ISRAEL, RELIGION OF. Muslims in Israel are more devout than any other religious group in the country, according to data from the Pew Research Centre. In 2005, based on Central Bureau of Statistics of the country, 76.1% of the population was Jewish, 16.2% are Muslim, Christian are 2.1%, 1.6% are Druze, and the remaining 3.9% show no religion preference. According to Orthodox Judaism, the Jewish Law and Torah are divine. The remaining 4% include other faiths, such as Samaritans, Hindus, Baha’i’s, Buddhists, Neopagans, and African Hebrew Israelites of Jerusalem. Islam is the second biggest religion in Israel after Judaism. Reform and Conservative Judaism consider Jewish laws as guidelines instead o… Her research analyzes peace, conflict, religion and the secular across the Arab world and Israel. Religion in Israel is a central feature of the country and plays a major role in shaping Israeli culture and lifestyle. So we are considered a very nationalistic, patriotic community. Noble Druze men from nearby countries visited Druze villages in Palestine and preached neutrality. The modern Jewish state is not only the “Promised Land” for Jews, but the only country in the world where they form a majority of the population. [43], In 2007, Nabiah A-Din, mayor of Kisra-Sumei, rejected the "multi-cultural" Israeli constitution proposed by the Israeli Arab organization Adalah: "The state of Israel is a Jewish state as well as a democratic state that espouses equality and elections. But despite being more religious than any of their Israeli counterparts who are Jewish, Christian or Druze, Israel's Muslims place less emphasis on religion than their fellow Muslims in nearby countries. Category page. Members of the community have attained top positions in Israeli politics and public service. Polygamy is prohibited, and men and women are viewed as equals. Judaism is the world’s oldest monotheistic religion, dating back nearly 4,000 years. [23] Those were no ordinary killings in the Druze's narrative, they were meant to eradicate the whole community according to the Druze narrative. Josh Palmon was tasked by the Jewish Agency for Israel to manage the relationship with the Druze. "Proselytizing is legal in the country and missionaries of all religious groups are allowed to proselytize all citizens; however, a 1977 law prohibits any person from offering material benefits as an inducement to conversion. In fact, Israel is hardly monolithic in any respect and enjoys a deeply rooted religious pluralism that must be recognized for what it is. Religion in Israel: Related Features on Israel . The majority of Christians living in Israel are Arabs, or have come from other countries to work and live in monasteries or churches. Classic editor History Talk (0) The main article for this category is Religion in Israel. The most important teaching and tenet of Judaism is that there is one God, incorporeal and eternal, who wants all people to do what is just and merciful. [11], Historically the relationship between the Druze and Muslims has been characterized by intense persecution. The al-Juhhal group does not have the permission to view the holy texts, and they do not attend religious meetings. Every country in the world, including the Western nations, is grappling on some level with the tension between religion and state. [74], During the 2011 Syrian uprising, Druze in the Golan Heights held several rallies in support of Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad. Jerusalem is the seat of government and the proclaimed capital, although the latter status has not received wide international recognition. [citation needed] Those who apply for Israeli citizenship are entitled to vote in Israeli elections, run for Knesset, and receive an Israeli passport. Even though the faith originally developed out of Ismaili Islam, most Druze do not identify as Muslims,[15][16][17] and they do not accept the five pillars of Islam. Palestine/Israel, or the Holy Land, is important for all three major monotheistic religions, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. [75] Public support for the Assad government has historically been high among Golan Druze, and Syria has secured agreements with the Israeli government to permit Golan Druze to conduct trade across the border with Syria. Religion in Israel. The key point is that these various forms of religion-based conflict drivers are not limited to … Religion in Israel When traveling in Israel, its official religion, and 78% of the country’s inhabitants are Jewish. Even so, the deity being worshiped, usually Yahweh, was understood to be physically present in the temple, have a body, and be a personal god with emotions and willpower. Wahhab brought around 500 men and arrived to Shefa-'Amr in Palestine, where he established his command on 30 March 1948. [45], In a survey conducted in 2008 by Dr. Yusuf Hassan of Tel Aviv University found that out of 764 Druze participants, more than 94% identify as "Druze-Israelis" in the religious and national context.