Religion and state

What is at stake

Israel has no civil marriage. "Israel does not allow civil marriage, and Jewish marriages conducted in Israel must be sanctioned by Orthodox rabbis" (Pew Research Center, March 2016). All marriages must go through religious institutions, "such as the Chief Rabbinate for Jews" (Times of Israel, March 7, 2023). Couples who cannot or will not marry that way go abroad: 9,550 couples registered civil marriages performed abroad in 2019. Since March 2023 they can also marry online through Utah, after the Supreme Court ordered the state to register those marriages; about 1,200 couples had done so since 2020 (Times of Israel, March 7, 2023).

The 25th Knesset spent its last year expanding religious authority:

• Child support. In November 2025, 53–38, a two-year interim law let rabbinical courts rule on child support when both parties consent (Times of Israel, Nov 17, 2025).
• Arbitration. In March 2026, 65–41, rabbinical and Sharia courts gained the power to arbitrate civil money disputes when both sides sign consent (VIN News, March 24, 2026).
• Torah study. In July 2026, 63–52, a Basic Law declared Torah study a "foundational value" of the state (Times of Israel, July 14, 2026). Its link to yeshiva exemptions is covered on the draft page.
• Kashrut. On July 15, 2026, 46–41, the Chief Rabbinate regained exclusive authority over kosher certification, reversing a reform that had let private Orthodox bodies certify (Times of Israel, July 15, 2026).
• Gender segregation. On July 16, 2026, 52–43, universities and colleges were allowed to run gender-segregated master's and doctoral programs (Times of Israel, July 16, 2026).

Times of Israel reported that the kashrut law was part of a package in which the Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) parties got the Torah study law and a freeze on draft arrests in exchange for backing other coalition bills. When the arbitration law passed, opposition leader Yair Lapid said this:

Mark this day. Today is the day the status quo died—dead, buried, eliminated, canceled. It no longer exists and binds no one.

Money is the other half. The 2026 budget, passed 62–55 on March 30, raised funding for Haredi educational institutions from NIS 4.1 billion to NIS 5.17 billion (Times of Israel, March 30, 2026). Separately, on March 10 the cabinet approved more than NIS 5 billion in coalition money for sectoral institutions. By a Berl Katznelson Center count, NIS 2.2 billion of it went to the Haredi community, including NIS 1.56 billion for yeshivas and kollels (Times of Israel, March 10, 2026). That money is covered on the economy page.

Conversion runs through the same institutions. On March 1, 2021, the Supreme Court ruled that conversions by the Reform and Conservative (Masorti) movements performed in Israel count for citizenship under the Law of Return. Eight of nine justices agreed on every point; the ninth wanted a 12-month delay. The court said the ruling had "no religious implications", and the movements say they perform "only 30 to 40 such conversions every year" in Israel (Jerusalem Post, March 1, 2021). In May 2026, the ministerial legislation committee was set to vote on a bill by Religious Zionism MK Simcha Rothman amending the Law of Return to recognize only conversion "in accordance with halacha" (Times of Israel, May 7, 2026). Netanyahu asked the committee to postpone discussing it; the bill stayed on the agenda with no vote scheduled (Jerusalem Post, May 12, 2026). No later report on it was found.

What Israelis think

Israeli Jews sort themselves on a scale of observance, not by denomination. In Central Bureau of Statistics data for 2025, Jews aged 20 and over defined themselves as 39.6% secular, 21.8% traditional but not particularly religious, 14.0% traditional-religious, 12.4% religious and 11.5% Haredi (CBS via VIN News, Sept 2026).

In JPPI's May 2026 survey, 59% of Jewish respondents supported "having an option for civil marriage in Israel" (JPPI, May 2026). A separate follow-up question asked about civil marriage that "would also include the possibility of marriages between Jews and non-Jews." On that question, Jewish support was 46%. Among traditional, not religious respondents it was 36%, against 54% on the general question.

