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Articles on Orthodox Jews

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The Israeli Supreme Court assembled in September 2023 to hear arguments to strike down a controversial judicial overhaul limiting the power of the court to review and overturn government decisions. Debbie Hill/Pool/AFP viaGetty Images

Israel’s highest court protects its power to curb government extremism − 3 essential reads

Israel’s highest court has struck down the government’s law limiting its power. Three scholars look at why the law was proposed, what it aimed to do and who supported – and opposed – it.
From Reconstructionism to ultra-Orthodoxy, Judaism is richly diverse. MendyHechtman/iStock via Getty Images

Jewish denominations: A brief guide for the perplexed

Jewish communities have always followed some different customs in different parts of the world, but the 19th and 20th centuries brought much more dramatic divisions.
Sara Hurwitz, Amy Eilberg, Sandy Eisenberg Sasso and Sally J. Priesand, each of whom was the first female rabbi in her branch of Judaism. Courtesy of The Jacob Rader Marcus Center of the American Jewish Archives

The ordination of the first female rabbi 50 years ago has brought many changes – and some challenges

Rabbi Sally J. Priesand’s ordination by Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion opened the doors to hundreds of women becoming rabbis.
Ultra orthodox Jews watch Rabbi Israel Hager vote in Bnei Brak, Israel, Sept. 17, 2019. AP/Oded Balilty

The 4 big questions that the next Israeli government will decide

The winner of Tuesday’s Israeli election must form a government and tackle four problems that will shape the future of the country and the relations among its citizens and Palestinian non-citizens.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, and former Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman. AP Photo/Bernat Armangue, File

What Israel’s new election reveals about the struggle over Jewishness

Young Haredim men, who are strictly observant Jews, have long been exempted from Israel’s compulsory military service. A disagreement over stopped Netanyahu from forming a government.

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