Netanya, Israel – The religious community in Netanya, Israel’s eighth largest city, is breathing a sigh of relief, after a nine-month Reform movement bid to ban new synagogue construction in the city has been blocked.
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Tel Aviv District Court Judge Sarah Gadot rejected an appeal by two Reform Judaism groups to stop any new synagogue construction in the city.
The story began in March of 2009, when the Reform groups succeeded in obtaining an administrative order to freeze all budgetary allocations for synagogue in construction in the seaside city.
The Reformers said that so long as no temple is not built in keeping with their beliefs and lifestyle, no other sector should have new synagogues either.
The decision aroused a great storm of protest throughout the city, whose population is 180,000, and not only amongst the religious.
Attorney Dr. Nisan Shrifi filed suit against the order, saying it harmed his right to build a synagogue in memory of his late mother – a project that had already received municipal approval and in which significant sums of money were already invested. The synagogue, in the Ramat Poleg neighborhood, is to be named Be’er Chana.
“It is patently clear,” Shrifi wrote in his claim, “that the order is unreasonable and drastic, and has an element of ‘Neither you nor I will benefit,'” based on the Biblical story in King I [3,26], which describes King Solomon’s wisdom concerning an appeal by two women who claim the same baby.
After the court ruled in favor of Shriki last month, the Reform groups appealed to the District Court, where Judge Gadot threw out the appeal. “There is no substantial claim against the original decision and its reasoning,” she wrote.
The Reform groups were also required to pay court costs of 5,000 shekels ($1,300) plus 16 percent VAT (Value Added Tax).
A chutzpa!
they should be called deformed instead of reformed
I remember the Late Tzanzer Rebbeh ZT”L used to say that his biggest revenge in the zionizem goverment is that in Natanya there is over 250 synagogue’s. because originaly when they started building this city the goverment said that because there is too many synagogue’s in Tel aviv they are going to build a city without any synangogue’s in it. and if you look at the charter of the city you can see a rule that “no synagogue’s are allowed to be build” i know people wont believe it but it’s a fact you can’t deny. check it out. and B”H today there are much more then 250 in that beutifull city and if you go to Natanya these days the city became much more religius many many more people wearing yarmulka’s and keeping Shabbat Etc. its a real pleasure to see that “NETZACH YISROEL LO YESHAKER”
Any subsidies or government assistance provided for constructing new shuls should be available equall to ALL not just reform or chareidi. Otherwise, all should have the right to construct a place to daven as long as they get the required permits.
Why don’t they just build an exercise center and on the weekends have their services there when no body shows? It’s what they do in America!
The secular in Israel are not interested in ANY religion.. certainly not the reform “do what you want” non-religion… The only reason the secular will support reform is to stick it to the chareidim, because the chareidim in Israel (as a group, NOT individuals) act like such idiots…
Do they really think they will get new members this way?
The Netanya City Council does not build Shuls and I do not see too many people offering the money –so put up or shut up.
The existing Shuls in Netanya are a credit to the City and especially the Anglo ones provide very many volunteers for Chesed work .