Religious Establishment, Pluralism and Equality in Israel--Can the Circle be Squared?

Israel’s constitutional structure purports to combine strong establishment of the Orthodox Jewish religion in the state with respect for liberal values such as pluralism equality and liberty. Whereas the establishment of the Orthodox Jewish religion is achieved through laws regulations and administrative power, liberal values that are only partially enshrined in law, are mostly defended and articulated by the Israeli Supreme Court. Focusing on the internal conflicts within the Jewish majority the article will show how the power granted to the Orthodox Jewish religion by the state has been used to circumvent liberal values and will examine the role of the Israeli Supreme Court in ameliorating this problem. It will argue that although in countries in which religion and the state are separated a ‘hands-off’ approach to pluralism may be sufficient to protect liberal values, in a country such as Israel with a strong religious establishment a more activist approach, which will be termed ‘egalitarian pluralism’ is required. The article will argue that an egalitarian pluralist approach is needed in order to maintain Israel’s dual commitment to its nature as a ‘Jewish and Democratic’ state and will assess and critique the partial implementation of this approach by the Israeli Supreme Court.

Comparative law · Democracy · Freedom of Religion · Human rights · Judaism · Legal pluralism · Liberal democracy · Pluralism (philosophy) · Political science · Politics · Religious pluralism · Sociology · State (computer science) · Supreme court · Theology · Jewish and Middle Eastern Studies · Law · Philosophy · Religious Freedom and Discrimination · Turkey's Politics and Society

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