"In general, do you support also having an option for civil marriage in Israel? (Civil marriage is marriage by the state rather than by religious authorities such as the Chief Rabbinate)"

• All Jewish respondents59%
• Secular91%
• Traditional, not religious54%
• Traditional, religious36%
• Religious18%
• Haredi12%
• Palestinian citizens of Israel39%

Source: JPPI Israeli Society Index, Apr 30–May 4, 2026, 749 (547 Jewish, 202 Arab respondents). Support is "strongly support" plus "somewhat support" in JPPI's table. Opposed: 60% of traditional-religious, 77% of religious and 85% of Haredi respondents. The last row is JPPI's "Arabs" (the source does not say whether Druze are included): 46% opposed and 15% did not know. All Israelis: 55% support.

"What is your view on civil marriage if it would also include the possibility of marriages between Jews and non-Jews?"

• All Jewish respondents46%
• Secular75%
• Traditional, not religious36%
• Traditional, religious25%
• Religious9%
• Haredi3%
• Palestinian citizens of Israel37%

Source: JPPI Israeli Society Index, Apr 30–May 4, 2026, 749 (547 Jewish, 202 Arab respondents). A separate follow-up question in the same survey as the chart above, so the two charts are not one series. Support is "strongly support" plus "somewhat support" in JPPI's table. Opposed: 59% of traditional-not-religious, 87% of religious and 94% of Haredi respondents. The last row is JPPI's "Arabs": 48% opposed. All Israelis: 44% support, 50% opposed.

Shabbat transport shows a similar split. Among Jewish respondents, support for public transport on Shabbat everywhere except heavily religious areas ranged from 67.1% to 73.8% across surveys from April 2022 to March 2025, and the report says it "gradually increased." Just over half of right-wing respondents (51.7%) supported it in March 2025 (Reichman University, Aug 2025).

"Do you support or oppose operating public transportation on Saturdays (Shabbat) throughout the country, except in areas with major ultra-orthodox or religious populations?"

Support for public transport on Shabbat outside religious areas, Jewish respondents, by group

Group	April 2022	March 2025
Traditional	65.3%	68.4%
Religious	35.5%	45.0%
Haredi	11.2%	16.2%
Left	89.9%	92.4%
Right	Not given	51.7%

Strongest shade: 100%. Source: Reichman University, Institute for Liberty and Responsibility, Report Aug 2025 (surveys Apr 2022–Mar 2025). "Don't know" answers excluded. Left and right are respondents' own placement on a 1–7 scale. The report's text gives no April 2022 figure for the right; its lowest reading was 47.3% in September 2022. For all Jewish respondents (67.1% to 73.8%) and secular respondents (87.6% to 92.5%) it gives only the range across its surveys, not figures by date. The report gives no sample sizes.

Why does policy move against these majorities? The most recent breakdown found is from 2019. That August, asked which issues would decide their vote, 36.7% of Jews named economic and social issues and 36.2% security and foreign affairs; 15.5% called religion and state "extremely important." Among Haredim, 67.5% regarded it as of paramount importance (IDI, Aug 2019). No 2026 survey breaks this down by group.

On the Western Wall and kashrut, no survey since 2019 was found. In that IDI survey, 51.5% of Jews supported egalitarian prayer in a separate area of the Wall, and 63% favored ending the Rabbinate's exclusive authority over kashrut (IDI, Aug 2019).

What the parties say

Shas and UTJ wrote most of the 2025–26 laws, and Otzma Yehudit sponsored the segregation law. Yashar, B'Yachad, the Democrats and Yisrael Beiteinu all support civil marriage and some local choice on Shabbat transport. No 2026 Likud position was found; the table gives its record.

Who should run marriage, conversion and Shabbat rules?

1Keep them Orthodox-run50.4 seats

• Shas7.6 seats

  Jerusalem Post summary of Shas and UTJ: "They have firmly opposed expanding alternatives to religious law, including civil marriage"; on conversion they "favor keeping the authority to do so within the Orthodox religious establishment"; they "oppose changes that would expand non-Orthodox forms of worship at the Western Wall." Shas championed the July 2026 law returning kosher certification to the Chief Rabbinate (Times of Israel).

  Jerusalem Post; Times of Israel, Sep 10, 2026

• UTJ7.6 seats

  Same positions as Shas in the Jerusalem Post summary. MK Moshe Gafni, sponsor of the Torah study Basic Law: "This Basic Law will serve as the state's moral compass."

