Are battles between secular and religious Israelis the new normal?

On a serene Yom Kippur evening, Tel Aviv’s bustling Dizengoff Square became the unexpected epicenter of a profound clash between religious traditions and secular values. The incident that unfolded on this holiest day of the Jewish calendar, as worshipers sought to impose gender segregation during the Kol Nidre prayer, offers a poignant glimpse into the intricate and contentious relationship between religion and state in Israel.

As the sun dipped below the horizon, tension simmered in the air, with the Tel Aviv Municipality and the High Court of Justice having previously banned the use of partitions in public spaces for gender segregation. Despite legal obstacles, the Rosh Yehudi group, a religious-Zionist organization, was determined to assert its beliefs in a public square that symbolized Tel Aviv’s vibrant secular spirit. What followed was not a solemn occasion of reflection but a heated confrontation between those advocating for religious practices and those defending the city’s secular ethos.

This incident, which unfolded on Yom Kippur, sent shock waves throughout Israel and ignited a passionate national debate, drawing responses from political leaders, religious figures, and activists from all sides.

To provide a deeper understanding of this complex issue, we have delved into the perspectives of three key individuals who have played significant roles in the incident and its aftermath.

Uri Keidar, executive director of Israel Hofsheet, an organization dedicated to promoting freedom and democracy in Israel, offered a nuanced perspective on the incident, emphasizing its broader implications.

“In Tel Aviv, there is no place for gender segregation in the public sphere,” declared Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai. Keidar concurs with this sentiment. He noted that the choice of Dizengoff Square for the event was deliberate. The core issue extends beyond the partitions themselves, he said, focusing on the attempt to establish a “Jewish presence” in an unapproved location.

Not ignorant of permissions not granted

According to Keidar, Rosh Yehudi was “well aware that they lacked permission for this event since August.” He explained that “over the years, this organization has engaged in publicly funded activities with the primary goal of promoting repentance. The choice of Tel Aviv as the venue for this event was not coincidental.

“I’m uncertain whether this choice was intentional or not, but it coincided with Rabbi Yigal Levinstein’s invitation just days before Yom Kippur, drawing even more public attention to their cause,” Keidar said.

Left-wing protesters swarmed Levinstein and Rosh Yehudi head Israel Zeira in Tel Aviv, days before Yom Kippur, with Israel Police officers having to rescue the two as they were chased.

Levinstein, considered by some as a controversial rabbi, heads the Bnei David pre-military academy in Eli. He had come to Tel Aviv to lecture at Rosh Yehudi, a religious-Zionist NGO, headed by Zeira, that seeks to promote Jewish identity.

Keidar explained that much of the tension that caused the violence on Yom Kippur has to do with the timing, in parallel to the judicial reform protests across Israel.

“As is often the case with events in our country, everything tends to get amplified by a factor of 5,000. However, when we peel back the layers and focus on Yom Kippur, it becomes evident that the core issue goes beyond the presence or absence of partitions.

“It revolves around the establishment of a segregated event in a location where it wasn’t approved, occupying the square or parts of it. This square holds deep significance as a meeting place for Tel Avivian families on Yom Kippur,” he said, adding that “our consistent stance has been that there’s no issue with public prayer, but a public space isn’t equivalent to a synagogue, and partitions shouldn’t be erected within it.”

Though against the segregated prayer service, Keidar agreed that “the images that emerged [from the incident] were, to say the least, unpleasant, especially in a situation where everyone’s nerves were frayed. It’s regrettable that matters escalated to this point, and mistakes were made by municipal and state bodies that seemingly didn’t exercise their authority or responsibility.”

He claimed that the difference between Rosh Yehudi and other organizations such as Chabad or Tzohar is the fact that Rosh Yehudi engages in political matters.

“A few weeks prior to this incident, they invited MK Simcha Rothman, who is heading the amendments of the judicial reforms. By injecting politics into their prayers, they ventured into the heart of Tel Aviv. One might wonder why such events aren’t held in Jerusalem, Givat Shmuel, or in ultra-Orthodox cities. Their choice to confront the heart of Tel Aviv gives the impression that they believe they are qualified to engage with people here. They have claimed to approach this with an open heart, seeking to bring Judaism closer, but it feels as though they’ve alienated many for months. This, however, doesn’t justify the events that transpired.”

Keidar added, “I cannot recall Tzohar or Chabad attempting to organize an event with such a political dimension at a public level. While I may not agree with everything they do, their focus has been on providing religious services. For instance, I don’t have an issue with Chabad offering people to pray while wearing tefillin publicly, as long as the recipient is of age. It remains a religious matter, distinct from political activism.”

He also underscored the significance of the incident, stating, “The process of reclaiming Judaism continues. This is a positive development for those who want Israel to remain both Jewish and democratic, or those advocating for a liberal democracy.”

ZEIRA, THE founder of Rosh Yehudi, offered insights into his organization’s perspective and the events that occurred on Yom Kippur. According to its mission statement, Rosh Yehudi is dedicated to promoting Torah study and Jewish identity.

Zeira began by addressing the demonstrations against his organization, pointing to the judicial reform and the municipal elections as key factors. He vehemently denied accusations of promoting coercion and emphasized that students pay to study Torah voluntarily.

