The budget of the Bennett-Lapid-Leiberman government, which was approved by the coalition on Monday, allotted NIS 40 million to Reform and Conservative groups in Israel.
The money will be granted to the Department for Progressive Judaism, a new division of the Diaspora Affair Ministry established by the Bennett-Lapid government.
“The Department for Progressive Judaism was allocated NIS 40 million(!)” Makor Rishon journalist Tzvika Klein revealed on Twitter.
“It’s important to note that the new Reform division is planning to invest in activities in Israel – not in the Diaspora,” he wrote. “Good news for progressive organizations. Bad news for those who oppose the Reform movement.”
The unprecedented funding for progressive Judaism is in order to encourage and boost “pluralism,” or non-Orthodox Judaism in Israel, Diaspora Minister Nachman Shai (Labor) told the Times of Israel this week.
Shai told TOA: “We’ll find projects, we’ll develop projects, and we’ll encourage different perspectives of Judaism. It’s a precedent. Never been done.”
Shai said that he told leaders of progressive Judaism on his first day of office that everything will be different from now on. “I told them that this is going to be different now, and we are going to be pluralistic… No one [religious stream] will be more important.”
Shai added that the Bennett government is also planning on reviving the pluralistic Kosel plan that was suspended by former prime minister Netanyahu in 2017.
Religious Zionism chairman Betzalel Smotrich wrote in response to the tweet revealing the NIS 40 million budget for progressive Judaism: “Public transportation on Shabbos, a huge budget for the Reform movement in Israel, harm to kashrus, harm to large families, budget cuts to religious education and yeshivos – this is how Bennett ‘fulfills’ his promise to put aside controversial issues and work only on the economy. The only thing Bennett put on the side was right-wing and Religious Zionist values.”
Shas chairman Aryeh Deri wrote: “A sad moment for whoever places importance on the Jewish identity of the state. The Reform movement, which caused terrible destruction and assimilation in the United States, is receiving recognition and a budget from the Bennett-Kariv-Kahana government. The public is wise and understands the attempts to harm traditional Judaism which protected us as a united nation over generations. We will continue to fight against this for the sake of our children’s future.”
(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)
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11 Responses
Yatamu chatoaim min haaretz.
R”l.
In the US Reform caused the spiritual Holocaust – now they are being invited, supported and encouraged to do the same in Eretz Hakodesh! – Bennett go back where you came from!
As usual, chareidim loosing battles because of lack of achdus, busy fighting instead of compromising.
“Shas chairman Aryeh Deri wrote: “A sad moment for whoever places importance on the Jewish identity of the state. ”
It’s even sadder that anyone ever believed this State is “Jewish”. It is a Zionist State and is anti-Jewish to its core.
I can’t help but notice two headlines. Germany gives $40 million to fight anti-semitism. Israel gives 40million nis to fight…? Are these the worlds priorities?
The reform for decades refuse in principle to purchase relgious books published in Israel.
Bennett Gov’t Allotted NIS 40 Million To Reform Movement In Israel is just another way of officially saying that Bannett & Lieberman have allotted themselves spots in עולם-הבא in the “reform section”
@nussan they don’t purchase religious books, why do they need to? they can decide whatever they want!
R”L
The mistake many people make, who are unfamiliar with what Reform actually is, is that they think it’s just another approach to Judaism, just as legitimate as any other. They think the differences between Orthodox and Reform are like those between Litvaks and Chassidim, Ashkenazim and Sefaradim, Religious Zionists and Satmarers, etc. Two equally valid and sincere perspectives on the same Torah.
But that’s just not the case. Reform is an entirely new religion, invented 150-200 years ago, that believes completely different things from Judaism. It has less in common with Judaism than Islam does, or than most forms of Christianity do. It has a lot less in common with Judaism than Sikhism does! If it had a substantial following in Israel, which it thankfully does not, then it would deserve to be funded out of the Religions Department (note the plural term in the department’s name), just like Islam and Christianity are, not out of funds appropriated for Jewish causes.
@hakaton
With all due…, I hope you realize that reform progressives are the Ultimate Antizionists you can find.
You wish they would At least be Zionists.
Darcheha,
You sound like Neville chaimberlin with “peace in our time”
One never compromises with רשעים