Israeli court issues order in case on women’s participation in rabbinical electoral assembly — Jerusalem Post
Israel’s High Court of Justice has issued a conditional order in a case concerning women’s participation in the electoral assembly of the Chief Rabbinate. The court ordered the respondents to explain why a legislative provision adopted in December 2024 should not be interpreted as requiring the appointment of representatives of both sexes to the assembly, or why the provision restricting eligibility for such appointments should not be annulled, the Jerusalem Post reports.
The petition was filed on December 19, 2024, by six women with advanced religious education, the Rackman Center at Bar-Ilan University, and the Na’amat organization. They argue that the amendment to the law effectively made it impossible to appoint women to the rabbinical component of the electoral assembly. The case concerns not women’s membership in the Council of the Chief Rabbinate, but the composition of the body that elects the chief rabbis and the elected members of the council.
Ten appointments became the subject of the dispute
The electoral assembly consists of 150 people: 80 rabbinical and 70 public representatives. Ten rabbinical representatives are appointed by the chief rabbis after consultations with the minister of religious services and with government approval.
In January 2024, the court ruled that the chief rabbis must consider women with relevant education in Torah and Jewish law for these positions. The court then noted that, for this electoral role, the term “rabbis” is not limited to people who have formally received ordination from the Chief Rabbinate.
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However, in May 2024, the Council of the Chief Rabbinate adopted a decision under which women cannot be appointed as rabbis, and considering such appointments contradicts its interpretation of Jewish law. In December of the same year, the Knesset adopted Amendment No. 8, which stipulated that a person eligible for one of the ten appointments must have been ordained by the Chief Rabbinate after passing its written examinations, or hold a certificate for specified rabbinical positions.
Access to examinations did not resolve the dispute
In July 2025, the court unanimously ruled that the Chief Rabbinate cannot bar women from taking its examinations. The court explained that the examinations serve not only to qualify candidates for rabbinical positions, as recognition of religious education can also affect employment and pay. At the same time, this decision did not determine whether women can seek the disputed ten seats in the electoral assembly.
Representatives of the petitioners stressed at the September 14 hearing that taking the examinations alone does not meet the law’s requirement of ordination. The state and the Knesset said the amendment should be assessed comprehensively, as it also established a minimum of 31 women among the assembly’s public representatives. The petitioners objected that this does not eliminate the exclusion of women as experts in Jewish law from rabbinical representation. The respondents must submit formal explanations by December 15, 2026.
