Women to Take Part in Electing Chief Rabbi of Tel Aviv
Israel’s Labor Alignment has chosen two women to take part in the election of Tel Aviv’s chief rabbi, the first time Jewish women will have a voice in picking the religious head of an Israeli city.
Haviva Avi-Guy, one of the two representatives, said in a telephone interview Tuesday that the development is important to Israeli women because the chief rabbi is supreme head of the rabbinical courts, which adjudicate marriage and divorce disputes.
According to Jewish Orthodox tradition, women do not take part in the administration or governing of their community. But spokesmen for the Chief Rabbinate and the Ministry of Religious Affairs said there have not been any complaints about the appointment of the two women to the 96-member elective body.
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