[46][47]. This freedom is guaranteed to every person in every enlightened, democratic regime, and therefore it is guaranteed to every person in Israel. The most powerful 5% of the Knowledgeable group are where the spiritual leaders of the religion come from. PikiWiki Israel 61743 religion in israel.jpg 2,056 × 3,648; 870 KB PikiWiki Israel 67009 well of magi.jpg 1,024 × 747; 190 KB PikiWiki Israel 67434 saksum center near abu ghosh.jpg 4,960 × 2,788; 3.05 MB For Israel’s religion after that date, see Judaism. [76], In the 2009 elections, 1,193 residents of the Alawite village of Ghajar and 809 residents of the Druze villages were eligible to vote, out of approximately 1,200 Ghajar residents and 12,600 Druze village residents who were of voting age. Politically, Christians and Muslims both agree that Israel cannot be a Jewish state and a democracy at the same time. When the Arab Liberation Army (ALA) was created by the Arab League, Shakib Wahhab, a Syrian–Druze military commander resigned from the Syrian army and established a Druze battalion for the ALA, collecting Druze volunteers who joined mostly due to economic reasons from Syria and Lebanon. Much like the Abrahamic faiths, the Druze religion is monotheistic, and recognizes many prophets, including Jesus,[50][51] John the Baptist,[50][51] Mohammed, Khidr and Moses. [10] Israel has the third world's largest Druze population, just after Syria and Lebanon. Jews from eastern and western Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, Central... Arabs. A complex relationship between religion and politics is inherent in Israel’s character as a Jewish state. Israel, country in the Middle East, located at the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea. [32][33][34], During the 1947–48 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine, the Druze in Mandatory Palestine were under pressure from both the Jewish Yishuv leadership and from the Palestinian Arab Higher Committee, and found it difficult to form an opinion about the conflict between the Jews and the Palestinian Arabs. There were three major deities that were important to the Israelites and their surrounding nations, Yahweh, Ba'al, and Asherah. It is called Religion, Politics and Culture in Israel (RELI 343) and represents a great addition to our selection of courses. [28] Yet, the Jews and Druze lived isolated from each other, except in few mixed towns such as Deir al-Qamar and Peki'in. Religion has historically been more than just a faith for the Jew; it has been his way of life, involving many of his economic, social, and political attitudes and activities as well as his spiritual life. In this chapter, we will offer a broad survey of the topic and try to give a little bit of everything to offer a basic introduction to this topic. The basic laws and tenets of Judaism are derived from the Torah, the first five books of the Bible.. The al-Uqqal must follow ascetic rulings including following a dress code. [27] On the other hand, Benjamin of Tudela, a Jewish traveler from the 12th century, pointed out that the Druze maintained good commercial relations with the Jews nearby, and according to him this was because the Druze liked the Jewish people. The Jews in Palestine in the eighteenth century: under the patronage of the Istanbul Committee of Officials for Palestine (University of Alabama Press 1992), [56 years of Druze soldiers serving in the IDF] Rotem Pesso, 03/05/2012. For instance, there have been strained relationships within the Jewish community, and between the Jews and Christians. Israel is the only country in which the majority of citizens are Jewish. By Joyce Chepkemoi on June 14 2018 in Society. The religion was created in the 10th and 11th centuries in Egypt, with aspects of Hindu and Greek philosophy incorporated into the tenets of Islam. p. 59. Fairleigh Dickinson University Press. According to the biblical narrative, Jethro joined and assisted the Israelites in the desert during the Exodus, accepted monotheism, but ultimately rejoined his own people. [64], In January 2004, the current spiritual leader, Sheikh Muwaffak Tarīf, called on all non-Jews in Israel to observe the Seven Noahide Laws, as laid down in the Bible and expounded upon in Jewish tradition. Their most respected prophet in their religion is Jethro, Moses' father-in-law. The provisions of law relating to religion in Israel are not governed by any general scheme. Wikimedia Commons has media related to Category:Religion in Israel. Yair Sheleg investigates whether the separation of religion and state manifests itself differently in Israel than it does in other countries. Contrary to popular belief, proselytizing is not illegal in Israel, but it is very strongly discouraged, and also totally inappropriate. 