When Democracy and Halacha Collide

There was a recent article in the Forward entitled "When Democracy and Halacha Collide" that reported that in a recent poll in Israel "44% of those questioned replied that if there is a contradiction between democratic values and Halacha (Jewish law), the latter should be upheld."
See  http://www.forward.com/articles/151052/#ixzz1mOkQajk8
The article, written by a professor of history at Ben Gurion University, expressed concern over this. Of course, others may be concerned about the opposite, that 56% of the population would favour democratic values over Halacha.

The numbers, though, are not really the issue. What this article further shows is not only the reality that there may be a conflict between democratic values and Jewish (i.e. Torah) values but the further reality that most people do not even want to confront this truth. What has emerged in Israel for years is a promotion of Israel as a Jewish state and Israel as a democratic state without actually facing the reality that these two desired definitions of the state may actually be in conflict. It is not the result of the poll that actually bothers me -- how many who responded fully understand the depth of this question? It is the article itself that is most telling about the challenge that faces us. This author decries this 44% of the population favouring Halacha because such a position challenges the very foundation of Israel -- even as a Jewish state. The real question is: how many people perceive Israel to be a Jewish state because it is democratic? Perhaps this 44% of the population is beginning to see the challenge of this definition but the author of this article -- and possibly many North American Jews -- are bothered by this response not because they favour democracy per se but because they favour a Jewish state being defined as Jewish because it is democratic. The argument against Halacha, as such, would be because it is not Jewish -- and see how this author develops such a position.

In Jewish Tribune article from Jan. 2008, I pointed out further aspects of this challenge. In the article, I wondered how many Jews in Israel favour a Jewish state because that entity would also protect Western freedoms and it is these rights that they want, not necessarily a Jewish entity. See http://www.jewishtribune.ca/TribuneV2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=349
On a certain level, it may be good that this is an issue that is finally coming out.

At the same time, though, we must also recognize that how Halacha connects with democratic rights and freedoms is a most complex issue. We have benefited from Western values so we cannot simply dismiss  these values. Rav Moshe did refer to the US as a medina shel chesed. The perceived conflict between democracy and Halacha cannot be simply answered by choosing one over another. Further on this issue, specifically as it involves Freedom of Religion, see my latest series of shiurim on this topic on Koshertube (www.koshertube.com)

Rabbi Ben Hecht

http://forward.com/articles/151052/