagee. If he had been a rabbi, instead of a pastor, he could have gotten away with it.

Another rabbi, this time a living one, who has been very free with Holocaust analogies is Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, who eight years ago said that Holocaust victims were "reincarnations of souls who committed sins."

Yosef caused a minor public storm, but it quickly blew over. He is still the spiritual leader of a major coalition party, and the country's leaders regularly ask him to support their policies.


Name changes stir up a storm

Despite the objections of dozens of residents and some councilors, Netanya's Municipal Names Committee has voted to change the names of two streets in the city, reports www.local.co.il.

In the first controversial case, the committee overrode the protests of many residents and some councilors and decided to change the current Rehov Max Nordau to that of the late Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson.

According to the report, the protesters said that while they had no intrinsic objection to the idea of a street being named after the Lubavitcher Rebbe, this should not be at the expense of a Zionist pioneer such as Max Nordau, who founded the World Zionist Organization together with Theodor Herzl.


Islamic-era skeletons 'disappeared' from Elad-sponsored dig

By Meron Rapoport, Haaretz June 1, 2008

Dozens of skeletons from the early Islamic period were discovered during excavations near the Temple Mount, on a site slated for construction by a right-wing Jewish organization.

Contrary to regulations, the skeletons were removed, and were not reported to the Ministry of Religious Services. The Israel Antiquities Authority termed the incident "a serious mishap."

IAA regulations require that any graves discovered be reported immediately to the Religious Services Ministry and to Atra Kadisha, an ultra-Orthodox organization dedicated to preserving ancient Jewish grave sites.


The divided life of Adam Baruch

By Yair Ettinger, Haaretz May 28, 2008

Adam Baruch wrote countless words about that "religious background," derived from his grandfather, Rabbi Wachtfogel, head of the Mea Shearim Yeshiva, and from Rabbi Yagel, head of the yeshiva in Pardes Hannah where Baruch attended high school.

This background was reflected in the thousands of midrashim (rabbinical exegesis) and halakhic rulings that he quoted, interpreted and explained for many years in his column Shishi ("Friday"), and in the many books of halakha that he authored: Seder Yom (Daily Routine), B'tom Lev (In Good Faith) and Hayenu (Our Lives).

But Baruch, who never dared to reveal his bare head, had more than a religious background - he had an internal religious divide.


Religion and State in Israel

June 2, 2008 (Section 2) (continued from Section 1)

Editor – Joel Katz

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