shabbat in israel a conversation pretty high level

7/30/2019 Shabbat in Israel a Conversation Pretty High Level

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/shabbat-in-israel-a-conversation-pretty-high-level 1/4

Michael Wegier:I love the idea that in Tel Aviv on Friday night onecan go to the theatre, or indeed eat a non-kosher meal. I just never want to do it myself! I prefer togo to shul and have a kosher Shabbat dinner withfamily and friends. So what do you think?

One way of looking at the issue is to consider your view of Judaism from a sociological perspectiverather than a theological one. At one end of thescale are the “essentialists” who argue thatJudaism can be dened as a religious civilizationwith myths, laws, traditions and sacred texts. Onemight be Orthodox or Liberal but the argumentis about how to live a religious Jewish life, notwhether one should.

On the other scale are the “constructivists” whoargue that Judaism is whatever Jews do. We allconstruct our identities by building our personalstories in relation with the cultural forces aroundus. From this perspective, going to the theatre inIsrael on Friday night is as Jewish an act as going toShul. It is their way of celebrating Shabbat in theworld’s rst Hebrew city which was designed 100years ago to deliberately oer an alternative wayof being Jewish from the models of religion and/or assimilation that the Diaspora seemed to oer. From this perspective, Judaism was redened

as Hebrew culture building a language, arts andnarrative that saw theatre, music and literatureas building blocks of the Jewish state. It is easy tosee how the traditional religious culture that hasgrown in Israel in recent years would nd suchmanifestations as threatening. The Gavison-Medan covenant cleverly oers areasonable approach that I fully endorse but itdoes not force us to clarify our approaches. I aman intellectual constructivist so I applaud the opentheatres but I am also a Shabbat traditionalist who

will never go there myself.

Melitzi Covrsation pi

, - , , ;. ,

" "

13 I f you turn a wa y your foo t because o f t he

sa b ba t h, from pursuing your business on

M y ho l y da y; and ca l l t he sa b ba t h a de lig h t,

and t he ho l y o f t he LORD honora b le; and

s ha l l honour i t, no t doing your won ted wa ys,

nor pursuing your business, nor spea king

t hereo f;

Isia h 58: 13

FROM THE GA VISON -MEDAN CO VE

NAN T:

T he proposed Knesse t bi l l regarding

S ha b ba t and o t her Je wis h ho lida ys,

based on t he Ga vison - Medan co venan t,

di feren tia tes be t ween permi t ted ( leisure

ac ti vi ties, en ter tainmen t, cu l ture and

pu b lic transpor ta tion in limi ted and specia l

circums tances ) and for bidden ac ti vi ties

(go vernmen ta l, commercia l and indus tria l

ac ti vi ties excep t for necessar y ac ti v

i ties )

Yoav Artsieli:I believe that the Shabbat is like a very highresolution mirror that weekly asks those who look

into it fundamental questions, such as “What is your identity?”, “Who are you?”, “Do know where youcame from (this week), and do you know where youare heading to (in the next week)?”What is the answer to these questions? Each personhas their own answer of course, yet we can identify afew “typical” answers.Figures from the religious public might answer thatShabbat is the day on which you should not performany kind of work…almost as if you are going on strike(‘Shvita’ – which is Hebrew for strike is from the sameroot - Shin Bet Taf – as Shabbat).The Torah supports this view, mostly in the weeklyparsha, “Vayakhel” in the book of Exodus, wherewe learn that even the most important work – for the building of the temple - will not be performed onShabbat.On the other hand, some portions of the secular public see Shabbat as just another day – a day wheneverything is permitted. You can manage to run all theerrands you haven’t had time to do during the week,like shopping, home chores, paperwork, etc.Between these two positions there is another

option, the Golden Path, represented by the Gavison-Medan Covenant. According to this view we shoulddierentiate between culture and entertainment,which should be permitted on Shabbat, and industryand commerce, which should not. In my view, thisinitiative maintains the avor of the Sabbath day, andmay even draw many secular Jews closer to Judaism.These secular Jews might otherwise becomealienated and experience the Sabbath as an attemptat religious coercion.The Golden Path. This wonderful approach hasbeen employed throughout the generations by

many thinkers from varied traditions (Aristotle,Maimonides, the Buddah). This is the key to theperplexing question as to the place of Shabbat in themodern state of Israel.



Michael’s response to YoavI state in my main piece that I agreewith the Gavison-Medan approach. Ido however want to comment on thesubstantive matter of the price thateach section of the population is beingasked to give up. Religious Israelis arerequired to accept (not agree) thatIsraeli Orthodox society can accept(as opposed to ignore) the Halachic

violation of Shabbbat. For many religiousJews, this is a very painful idea and onethat should not be treated lightly bypeople who do not share their religiousworld- view.Secular Jews are required to acceptlimitations on their right to shop orengage in certain other commercialactivities on the only day that many haveavailable (many people still work onFridays). In the UK, Sunday shopping iswidespread. Imagine if that restrictionwas reintroduced here! Many secular

Israelis view shopping as a leisure activityso this is a big compromise for them too.The challenge for Israel will not be withaccommodating the moderate secularand traditional who have everything togain from this agreement. Instead, itwill be how to bring on board as manycitizens as possible from among themore strident representatives of theconicting positions.