17.8% of … The State of Israel recognizes the following religions: Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Druze and Baha'i. The religion of Israel is a uniquely historical religion, founded on mighty acts of God in saving and punishing men and on revelations of God to men in definite times and places. Present-day Israel is the only country where Judaism is the majority religion, professed by 80% of the population; over one-fourth of all the world's Jews live there. Israeli’s majority religion is Judaism. [7] Before the establishment of the State of Israel, the Druze were not recognized as a religious community, and were discriminated against by the judicial system. It is one of the fundamental principles upon which the State of Israel is based… The majority of the Palestine population is Muslim of the Sunni sect, and they account for 93% of the total population. [63], Amin Tarif was the qadi, or spiritual leader, of the Druze in Palestine and Israel from 1928 until his death in 1993. The area was a part of the Roman Empire and, later, the Byzantine Empire before falling under the control of the fledgling Islamic caliphate in the 7th century ce. The Ahmadiyya Islamic movement operates from Haifa, Israel, where the Middle Eastern headquarters are located. In the history of Israel, a religiously as well as ethnically deeply divided society, various individual and collective religious and national identities have developed. [63], The Druze in Israel live in a handful of sectarian villages and several mixed-religion Arab localities in pre-1967 Israel (Upper and Lower Galilee and Mount Carmel) and on the Golan Heights. [2] In 2019, there were 143,000 Druze living in Israel, 1.6% of the total population of the country. Israel is about 75% Jewish and 25% other religions, including Islam and Christianity.The State of Israel has a population of approximately 8,146,800 inhabitants as of 2014. The Politics of Compromise: State and Religion in Israel. Edit. Druze Religion The Druze community, more correctly known as the Muwahideen, number close to 120,000 in Israel. On May 15, 2015, it was announced that the Druze battalion Herev would be shut down, thereby allowing Druze soldiers to integrate into the rest of the IDF, a wish that was relayed to IDF senior staff by leaders in the Druze community as well as former Herev battalion commanders. On 30 June 2011, Haaretz reported that a growing number of Israeli Druze were joining elite units of the military, leaving the official Druze battalion, Herev, under-staffed. The commander of the ALA, Fawzi al-Qawuqji, planned to deploy the Druze battalion in the northern regions of Samaria under his command, but the military committee of the Arab League decided to establish a separate command for the Druze for the region near the city of Haifa, excluding Acre. Druze, small Middle Eastern religious sect characterized by an eclectic system of doctrines and by a cohesion and loyalty among its members (at times politically significant) that have enabled them to maintain for centuries their close-knit identity and distinctive faith. Learn more about Israel, including its history. Judaism, the first and oldest of the three great monotheistic faiths, is the religion and way of life of the Jewish people. He was highly esteemed and regarded by many within the community as the preeminent spiritual authority in the Druze world. After the July 2015 Draft, the IDF no longer listed the Druze unit as an option. Israel’s Declaration of Independence, promulgated at the termination of the British Mandate in 1948, is another legal source that guarantees freedom of religion and conscience, and equality of social and political rights irrespective of religion. The state grants religious law authority in matters of family law. The religion incorporates elements of Isma'ilism, Gnosticism, Neoplatonism, and other philosophies. He initially led a preventive approach with the Druze, aimed at making sure the Druze will not join the Arab Higher Committee. She co-edits the book series Religion and its Others: Studies in Religion, Nonreligion and Secularity and is former co-director of the Nonreligion and Secularity Research Network (2008-20). Najib Mansour, the head of Isfiya, met with agents of the Hagannah in Haifa to discuss the arrival of Wahhab. "[39], In 1973, Amal Nasser el-Din founded the Zionist Druze Circle,[40][41] a group whose aim was to encourage the Druze to support the state of Israel fully and unreservedly. While Judaism is the main religion, the Israeli legal system promises support to all religious groups. The population of Alawites is about 4,000. According to A-din, the fate of the Druze and the Circassians in Israel is intertwined with that of the state. In Israel, a rabbinical plan to hide Africans facing deportation: 01/18/2018 Is Trump widening a rift between the evangelicals and Mideast Christians? Accessing the site poses challenges to Palestinians because it i… [8] They live mainly in the north of the country. As for important rules that the Druze must follow, they are not allowed to drink alcohol, eat pork, or smoke tobacco, similarly to the dietary laws in Islam. [73] By 2017, nearly 5,500 out of 26,500 residents had applied for and received an Israeli passport since 1981. 