The letter also describes a “spontaneous momentum of dozens of organizations in the country that allow hundreds of thousands of Israelis to take ownership of their Judaism despite longstanding exclusion and the lack of government recognition.”
The organization noted that the amendment, enacted by the previous coalition government, “has not been transferred from the Ministry of Education to the Ministry of Justice in order to prepare it for signing—for various, unclear reasons,” and that “there exists an intention to stop its advance and to try and restore the previous rule, which discriminated against us, in favor of Orthodox culture.”
Founded in 1998 and re-established in 2011, Panim sees itself as standing at the forefront of Jewish Renewal across Israel. It incorporates various organizations dealing with Jewish culture and identity from a variety of worldviews: Secular, Orthodox, Reform and Conservative, Urban, Rural, Ashkenazi and Sephardi.
Panim sees its role in organizing these institutions and communities, offering information about them, helping them with marketing, and with PR.
Last year, Panim has undergone significant changes as it has become a federation of 50 Jewish organizations in the field of Jewish renewal. These organizations join based on agreed rules, pay dues and are part of the management of the organization.
Reviewing the Panim literature, one immediately notices the Israeli secular Jew’s access to his or her rich Jewish culture, without the need for intermediaries and interpretations. Unlike many non-Orthodox Jews outside Israel, these Jews read Hebrew fluently and have great familiarity with Scripture, which is taught in secular state schools.
Which is why their largely hostile attitude towards the Orthodox and Haredi establishment are not rooted in a desire to be Reform or Conservative (although Panim embraces both denominations, along with some Orthodox groups) — but in an ongoing effort to forge a Jewish and scholarly culture that does not follow much of Jewish halacha.
In Israel, where the Chief Rabbinate dominates the official face of religious life, the educational system has been the arena where these relatively newly hatched groups are seeking their official acceptance.
As far back as 1985, Israel’s Ministry of Education has been involved in sporadic attempts to encourage Israeli-Jewish cultural renewal, but in the country’s political reality, where new ministers take over and change ministerial directions every few years, the initiative has yet to gain traction.
A spokesperson for Religious Services Minister Naftali Bennett told JNi.media that the Panim letter has been received and will be given the thoughtful response it deserves.