In Israel, the battle to liberalize Rabbinic courts continues. Yesterday's Jerusalem Post reports that several women's rights groups along with a group of progressive Orthodox rabbis have filed suit in the High Court of Justice challenging the recent appointment of 19 new judges to the Rabbinic courts. (See prior posting.) The 60-page petition claims nepotism, political pressure and procedural errors in the appointments. Underlying the lawsuit are concerns over how the traditional haredi judges will deal with women's rights in divorce proceedings.
Meanwhile, in another attempt to maintain the authority of traditional Rabbinic bodies, Israel's Chief Sephardic Rabbi, Shlomo Amar, arrived in the United States this week to oversee the Rabbinical Council of America's appointment of religious court judges to its conversion courts. Amar has ordered that only conversions by special Orthodox Jewish tribunals that he has approved should be recognized in Israel. JTA reports on these developments. (See prior related posting.)
