Q&A: On the Boundaries of Jewish Culture in the State
On the Boundaries of Jewish Culture in the State
Question
Hello Rabbi,
In these election days, various so-called religious laws keep popping up, and I’m asking: where is the line between the legitimate right to give the state a Jewish character and coercing religion on the non-believing public? Can a secular person also demand not to swear on a copy of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh), and the like? Where is the boundary? After all, the state is a Jewish state.
Answer
As a rule, I oppose religious coercion and religious legislation. Swearing on the Hebrew Bible is a joke to begin with, since holding a sacred object associated with a commandment is part of a halakhic oath. If someone does not regard the Hebrew Bible as a sacred object, what meaning does his oath have? The state is Jewish in some amorphous national sense. That does not have much practical significance. Of course, this is a general approach. In every specific issue, it has to be discussed on its own merits.
Discussion on Answer
What does that have to do with teaching about Jerusalem? We’re talking about history and geography. What does that have to do with religious questions? After all, nobody teaches in a secular school that Jerusalem is holy in a religious sense. Maybe that it is holy from the perspective of religious people, like Mecca is for Muslims. It’s general knowledge about our people. That’s nationalism, with no connection at all to religion and values.
I wasn’t able to understand the last sentence—what does it actually mean?
If you want, here’s a more specific issue: for example, in education, some get angry that they teach about Jerusalem and the like, whereas in my view that’s part of the Jewish heritage.