The Itim Organization, which assists many candidates for giyur and other processes, has filed against the chief rabbi of Rishon L’tzion in the High Court of Justice. According to Itim, Rabbi Yehuda Wolpe must be held accountable for his actions after referring candidates to wed to a private investigator, a violation of the law. Itim feels the rabbi’s violation of the couples’ basic rights and privacy issues is a violation of state law, as well a break from normative actions involving a couple seeking to be married.
All couples opening a file with a local rabbinate marriage unit must bring documentation to prove the Jewishness of the chosson and kallah, as well as proof that they are single, eligible to get married. For those people whose parents were married in Israel, they simply bring their parent’s kesuva and this is sufficient to prove their Jewishness. For candidates whose roots originate in the Diaspora however, this process can be more difficult.
It is not a rare for wedding plans to be delayed until a couple can satisfy the rabbanut’s demands towards proving one’s Jewishness.
Itim in its petition to the Supreme Court maintains that Rav Wolpe over recent years in his capacity as being responsible for wedding registrations in his city refers couples to a private investigator , the עם לבדד Company, compelling them to pay for services towards proving their Jewishness. According to couples interviewed by Itim, the process is degrading, invasive and simply unacceptable as they are compelled to reveal information that is not required and a blatant violation of their most basic civil rights and one’s right to privacy.
The co-plaintiffs in the case confirm they were referred to the עם לבדד agency, and were required to pay for the private investigative services towards satisfying the rabbinate’s demand to establish one’s Jewishness. In one case, the person in question had a certificate attesting to her Jewishness from a Tel Aviv beis din, but the rabbi insisted they must pay the private agency nonetheless. When she refused, Itim reports the rabbi’s staff informed the young lady “you would be wise to get married in Cyprus.”
Itim Director Rabbi Dr. Seth Farber feels the rabbi’s actions in his official capacity “border on the absurd”. Rabbi Farber explains “the rav holds a senior position in a state agency yet despises the state and its institutions. He is especially hostile to immigrants from the Soviet Union and this in a city in which 20% of the population originates from there. He works to promote his own personal interests while humiliating and degrading these people, davka at a time which should be a cherished memorable time in their lives, registering to get married.”
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(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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One Response
As a general rule the Israel Rabbanut marriage process will probably go down as the greatest missed Kiruv opportunity in the history of the Jewish people. This is often the one time secular Israelis and others come face to face with Orthodox Jews in an official capacity. If marriage applicants were treated with respect, compassion and sensitivity instead of wandering from desk to desk and being herded like cattle as is typical of Israeli government departments, they (the rabinate) would get more support in their endeavours in cases where Jewish identity really is suspect.