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Regev Responds

President of Hiddush, Rabbi Uri Regev, gives his views on the topics that are most affecting Israel's campaign to establish religious fairness and equality.

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North American lawyers address the new government

Uri Regev 30/11/2022 01:00

On November 30, JPLAN, a network of Jewish lawyers, judges and legal scholars from North America (the Jewish Pluralism Legal Action Network, which works to strengthen Israel’s identity as a Jewish and democratic state in a manner that fully expresses freedom of religion and equality as promised in Israel’s Declaration of Independence) addressed the leaders of the parties currently working to form the new government.

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Don’t undermine Jewish unity - the State Conversion in Israel bill

Uri Regev 01/06/2017 23:01

Minister Arye Deri’s is obsessed with eradicating any state recognition of Reform and Conservative Judaism in Israel. Now he’s submitted the “State Conversion in Israel” bill, which would for the first time legislate the exclusive authority of the state-established rabbinic bodies over conversion.

Conversion bill to reject all conversions outside of Israel's Rabbinate

Uri Regev 18/05/2017 23:35

A measure submitted earlier this month by the Interior Ministry led by Rabbi Aryeh Deri, head of the ultra-Orthodox Shas party, is a blatant effort to circumvent a March 2016 Supreme Court ruling that allowed those undergoing private Orthodox conversions in Israel to become citizens under the Law of Return.

Pew's 2017 Global Restrictions on Religion Report

Uri Regev 21/04/2017 01:46

According to the Pew Research Center's recent report, Israel is among the 11 worst countries in the world for the 'Social Hostilities Index', categorized along with Syria, Nigeria, and Afghanistan as 'Very High'.

A reflection for Pesach 2017

Uri Regev 06/04/2017 01:28

We at Hiddush realize that we need to view the concept of freedom beyond simply delivery from slavery, and as we celebrate Passover this year, we are ever motivated to bring Israel more fully into a state of religious freedom and equality.

A Haredi Supreme Court Judge - What does that really mean?

Uri Regev 07/03/2017 16:41

There is therefore need for further thinking as to the prerequisites for serving in the state’s judicial institutions in general, and the Supreme Court in particular.

Supreme Court nominations threaten religious freedom

Uri Regev 27/02/2017 10:43

Last week, months of nomination deliberations for four positions that will soon become vacant on Israel's Supreme Court came to an end. Israel's Minister of Justice, Ayelet Shaked, the token secular representative of the Zionist Orthodox Jewish Home party, chaired the nominations committee.

Chief Rabbi Yosef attacks Israel's civil courts

Uri Regev 22/02/2017 00:25

Last week at a national rabbinic conference, Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef declared that rabbis should warn the Israeli public that in the event of legal disputes, they should take their cases to the rabbinical courts, rather than to Israel's civil courts.

A shocking Rabbinic Court ruling regarding a battered wife

Uri Regev 10/02/2017 01:05

Hiddush has repeatedly challenged the continued monopoly of the Chief Rabbinate and rabbinic courts over matters of personal status of all Jews in Israel. Last week, we saw one of the most shocking and deplorable examples of why this authority should urgently be withdrawn.

Politicians and Shabbat – this is not the way!

Uri Regev 30/01/2017 12:14

Shabbat appears in the Ten Commandments twice; once anchored in Divine Creation and once in the context of social justice, concern for society’s weak.

Leading Ashkenazi Rabbi rules: Women should not be allowed to drive

Uri Regev 26/01/2017 15:57

Often we are reminded of the outlook at the core of the ultra-Orthodox political parties' actions. While they may appear to share our respect for a democratic society oriented toward civil liberties, the truth is that their motivations are anything but.