The Pluralism Diaries by Rav Goni

The Hon. Moshe Katzav, President of the State of Israel, is the focus of a small storm. He confided to an interviewer that he could not call a Reform rabbi by the title "rabbi." He reserves this title for Orthodox clergy exclusively.

When Rabbi Eric Yoffie, head of the Union for Reform Judaism, was told of Pres. Katzav's policy he finally realized that in all his previous - and cordial - meetings with him, President Katzav had, indeed, always managed to work around addressing him directly as "rabbi." He determined to take a stand to defend his position and the dignity of over a million Jews who accept him as their rabbinic leader. So he declared that he would not meet with Pres. Katzav until the President changed his policy.

Demonstrations have taken place in front of the president's residence, calling on him to act in a manner befitting his office, which is supposed to serve as a unifying force for all Jewry. President Katzav has defended himself by saying that he is merely following State policy and that Israel does not recognize the Reform and Conservative movements as legitimate versions of Judaism. This is a half-truth. While non-Orthodox branches of Judaism are disenfranchised in the one country that is supposed to be the homeland for all Jews, both Reform and Conservative rabbis have been officially referred to with their rabbinic titles in various documents and in various contexts.

There are a number of ironies attached to this episode. It has been pointed out that even Orthodox rabbis in America have recently been dismissed by Israeli authorities. The Chief Rabbinate recently decided that most Orthodox rabbis in the US are not to be trusted with regard to the conversions they perform. One reporter sees these phenomena as indicative of the growing chasm developing between Israel and thr Diaspora (- see "Snubbed by Zion," by Benjamin Balint, WSJ, June 9, 2006). In this view Israel is increasingly sure of itself and dismissive of any Jewish legitimacy outside its borders (whatever they may be).

While this may be partly true, I think there is another aspect to this problem. The real root of the problem is the inability of Israelis to fully appreciate a pluralistic approach to Jewish life. This can be seen from two examples: With regard to the Katzav/Yoffie conflict it is surely noteworthy that Rabbi Zvi Hersh Weinreb, Executive Director of the Union of Orthodox Congregations - not someone who is soft on Reform Judaism - has openly rejected Pres. Katzav's position. He has stated clearly that Rabbi Yoffie should be shown the respect of being addressed as "rabbi." Rabbi Weinreb is no less committed to Orthodoxy than Pres. Katzav. The difference is that Rabbi Weinreb has learned to work within a pluralistic Jewish society. Pres. Katzav has not. (Of course, the Orthodox monopoly in Israel, which repeatedly defeats and prevents any pluralistic efforts, also allows the Orthodox camp to exert tremendous political pressure on the society to maintain this situation, pressure to which even the President of Israel is not immune.)

Another indicator of the limited nature of the Israeli religious imagination is reported in the Israeli paper, Haaretz ("In a Sea of Possibilities, the Secular Find an Anchor in the Halakhah," Yair Ettinger, June 23, 2006). The article describes the rise of interest among secular Israelis in finding directives for their lives through traditional Jewish law (halakhah). The point of the article is that in a post-modern world of infinite possibilities some people have gone beyond the vague notions of spiritual renewal to seek definitive answers that will direct their lives.

One of the popular addresses to which these Israelis turn is the writer Adam Barukh, a long-time figure on the Israeli cultural scene who now writes a weekly column of "responsa" - halakhic answers to real-life questions - for the paper Ma`ariv. When asked why so many turn to him for his advice, he answers, "This says something very serious about the Orthodox rabbis."

But if Israelis don't feel comfortable with the Orthodox, why don't they turn to the other streams? Adam Barukh notes, "Many of those who send a question live in emotional terror because of some taboo or fear, and they desire peace of mind (soul). They don't want the leniencies of a Reform rabbi because he is not an authority for them."

Apparently, in the monochromatic religious landscape of Israel, everyone - secular and Orthodox - all agree that a Reform rabbi is not a rabbi.