A political storm was sparked on Sunday morning with a report that a clause in contracts between the municipality of Tel Aviv-Jaffa and synagogues requires them to operate and offer services with no distinction to race, gender, or faith.
The most up-to-date text of the clause, however, as seen by The Jerusalem Post, shows that the “faith” part has been taken out, undercutting what many ministers and members of Knesset were quick to catalogue as a widespread liberal threat to traditional Jewish practices.
The municipality itself stated that “there is no concern” about synagogue operations changing in the city anytime soon, as the clause had already been removed. “The clause in question, as it has been reported about, is inaccurate and has been changed. The non-discrimination clause was introduced several years ago and applies to all municipal public institutions in the city.”
It said that, “Over 400 synagogues operate in Tel Aviv-Jaffa and will continue to thrive. There is no concern that their activities or character will change. This is all baseless nonsense.”
Many of these synagogues have been in operation since before the establishment of the State of Israel; the city itself was founded in 1909. The land on which the houses of worship were built was either approved by the municipality for use or purchased by the synagogues themselves.
Approximately 130 synagogues have official registrations that were either not properly completed or never carried out at all; the process to settle these synagogue registrations began over the past few years. This has led several of them to internal court hearings, where they were alerted to the “faith” element in one specific clause and sought legal counsel.
Tel Aviv's actions are 'common in every other major Israeli city'
Tel Aviv Deputy Mayor Haim Goren, who heads the Ma’aminim faction in the City Council, explained – from where he is serving in IDF reserves – that the municipality has been working over the last few years to settle the status of synagogues in the city “as is common in every other major Israeli city.”
Part of this process is to regulate municipal allocations to rabbis and synagogue administrators that ensure that their operations are honest and adequate in their public service. In the text that outlines these allocations, generic clauses were inserted, pulled from other public service contracts.
Goren explained that several synagogue administrators had approached the municipality to change some of the clauses, arguing that they didn’t befit a synagogue. The municipality obliged, he said, and the “faith” part of the clause was removed from current and future contracts.
As it is generic, the “faith” element is not enforced in any case, so that there was no concrete concern for synagogues that their operations and services would be disrupted by the municipality.
The clause now reads, “The synagogue will provide religious services to the neighborhood and the surrounding area without any distinction of origin or sex. No activity is permitted that isn’t designated in the funds therein.”
When the news broke on Sunday morning, Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi responded sharply, and sent an urgent letter to Justice Minister Yariv Levin, who is also serving as temporary fill-in minister for Interior and Religious Services, as well as government secretary Yossi Fuchs, to “act immediately” and to raise the issue at the next government meeting.
Karhi described the officials behind the reported decision-making as “damned, wicked people.”
Levin’s office later said that what had been publicized is not the updated text of the clause, and that the “faith” part had been removed months ago – at the request of rabbis in the city. His office noted that the Religious Services Ministry would continue to monitor the situation.
The Internal Affairs and Environment Committee is expected to meet at the end of the Knesset’s recess, to convene for “an urgent discussion” on the matter, following a request from MK Limor Son Har-Melech (Otzma Yehudit).
Committee Chairman Yitzhak Kreuzer (Otzma Yehudit) accepted the request to convene the meeting, stating that the committee would “thoroughly examine the issue and ensure the preservation of freedom of religion and the Jewish character of the state.”
When asked by the Post about Tel Aviv Municipality’s response to the report, Har-Melech’s spokesperson said there were too many different claims made, and that the committee meeting would question the municipality, asking it “to come up with one answer.”
The Union of Community Rabbis condemned the reports of the municipality’s decision, describing it as “deliberate harassment, under the guise of a legal ruling,” and that it is an “unequivocal decision to harm the sanctities of Israel, and to deliberately hinder the steps of the God-fearing public.”
“We are sharply considering our steps,” the union said in a statement, “and examining how we can stand against [Mayor] Ron Huldai’s decrees. We can guarantee one thing: Tradition will be preserved, and we will not give in under any circumstances to attempts at abuse. The people of Israel are alive, and we invite the public to join the regular prayers in the synagogues and reinforce this clear statement.”
National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said that the Tel Aviv-Jaffa Municipality had “declared war on Judaism. To harm synagogues, the heart of the identity and tradition of the Jewish people, is a shame and disgrace and crosses every redline,” he said.
“I demand that the Tel Aviv Municipality immediately stop this dangerous and despicable move. We will not lower our heads, we will not remain silent, and we cannot turn the Jewish state into a ‘state of all its citizens’ on the backs of the synagogues,” Ben-Gvir said.
Eldad Mizrahi, chairman of the city’s religious council, said, “There is nothing to worry about.”
“At issue here are settlements and regulations between the municipality and structures built on municipal land, where the city sought to renew the contracts for another 25 years. This exists in other cities as well,” he said.
“The agreements outline that the synagogue itself is the authority that will decide on management and operations; the municipality has no reason, drive, or goal to intervene in what happens inside a synagogue,” Mizrahi said. “The opposite is true: It helps synagogues manifest their vision as much as it can. Anything else is white noise.”
Goren said, “Our goal is clear: Manage the synagogues in a way that is ordered and efficient while preserving their Jewish character.”