After the Yom Kippur prayer controversy and clashes over gender separation, a new move by the Tel Aviv Municipality against dozens of synagogues in the city has come to light — this time with dramatic implications for their religious and Orthodox character.
According to a report in Yediot Aharonot, the municipality recently sent letters to nonprofit associations operating some 130 synagogues, requiring them to sign new contracts. The contracts stipulate that the synagogues must provide “religious services to all neighborhood residents, regardless of age, gender, or belief.” Synagogues that refuse to sign face eviction proceedings.
Most of these synagogues were established before the founding of the State, many on municipal lands allocated decades ago but never fully registered in the Land Registry. The municipality is now seeking to regulate their status under new agreements, but with conditions that worshippers say undermine Jewish tradition.
“This clause is outrageous,” said attorney David Shub, who is representing the synagogues on a voluntary basis. “Signing such a commitment means opening prayers to other religious streams or even other faiths, while at the same time prohibiting a women’s section or gender separation. This is secular coercion disguised as equality.”
During a recent hearing at the Tel Aviv Magistrate’s Court, a city representative argued: “If a synagogue in a secular neighborhood does not serve the residents, it can be used for other purposes.” Another municipal lawyer clarified that any synagogue failing to comply with the new conditions would be replaced by another operator.
Synagogue representatives warn that signing would expose them to lawsuits alleging gender discrimination or exclusion, and could even allow courts to dictate the text of prayers based on the character of the neighborhood.
One case already in court involves the “L’zecher Kedoshei Antopol” synagogue, which refused to sign and is now facing eviction. In another case, the Rabbinical Court declared the “Tiferet Zvi” synagogue a religious endowment to block its closure, but the municipality appealed to the High Court of Justice, and proceedings remain ongoing.
In response, the Tel Aviv Municipality stated: “The agreement is intended to ensure that there is no discrimination or exclusion in a synagogue operating on public land. This is not an unusual measure, but a standard contractual arrangement.”
Synagogue leaders, however, warn of far-reaching consequences: “If this demand passes, it will mean one thing — the systematic silencing of Jewish tradition in the name of equality. Synagogues will be forced to choose between faithfulness to halakha or basic survival.”