Rabbi Jason Demant:The state of Israel is an opportunity to build a just and ethical society- a ‘light untothe nations’. Part of this goal must be the recognition of every citizen’s humanrights and personal freedom to determine how they wish to lead their lives.The Torah tells us that for 6 days we should work and built our society physically,but on the seventh day our task is to build ourselves and our society spiritually.Shabbat is indeed a time of rest; in Israel however one must see this special day ashaving a national aspect too.

Israeli society is becoming more fractured and ghettoised with Shabbatunfortunately often coming to symbolise this. Religious neighbourhoods putbarriers in the street to prevent cars entering; Secular society sometimes feelstheir freedom is curtailed if no public transport is available or shops are shut. Iwould like to challenge all, both secular and religious to view Shabbat as anopportunity to share a precious gift, which has been a cornerstone of Jewish lifefor 4000 years. Shabbat should be the time to be sharing together our time andthinking about the ethical character of the country.

All, both secular and religious are free to keep their Shabbat a personal experience,whether by closing their neighbourhood to outsiders or spending it on the beach.We all sometimes need to rest in the way that personally suits us best. Wherethough is the sense of responsibility to the wider community, where is the sensethat Shabbat is to be shared with the rest of the country?Shabbat Eve can be a perfect time to come together and share. Why notencourage informal get-togethers of Israelis from all walks of life; to eat, drink andshare simply being Israeli? It used to be said that the army was the great meltingpot where secular and religious citizens could come together. Why shouldn’teveryone from time to time take a Friday evening o, sharing together a Shabbatmeal or a Saturday afternoon picnic in the local park? Not meeting becauseeither the religious or secular participants would wish to change anyone else butbecause if we do not come together in love and friendship, society will simply driftfurther apart.

Yoav’s response to JasonReading Rabbi Jason Demant’s words lledme with happiness. I deeply empathisewith his words regarding the need tospiritually build the nation, we have foundin Proverbs 29:18 “Where there is no vision,the people perish”. I agree with the nationalaspect of Shabbat, dierentiated from thereligious aspect of Shabbat. I am so happy

that it comes from a religious person, andexcited by the idea that Shabbat could bethe key to a contemporary “melting pot”,communal Kabbalat Shabbat gatherings,Shabbat picnics etc.One of the goals of any bill as studied in thephilosophy of law is “Directing activity”. Alaw actually can direct behavior on manylevels with respect to Shabbat, prohibitingcommerce and industry, permitting cultureand entertainment, but the law cannotdirect one’s mind and soul - to bring peopleto a deeper understanding of the public

nature of Shabbat.In this context his suggestion is extremelyimportant, maybe even more importantthan the law itself. As we all know, notall laws are always enforced. For a lawto be enforced, and more importantto be willingly agreed and accepted bymajor parts of the public as a reasonablelaw from a cultural-socio-economicperspective, and not as a law of “religiouscoercion”, there is a need for society toreact. Only the reaction coming from the

citizens combined with the “dry” law willtransform the public aspects of Shabbatin Israel. The kind of social reaction assuggested by Rabbi Jason Demant, willenable dierent segments of Israeli societyto interact and meet each other directly,not through the media (whose distortionsusually amplify the extremists). As we allknow, any encounter with “the other”is really an encounter with other sides ofourselves. Why shouldn’t we exchange theregular encounter with others done up tonow through the media with an encounter

held under the auspices of good will andShabbat itself? Steven Spielberg might callit “Close Encounters of the Seventh Day...”

Jason’s response to MichaelI am a religious person who would like to be a part of the cultural narrative of the state; why exclude me by placing the bestperformances on a Friday night?Israelis do indeed go to the theatre on Shabbat though I disagree that they intend this as a celebration of Shabbat’s spirituality.Surely they go because it is their day o! If Tuesday was their day o, then it would be on a Tuesday that the movie theatreswould be packed.The Gavison-Medan covenant is a workable compromise yet is still dicult for me as a religious individual. How can I, a religiousperson, tell secular Israel that Shabbat laws do not apply to cultural activities when they in fact still do?The real issue is a loss of vision. Instead of legislating our Jewish identities we need to share and connect with our fellow citizensto build society’s identity.The covenant speaks of the ‘shared destiny’ and ‘mutual responsibility’ of sections of the Jewish people. Our positive, sharedvalues must bring us together. If individual rights are zealously guarded through legislation, our neighbors and friends become

our adversaries and antagonists, since that is the language which law inevitably uses to dene them. Where also are our non-Jewish citizens, are they not also members of Israeli society?



