55% Of Israelis Support Marriage Outside Of Rabbinate
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JERUSALEM (JTA) — More than half of Jewish Israelis are interested in having alternative weddings that do not involve the Chief Rabbinate, a new survey has found.
Some 55 percent of Jewish Israelis are interested or quite interested in an egalitarian Jewish marriage alternative, according to a survey conducted for Hiddush, an organization that promotes religious freedom in Israel. Among those who identify as secular, 81 percent prefer that approach.
The response to the survey conducted last month by the Smith Institute represents the first time that a majority of the Jewish Israeli public has expressed support for marriage outside the auspices of the Chief Rabbinate, according to Hiddush.
The survey question was: “The State of Israel today recognizes and registers only marriages of Jews that are conducted within the framework of the Chief Rabbinate. A number of movements and organizations offer an alternative of Jewish egalitarian marriages outside the auspices of the Chief Rabbinate, which grant couples many rights and responsibilities that the State recognizes, just as it does for couples that marry via the Chief Rabbinate. To what degree would you be interested in such an alternative for yourself or your children who intend to get married?”
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