18% of the people in Israel are Arab Muslims, 2% are Christians (mostly Arab Christians) and 1.6% are Druze (a small ethnoreligious group which has its own religion). The Druze call themselves Ahl al-Tawhid - "People of Unitarianism or Monotheism" - or al-Muwaḥḥidūn, "Unitarians, Monotheists". [43] In 2009, the movement held a Druze Zionist youth conference with 1,700 participants. [1] Even though the faith originally developed out of Ismaili Islam, Druze do not identify as Muslims. One God. The conflict in the Middle East is not a religious conflict. 1992 legislation defined the country as Jewish & democratic - but is this instance of Jewish being used as a religious, a racial, or ethnic/cultural term. The issue of religion and state is a central but complicated one in Israel for many reasons. [77] As Israel does not recognize the Syrian citizenship of Golan Druze, they are defined in Israeli records as "residents of the Golan Heights". According to Islam, it is believed that Mohammed was taken from the sacred mosque in Mecca to the mosque of Al-Aqsa in the night journey. [35], During the war, Druze volunteers arrived to Mandatory Palestine in order to help defend the Druze villages there. The course will offer an opportunity to study the religious communities operating in the country and their relationship with the Israeli state, as well as the place of religion in the international relations and global policies of Israel and its neighbors in the Middle East.” Posted in News & Events on December 10, 2019. searching for Religion in Israel 35 found (84 total) alternate case: religion in Israel. [18] The Druze have frequently experienced persecution by different Muslim regimes such as the Shia Fatimid Caliphate,[19] Sunni Ottoman Empire,[20] and Egypt Eyalet. Some tensions have recently arisen in the community due to differing stances on the Syrian Civil War, though open public support for the Syrian opposition has been relatively uncommon. Religion in Israel is a central feature of the country and plays a major role in shaping Israeli culture and lifestyle, and religion has played a central role in Israel's history. About The Religions of Ancient Israel. For a small country, Israel holds a place of great importance for three of the world’s major religious groups. The first part of this article deals with Israel’s religion in the different stages of the nation’s historical development. The yearly number of applications steadily rose, with 183 applying in 2016, compared to only five in 2000. [35], The contacts between the Druze and the Jewish leadership were made through Labib Hussein Abu Rokan from Isfya and Salah-Hassan Hanifes from Shefa-'Amr (both became members of the Knesset after Israel's establishment). “Every person in Israel enjoys freedom of conscience, of belief, of religion, and of worship. [48], Druze also serve in elite units of the IDF such as the Sayeret Matkal, and there are three Druze combat pilots serving in the Israeli Air Force. Most in the Jewish population describe themselves as secular or traditional Jews. [21][22] The persecution of the Druze included massacres, demolishing Druze prayer houses and holy places and forced conversion to Islam. Tension exists between the secular and religious communities. About 80% of the Druze people fall into this category of the Ignorant. Arabs constitute the largest single minority in Israel, and though most are Muslims of the Sunnite branch, Arab... Other groups. Christianity, Druze and other religions comprise 8.4% of the population. Unlike Orthodox Judaism, Reform and Conservative Judaism are more liberal. As of 2016, 74.7% of Israel’s population identified as Jewish, 17.7% as Muslim, 2% as Christians and 1.6% as Druze. Yes I largely follow Shabbat and Kashrut. [42] Today, thousands of Israeli Druze belong to Druze Zionist movements. [70] After the annexation of the Golan Heights in 1981, the Israeli government offered citizenship to all non-Israelis living in the territory,[69][71] but (as of 2011), less than 10% of the local Druze accepted it. 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