  Times of Israel, Jul 14, 2026

• Likud22.1 seats

  Not said publicly: Has not said where it stands on marriage or conversion. On marriage its coalition deal with UTJ keeps the religious status quo, but Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana of Likud voted for a civil marriage bill on Dec 24, 2025, and Likud MK Dan Illouz defended him. On Shabbat transport it told Ynet it wants "to connect Israel on the six working days while keeping Shabbat," holding to the status quo since the state's founding (translated). Its 2022 coalition deal with Religious Zionism recognizes only conversions under the Orthodox Chief Rabbinate, and its government passed the Shas law restoring the Rabbinate's exclusive control of kosher certification, 46 to 41, on Jul 15, 2026.

  Times of Israel, Jul 15, 2026; Ynet (Hebrew), Aug 31, 2026; Times of Israel, Dec 28, 2022, Jul 15, 2026

• Otzma Yehudit7.4 seats

  Itamar Ben-Gvir in 2022: "The state is Jewish; marriages should be according to the law of Moses and Israel" (translated). Its published platform says nothing on marriage, conversion or Shabbat. Its MK Limor Son Har-Melech sponsored the July 2026 law allowing gender-segregated graduate programs.

  Arutz Sheva (Hebrew), Sep 7, 2022; Times of Israel, Jul 16, 2026, Sep 7, 2022. On the record, because the party did not answer the questionnaire

• Religious Zionism–Zehut5.7 seats

  On Shabbat transport, Religious Zionism told Ynet it opposes any change, saying that keeping Shabbat in public life expresses Israel's character as a Jewish state (Ynet's summary, translated). Its 2022 coalition deal provides that "only conversions performed by the state conversion court under the auspices of the Orthodox Chief Rabbinate will be granted state recognition" (Times of Israel).

  Ynet (Hebrew), Aug 31, 2026; Times of Israel, Dec 28, 2022, Aug 31, 2026

• Noam

  "Preserving Shabbat in public space and strengthening the Orthodox rabbinate, conversion and kashrut." Its leader, Avi Maoz, sponsored the Western Wall bill.

  israel2026.co.il (aggregator, Hebrew page); IDI, 2026

2Civil marriage, local Shabbat rules39.8 seats

• Yashar!21.0 seats

  The Jewish Chronicle's summary: "a secular party, but not anti-religious" that "supports civil marriage, divorce and same-sex marriage," with a "'live and let live' approach to Shabbat observance, devolving decisions to municipalities." Eisenkot (Jerusalem Post, Sep 24, 2026): "I am not religious, but I grew up in a traditional family and have profound respect for Judaism and tradition."

  The Jewish Chronicle (Oct 4, 2026); Jerusalem Post (Sep 24, 2026), Oct 4, 2026

• B'Yachad10.6 seats

  Lapid: "In the State of Israel, there should be a parallel civil marriage option for anyone who wants it," with legislation on equal rights for every couple sought within the first 100 days of the next government (Sep 15, 2026). Bennett, Apr 20, 2026, before the B'Yachad merger: "We should allow cities to choose whether they want public transportation on Shabbat."

  Jerusalem Post (Lapid, Sep 15, 2026; Bennett, Apr 20, 2026), Sep 15, 2026

• Yisrael Beiteinu8.2 seats

  "We will demand the implementation of civil marriage and divorce options within Israel"; "Tel Aviv will not impose Shabbat transportation on Bnei Brak, and Bnei Brak will not impose its way of life on Tel Aviv"; the Western Wall compromise as drafted by Avichai Mandelblit and Natan Sharansky.

  Ynet, five-point pledge, Dec 1, 2025

• Blue and White

  Benny Gantz backs public transport on Shabbat as part of handing powers to local authorities, which would set routes and frequency (Ynet, translated). No 2026 statement on marriage found. In 2019 it pledged to "legislate the partnership covenant," a civil union for couples who want one, while calling marriage by Jewish tradition "the main road of the Jewish people" (translated).

  Ynet (Hebrew), Aug 31, 2026; Ynet (Hebrew), Apr 7, 2019, Aug 31, 2026

3Civil marriage, non-Orthodox conversion9.0 seats

• The Democrats9.0 seats

  "Promote civil marriage"; "promote the operation of public transport on Shabbat in a limited format in secular localities"; "extend recognition of conversion to other religious bodies in addition to the Chief Rabbinate."

