A new survey by the Israeli Congress, a joint venture of Bar-Ilan University and the Menomdin Foundation, which researches and acts to build agreement in the Israeli Society, examined how the religious divide and tension between residents in the various cities of Israel is manifested.
A series of findings in the survey, which is published in Maariv, reflects that the secular public feels under attack from the other side in higher percentages than the ultra-orthodox sector.
The data shows that 44% of the secular reported that they feel religious tension in their city, compared to 19% of the ultra-orthodox.
42% of all respondents (religious and secular alike) reported that they feel their city has become more religious in recent years, compared to only 9% who feel that the city has gone through the opposite process. 35% of the secular have considered or are considering moving due to the religious tension in their city, compared to 16% of the ultra-orthodox.
In total, about 25% of Israelis have considered or are considering moving because of religious tension.
Labor’s Shabbat bus (credit: Courtesy)Public life on Shabbat is a central issue
According to the respondents, the main disputes around which the religious tension in their city is felt are: Opening businesses on Shabbat (50%), public transportation on Shabbat (46%), allocation of public buildings (43%) and distribution of municipal budgets (41%).
When asked where they personally encounter religious tension, 31% answered “on public transportation.”31% answered “near synagogues and religious institutions,” 28% said: “in places where municipal services are provided”, and 27% answered that they feel the religious tension in the neighborhood and in shopping centers.
The data also shows that 92% of the seculars believe that the local authority should take care of public transportation on Shabbat for residents who are not Shabbat-observant. Among the ultra-Orthodox public, only 11% agree. 96% of the ultra-Orthodox believe that it is a legitimate step to operate a municipal pool in accordance with the religious public (such as, for example, operating it at separate times for men and women). 29% among the secular public agree with this.
When asked about their willingness to compromise with the other side, 58% of the ultra-Orthodox and 57% of the religious answered that they were willing to do so on issues surrounding the religious tension. Only 25% of the secular public responded positively to this issue. 59% of them answered that they feel “that they are already compromising in the religious field”, compared to 37% of the religious and 40% of the ultra-orthodox.
The survey was conducted last March among a representative sample of the adult Jewish population in Israel, and was controlled to ensure it was represented equally in terms of age, gender, religiosity and political self-identification.
“The findings of the survey illustrate that the turbulent conflict that takes place at the national level also reaches the community-urban level and affects the fabric of the residents’ lives. However, there is room for optimism, because at least on the declarative level there is a willingness to compromise and a desire to live with each other, and also on a practical level there are already mechanisms that promote discourse and compromises,” Dr. Gilad Viner, Director of the Israeli Congress said.
Comments are closed.