Understanding texts:

1. In Jason’s piece, he suggests informal get-togethers of people from all walks of life. Do you think that he, as a religious Jew, would liketo see some sort of contents added to these meetings to make them special for Shabbat? What would you add? How would you ensure

that these additions don’t scare away the secular participants?

2. Michael is very tolerant and respectful of everyone’s ways of celebrating Shabbat. But each person goes their own way. How couldMichael’s ideas be adapted to encourage a meeting point between dierent sections of Israeli society?

3. Yoav advocates a “the golden path” of compromise in his article. Surely Judaism is a complete belief-system, you can’t just pick andchoose laws like choosing products from supermarket shelves! And for many secular Jews, any restriction is some form of religiouscoercion. What advantages does “the golden path” have over complete freedom for everyone to do as suits themselves?

4. All the contributors seem to be very reasonable and even conciliatory about their views on this very contentious issue. How would

each of them envisage an optimum Shabbat if they didn’t have to make any compromises?

5. Which of these three writer’s opinions is furthest from your own? How would you put that writer back on the right tracks?

Springboards for discussion:

1. In which ways does Shabbat observance in Israel dier from the Diaspora? Why is this issue such a big deal?

2. The “live and let live” approach is ne, but does nothing for advancing the unity of the Jewish people. On the other hand, in an ancientmetaphor, people walk on the sides of the streets and only donkeys walk in the middle – people have strong principles; compromise is

for “donkeys”. Do you have any creative suggestions to promote unity without everyone having to compromise on their beliefs?

3. As the only day-o in the week, this might be the only day I can go by bus to visit my sick grandmother in hospital, to buy food andclothes for my family or even to catch a bus to the beach. Surely everything should be open and available on Shabbat?

4. Regular activities like shopping or going to the beach don’t give Shabbat any special feeling. What sort of activities could a secular person do to engender a special Shabbat atmosphere?

5. Shabbat is the ocial day of rest on Israel when no pre-schools, schools or educational institutions operate. When workplaces areopen on Shabbat, often the poorest workers are forced to work for economic reasons. Surely everyone should have the opportunity to

spend a day with their family each week? Why shouldn’t everything, except for the most essential emergency services, stop on Shabbat– regardless of any religious reasons?

Quetios for Covrsation Pi



MELITZ develops, incubates and implements outstanding informal educational programs for Jews in Israel and the Diaspora in order to:

Empower individuals to assume active responsibility for dening and rening their personal identities in dialogue with the plurality ofJewish and Israeli narratives that surround us.

Enhance the personal and communal commitment of Jews to the Jewish people, a Jewish-Democratic Israel and an active relationship

between Israel and the Diaspora.

Enrich the public debate around major issues of importance to Israel and the Jewish people.

Since 1970, Melitz’s innovative educational programs have enabled a meeting place between an individual's personal story and the collectivenarratives of the Jewish people and Israeli society. Melitz educators have empowered tens of thousands of Israeli and Diaspora Jews to reectupon their identity, community and commitment within the context of a constantly changing Israel and Jewish world within wider global contexts.Melitz educators embrace a plurality of approaches and oer participants the tools to build and interpret their own Jewish identities and translatethe educational experience into active commitment.

Michael Wegier is the

Executive Director of Melitz

in Jerusalem. Michael

combines a passion for

creative teaching with a commitment

to strategic planning and educationalleadership.

Michael has worked in Jewish education

and policy planning in Israel, the USA

and the UK. His most recent position was

Director of Program and Planning for the

United Jewish Israel Appeal in the UK.

Michael is a graduate of the Mandel

Jerusalem Fellows (2000-2002) and has

a Master’s Degree in Contemporary

Jewry from the Hebrew University inJerusalem.

Jason Demant is a dynamic

teacher, mentor, rabbi and

counselor to teenagers and

young adults both in Israel

and his native England. He has served as a

high school teacher and held the positionof Communal Director at the Woodside

Park Synagogue in London and taught

Jewish Studies at Kisharon, a school

specializing in educating children with

special needs. Jason received rabbinic

ordination at Yeshivat Hamivtar, in Efrat,

Israel and holds a bachelors degree in

Jewish History from University College,

London. At present, he is also carrying

out research towards a doctorate on theeducational philosophy of Rabbi Yitzhak

Hutner.

Yoav Artsieli is the director

of the Gavison-Medan

Action Group whose goal

is to implement Gavison-

Medan covenant. Yoav holds a masters

degree in Law and specializes in thearea of Religion and State, writing and

lecturing on this topic. He was a member

of the Government/Public committee

to investigate the status of Shabbat

in Israel. Yoav also coordinated the

drafting of the proposal for the Shabbat

law on behalf of “A Constitution We

Can All Agree To.”

shabbat in israel a conversation pretty high level

Documents