Rabbinical ruling helps Jewish Israeli women get divorced
Attempting to pressure a husband who refuses to grant a divorce writ to his wife, the Israel Chief rabbinate ruled that his father would be prevented from being buried in Israel when the time comes.
On Sept. 6, Israel’s Chief Rabbi David Lau banned the burial in Israel of a (still living) man whose son refused to grant his wife a divorce and fled to the United States. The ruling was an effort to pressure the husband into freeing his wife from their marriage.
In Israel, marriages, divorces and most burials are conducted according to one's religion. Jews get married according to Jewish law, Muslims according to Muslim law, Christians according to church regulations, etc. There are no civil marriages or civil divorces. Civil burials exist, but no Jewish Orthodox or ultra-Orthodox family would ever turn to such a solution.
The issue of civil marriages comes up every so often in election campaigns, but so far, faced with the rejection of ultra-Orthodox parties, no government has passed such a law. Israeli Jews who want to get a civil marriage (or interfaith couples who want to get married) must do so abroad. A poll conducted in August found that the majority of Israelis would like to see the option of civil marriages. Still, it is important to note that the poll was conducted via the internet, and thus probably did not include many ultra-Orthodox people.
Also, while many Israelis call for a civil option to exist, they are still very attached to the traditional Jewish marriage ceremonies. Another poll says that the majority of people who support center and leftwing parties consider instating such an option a major electoral issue (ahead of the Nov. 1 elections).
