French Jews Demand New Vote for Chief Rabbi
Fresh Face: French Jews are demanding elections to fill the post of chief rabbi that has been vacant since Gilles Bernheim resigned under a cloud last April. Image by getty images
Several hundred French Jews including dozens of community leaders have called for the re-election of a chief rabbi of France within three months.
The community leaders made the call in a letter they sent last month to Joel Mergui, the president of the Consistoire – the French Jewish institution responsible for providing religious services, the French news agency AFP reported Monday. French chief rabbis are elected by a Consistoirial committee.
“The election must take place during the first semester of 2014 so that a legitimate chief rabbi of France is chosen to express the voice of Judaism during the difficult period we are experiencing,” they wrote. Another 500 people have signed an online petition conveying the same message.
The position has remained essentially vacant since April, when Gilles Bernheim handed in his resignation after admitting that he had committed plagiarism and claimed unearned academic titles. Rabbis Michel Gugenheim and Olivier Kaufmann have filled in as chief rabbis since then.
The cosignatories of the letter wrote that Consistoire regulations state that reelection must take place within six months of the post becoming vacant.
The Consistoire, which employs the chief rabbi and other religious services providers, has a central office in Paris and 18 regional branches, one of which is the Paris Area Consistoire.
In their letter, the 50 community leaders said that ongoing plans to unite the Paris Area Consistoire with the central office — both of which are headed by Mergui – may lead to further postponement of the appointment of a chief rabbi. One source told AFP on condition of anonymity that the unification would “allow Mergui to keep control of the institutions” and possibly determine who is elected.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we need 500 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Our Goal: 500 gifts during our Passover Pledge Drive!