  Israel Democracy Institute, party page, 2026

No position in these sources

• People of Israel4.2 seats

  No position found on marriage, conversion, Shabbat or the Rabbinate. The party's founding principles call for "a state where Judaism invites and does not coerce, includes and does not dictate" (translated).

  People of Israel, founding principles (Hebrew, undated), Accessed Oct 5, 2026

• Reservists–Economic4.1 seats

  No position found for the list. Yoaz Hendel, as communications minister in 2021: "We must provide an alternative for those unable to marry" (translated).

  Arutz Sheva, Sep 12, 2021

• Joint List7.7 seats

  Told Ynet it supports urban and intercity public transport on Shabbat, including the airport and hospitals, "as a basic and equal service for the whole population" (translated). No joint 2026 position on marriage or conversion found. Hadash's platform, as quoted in 2019, calls for "separation of religion from state" and civil marriage and divorce (translated).

  Ynet (Hebrew), Aug 31, 2026; Zman Yisrael, Sep 11, 2019, Aug 31, 2026

• Ra'am4.8 seats

  No position found on marriage, conversion or Shabbat. Mansour Abbas, on cutting the party's ties with its religious council: "Ra'am today is moving in the direction of being a completely civic party, with separate institutions."

  Times of Israel, Dec 7, 2025

Shas and UTJ rows quote the Jerusalem Post's summary of the two parties' positions, and the Yashar row the Jewish Chronicle's; neither is the party's own text. Religious Zionism–Zehut, Blue and White, Likud and the Joint List rows use their answers to Ynet on Shabbat transport (Aug 31, 2026). Likud has not said where it stands on marriage or conversion; its row is marked not said publicly and rests on its coalition deals and the laws its government passed. Otzma Yehudit's row is its leader's 2022 statement; Noam's comes from israel2026.co.il, an aggregator site. No position found for People of Israel, Reservists–Economic or Ra'am, and the Joint List's answer does not fit these options (checked October 2026); their rows give older or adjacent material, which sets no stance.

Compare every list on this issue

Misreadings

"Reform versus Orthodox" is the American fault line, not the Israeli one. In Pew's 2014–15 survey, 3% of Israeli Jews identified as Reform and 2% as Conservative, against 35% and 18% of American Jews in Pew's 2013 U.S. survey (Pew Research Center, March 2016). Half of Israeli Jews (50%) named Orthodoxy as the stream they identify with, and 41% named none. The Israeli divide runs from secular through traditional to religious and Haredi. The movements still have a voice in the Knesset. Gilad Kariv, a Democrats MK and "an ordained Reform rabbi" (Times of Israel, May 7, 2026), placed third on the party's list in its July 20, 2026 primary, behind Yair Golan and Naama Lazimi (Arutz Sheva, July 20, 2026). He said the conversion bill would "collapse the bridge between the State of Israel and Jews around the world" (Times of Israel, May 7, 2026). No other Reform or Conservative rabbi on a 2026 list was confirmed for this page.

Support for civil marriage is not a demand for a wall between synagogue and state. In a July 2025 poll of Jews commissioned by Hiddush, a group that campaigns for marriage freedom, 53% said they would choose an Orthodox marriage "if all options were legally equal" (Jerusalem Post, Aug 2025). The state already funds Haredi schools and legislates the powers of rabbinical and Sharia courts, as the laws above show. The argument is over who controls religious institutions and how much they get, not whether the state is involved at all.

Diaspora causes rank low with Israeli voters, but they are on the agenda. The Western Wall dominates American Jewish coverage. In Israel, in the last measure found (IDI, 2019), 15.5% of Jews called religion and state "extremely important" to their vote, and egalitarian prayer at the Wall had bare-majority support. Still, bills on the Wall and on non-Orthodox conversion both came up in the 2026 Knesset, as described above.

Majorities do not make policy here. Majorities of Jews back civil marriage and Shabbat buses, yet the 25th Knesset expanded religious authority. The IDI figures above show who puts these issues first: most Haredim, and few other Jews. The Torah study and kashrut laws were part of the coalition deal described above.

It is not only a Jewish issue. The 2026 arbitration law covers Sharia courts as well as rabbinical ones. Arab respondents to JPPI's May 2026 survey opposed a civil marriage option, 46% to 39%. For more, see Palestinian citizens of Israel.