Do away with chief rabbinate

Israel's chief rabbinate, like the Jewish Agency, is made up of the same institutions created during the pre-state period - and forgot to close them down once Israel gained independence. During the Ottoman and British periods, it was good to talk to the religious leadership, and not only the religious Zionists. It was the British who created the chief rabbinate in 1920, amongst much debate about how to represent Ashkenazi (European) vs. Sephardi (Arab) Jews. They decided to elect two rabbis, to serve in rotation. One term would have an Ashkenazi chief rabbi with a Sephardi deputy, the next term would flip. Eventually, two chief rabbis were appointed – temporarily, of course. 86 years have now passed, proving yet again that nothing is more permanent that a "temporary" arrangement. Limited influence In the early years, several chief rabbis had terrific religious and spiritual influence, much more than in recent times. But their circle of influence was severely limited: the ultra-Orthodox never listened to them, nor did the secular. Many Religious Zionists did listen, until many abandoned them for the Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) authorities. In recent times, the chief rabbis have turned almost completely into personal representatives: the Sephardi rabbi is appointed by (former Chief Rabbi) Ovadia Yosef, and the Ashkenazi by Rabbi Yosef Shalom Eliashiv. They are not authorized to make decisions themselves – not about personal status issues such as marriage and divorce, not about kashrut, not about any other meaningful issue – before receiving the approval of the "real" rabbis. No pope Traditionally, Judaism has prided itself on not having a pope. There have been great rabbis, to be sure, and many outstanding scholars, but none have had an elevated status vis-&agrave-vis other rabbis. The time has come to blow the whistle: we have no need for a chief rabbinate. In any event, the chief rabbis do not issue pronouncements about Jewish law, have little (if any) moral voice, and we do not need them to provide kashrut certification, marriage licenses or other basic religious services. These areas could be adequately served by local municipalities, with no national umbrella. When I was the Minister for Religious Affairs, I managed to do away with the dual-rabbi system in several small districts, but I was unsuccessful with the chief rabbinate. Changing reality As many other irrelevant public organization do, the rabbinate has steadfastly refused to change. If it continues in this manner it will be unable to meet the challenges of a changing reality. The involvement of both chief rabbis in recent criminal investigations is bringing the end of the chief rabbinate near. It does not matter whether they or their families are charged with criminal offences. It is enough that they are suspected to gamble with them prevent them from serving as spiritual, religious leaders. Leaving them in their current roles can only strike a blow at the standing of religious Judaism in the eyes of many good people. There is no reason to wait and see if one or both of them are suspended. The time is now to thank them for their service, declare them the last chief rabbis, do away with the Jewish pontificate and move the religious services establishment to local councils. • Talkbacks: please indicate if you are for or against Yossi Beilin's idea to do away with the chief rabbinate

Do away with chief rabbinate

Recent events involving chief rabbis prove time is right for change