“We’ve been operating in Tel Aviv for 25 years and we never had any demonstrations against us,” he said. “The two demonstrations against us in recent weeks are a result of extreme-left parties which have been pressuring Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai… to cut any support for any Torah institutions, including the Ma’aleh Eliyahu Yeshiva. Why did Huldai cancel allocations to the yeshiva? It appears he succumbed to the pressure of extremists.”

Zeira asked to clarify his position: “We do not promote coercion in any way. There are organizations that offer scholarships to students to study Torah, but with us, it’s the opposite – our students pay to study Torah. The cost of a lesson at Rosh Yehudi is NIS 30.”

He added that “we don’t engage in tactics like some other groups, including the LGBTQ+ community, which sometimes sends individuals to educational institutions without their consent in order to influence young children with their ideology. They enter these institutions under duress, and no one informs them that they are being baptized. In our view, we are a liberal organization that provides a voluntary service. Anyone who wishes to learn Torah can do so,” Zeira said.

Is religious involvement in a city like Tel Aviv a cause for concern?

Zeira feels that the liberal community is nervous since, last year, 2,500 people attended Rosh Yehudi’s Yom Kippur service in Tel Aviv. “This is what concerns some people – that secular individuals want to come and pray. Is religion coercive? No, it is freely embraced. There is no manipulation or coercion here. We’ve been doing this for 25 years.”

Asked about Keidar’s claims of political manipulation, Zeira responded that “we have invited both two left-leaning individuals as well as MK Rothman to speak at our event on a panel. We have invited them to discuss legal legislation and Jewish identity. Accusations of trying to silence others couldn’t be further from the truth. We seek open dialogue and constructive discussions.

“However, some individuals seemed determined to silence Rothman and Rabbi Levinstein, even though they expressed differing viewpoints. I don’t endorse everything they say, but should they be silenced because they don’t align with some people’s views? That’s not liberalism.

“Furthermore, they disrupted prayers in locations without partitions. Their intent was clear: to stifle the practice of Judaism. Let them not claim to be against religion; they are, in reality, conservatives posing as liberals.”

“We feel that unless there is significant resistance, they won’t stop,” he said of the demonstrations against him and his organization. “They are inciting against us as if we pose a strategic threat to the Middle East. Undoubtedly, there is a real concern that some hotheaded individuals might resort to violence against Torah proponents. We state this without reservation or apology: We won’t be deterred from spreading Torah; we’ve been doing it for 25 years.”

RABBI DAVID STAV, the head of the Tzohar Rabbinical Organization, provides his perspective on the incident and its implications. Tzohar is known for its efforts to bridge religious and secular divides in Israel and also held a prayer event at Habima Square in Tel Aviv. Participants at the Tzohar event didn’t suffer as much as the Rosh Yehudi prayer service participants did, but Stav said that there were two people who yelled at them and threatened those who participated in the service.

“We must grapple with questions about the relationship between our Jewish identity and our Israeli identity, as well as the meaning of the words ‘Jewish’ and ‘democratic.’”

“During the daytime prayer gathering at Habima Square, there was no partition, in accordance with the court’s decision,” Stav said this week. “It’s regrettable that a disturbance occurred when a man and a woman arrived with dogs and began shouting loudly, questioning the presence of religious individuals in the area and the nature of the city as a religious one. Their intent was clearly to disrupt the proceedings. Consequently, a substantial number of people had to leave the area, until a secular woman eventually called the police to address the situation.”

According to Stav, what’s most disconcerting about this entire incident is that “millions of people observed Yom Kippur, as they do every year, without any significant change in participation.” Yet, according to the rabbi, “the disruptive minority, not even amounting to a tenth of a percent, represents a minuscule fraction of our population. Their loud and aggressive behavior overshadowed the peaceful observance of the holiday.”

He also was critical of the Israeli readership for their responses. “What’s truly baffling is the fact that while the prime minister has tried to exploit this situation for political gain, leaders from the opposition and the protest movement have failed to condemn the violent actions of these troublemakers who disrupted prayer and damaged religious texts. These leaders seem unwilling to address their own supporters and convey a message that acknowledges the existence of a legitimate debate but rejects the disturbance of prayer or resorting to violence. It’s truly astonishing.”

Asked how Israel can move forward from here, Stav answered that “the rioters have garnered support from thousands of Internet commentators and social media followers. First and foremost, we must recognize that we are at a critical juncture in our society’s identity.

“We must grapple with questions about the relationship between our Jewish identity and our Israeli identity, as well as the meaning of the words ‘Jewish’ and ‘democratic.’”

He explained that “the religious component of the Israeli population does not always fully understand the principles of democracy, just as the secular side may not appreciate the nuances of being a Jewish state. The idea of defining the term ‘Jew’ carries immense weight, and, understandably, it can be daunting. As a result, the element of identity is sometimes overlooked, even at the religious level. We must confront this challenge head-on. We must invest in learning about our Judaism, or we risk becoming two separate nations in practice,” Stav said. “This is the crisis we are facing. The behavior of extremists and fanatics is at the root of our societal issues.”

The Yom Kippur incident in Tel Aviv has set in motion a complex and multifaceted discourse on the relationship between religion and state in Israel. It is a discourse that encapsulates the clash between deeply held religious beliefs and the principles of a democratic, secular society. The incident, which occurred on the holiest day of the Jewish calendar, underscores the challenges of balancing religious practices with the values of an inclusive, pluralistic society.

Many Israeli governments have collapsed because of issues of religion and state. The question is: Will this government, the most religious government Israel has ever seen, survive this complicated and toxic discourse? •

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