A halachic state[a] (Hebrew: מְדִינַת הֲלָכָהMedīnat Hălāḵā) is a Jewish state that endorses Judaism in an official capacity and derives most or all aspects of governance from halakha (Jewish religious law).[1]
Public opinion
Can Israel both be a democracy and a Jewish state?
All Israeli Jews
Yes
76%
No
20%
Haredi ("ultra-Orthodox")
Yes
58%
No
36%
Dati (Orthodox)
Yes
79%
No
17%
Masorti (traditional)
Yes
80%
No
15%
Hiloni (secular)
Yes
76%
No
21%
% of Israeli Jews who say Israel can be both a democracy and a Jewish state (Pew 2016).[2]
Should halakha or democratic principles precede?
All Israeli Jews
Democracy
62%
Halakha
24%
Haredi ("ultra-Orthodox")
Democracy
3%
Halakha
89%
Dati (Orthodox)
Democracy
11%
Halakha
65%
Masorti (traditional)
Democracy
56%
Halakha
23%
Hiloni (secular)
Democracy
89%
Halakha
1%
% of Israeli Jews who say halakha (religious law) or democratic principles should be given preference if there is a contradiction between the two (Pew 2016).[2]
An opinion poll released in March 2016 by the Pew Research Center found high support for a halachic state among religious Israeli Jews. The poll found that 86% of Israeli Haredi Jews and 69% of non-Haredi Orthodox Jews support making halakha Israel's legal code, while 57% of traditional Jews and 90% of secular Jews oppose such a move.[3] At the time, the Haredim constituted 8% of all Israelis, the Dati (Orthodox Jews) 10%, the Masorti (traditional Jews) 23%, and the Hiloni (secular Jews) 40%.[2] There was a majority agreement amongst all Israeli Jewish groups that Israel could be both a Jewish and democratic state.[2] When asked whether they would prefer democratic principles or halakha (religious law) if the two were ever in conflict, 62% of all Israeli Jews combined favoured democratic principles; however, preference for halakha was very high amongst the Haredim (89%), while very low amongst secular Jews (1%).[2]
In 2009, Justice Minister Yaakov Neeman stated that "step by step, Torah law will become the binding law in the State of Israel. We have to reinstate the traditions of our forefathers, the teaching of the rabbis of the ages, because these offer a solution to all the issues we are dealing with today". He later retracted his statement.[1] According to 2002 Israel Prize winner Nahum Rakover, who received the Yakir Yerushalayim prize for his research on the use of Jewish law in the legal system,[5] Neeman's opinion was nothing new. He said that the idea is supported in the Foundations of Law Act, passed in 1980, which encourages judges to use Jewish law in their decisions. Yitzhak Kahan, former president of the Israeli Supreme Court, recommended that Jewish law be implemented even in cases of an existing precedent, although his opinion was not accepted, and former justice ministers Shmuel Tamir and Moshe Nissim advocated teaching judges and lawyers Jewish law to provide them with the necessary knowledge to implement the law.[1]
In August 2019, Smotrich stated: "We [Orthodox Jews] all would want the State of Israel to be run according to the Torah and Jewish law, it's just that we can't because there are people who think differently from us, and we have to get along with them."[8][9][10]
National identity bill
In 2014, Israel's cabinet advanced the Nation-State Bill, which defined Israel as "the nation-state of the Jewish people" and also said that Jewish law would be a "source of inspiration" for the Knesset. This was seen by some non-Orthodox Jews as a step toward enforcing Orthodox halakha as the law of the land.[11] However, the final version of the law did not include this proposed clause.
