EMUNAH and Women’s Rights 

On the last day before the Knesset elections in February 2009, the Knesset passed an amendment to the division of joint marital property law that is being hailed as a significant step forward in helping mesuravot get (women whose husbands refuse to give them a rabbinical bill of divorce). The law, spearheaded by EMUNAH and a coalition of Israeli women’s groups, changes the existing 1974 law so that division of joint marital property can be carried out in the civil courts after a specified period of separation, even if there is no divorce.

“In 90% of all cases of refusal to give a get, the husband uses his power for economic benefit,” states Dina Hahn, Chair of World EMUNAH, who until November 2008 was Deputy Chair of EMUNAH-Israel and EMUNAH’s representative on ICAR (International Coalition for Aguna Rights) in Israel. “The 1974 law said that joint property was to be divided 50/50 at the time of the end of the marriage unless otherwise agreed upon in a signed agreement. There were many problems with this because there are only two ways a marriage ends – either in death or divorce. If the husband refuses to give a get, then the property remains undivided, and in most cases, this means in the hands of the husband. Now, even if he cannot be forced to give a get, he can be forced to divide the property and this may lessen his interest in prolonging the process of giving a get.”

“This change in the joint marital property law is revolutionary,” claims Zira Horesh, one of the lawyers who wrote the draft for changing the law and an EMUNAH volunteer who helped set up EMUNAH’s legal advice office within the Family Counseling Centers. “Now, if a spouse files with the civil courts asking to activate the law, division of property can be discussed by the civil courts one year from the day of filing this request or one year after filing with the Rabbinical Courts for divorce. It is also applies if the couple has been living apart for nine months out of the last year. We deliberately took care to cover women who may not want to file a formal claim to activate the law for all kinds of reasons. And the court can decrease the period of time for special reasons such as domestic violence.”

This is just one example of how EMUNAH and its members are working to help women with their rights within the framework of Halacha.

“As the largest Religious Zionist women’s organization in Israel, EMUNAH is working on three levels to help women, and their families, attain their rights within Halacha,” explains Liora Minka, Chair of EMUNAH-Israel, “One is through education, two is by strengthening women and providing legal advice and aid to cope with individual problems, and three is by working on the political level to address issues of importance to women and families.”

“As a religious movement, we have a very important role to play in dealing with Halachic issues,” Minka notes. “We have access to rabbis and they listen to us differently than the secular women from Naamat or the Israel’s Women’s Network. We are Torah-educated women and they cannot just brush us off saying we don’t understand Halacha. Also, we are coming from a position that supports the Rabbinical Courts having authority over marriage, divorce and family matters. The truth is that the main victims of refusing to give a get are religious and lower class women. Those with means can pay and the very secular often find a new partner without getting married. They are not bothered by mamzerut (children born to a married woman whose father is not the husband). The secular population has already separated itself from the Jewish religion. Our position is that we need to keep marriage and divorce in the framework of ‘da’at Moshe v’Israel’. We want to prevent frustration reaching the point where people will throw the baby out with the bathwater.”

Hahn echoes this. “ICAR is a coalition of 24 women’s groups, some of whom are very left and anti-religious and would love to get rid of the Rabbinical Courts’ jurisdiction over marriage and divorce,” she notes. “We mellow their resolutions. Because of EMUNAH, ICAR now understands that the way to achieve things is to be in dialogue with the Rabbinical Courts and not constantly fighting with them. Having EMUNAH as part of the ICAR coalition has given it legitimacy when it comes to speaking to the rabbis. We are not just one member among 24 but much more than that. When we say we do not like an idea, we are taken very seriously and our opinions are respected.”

On the educational level, EMUNAH holds conferences and study days to raise awareness of issues and problems. EMUNAH College recently held a poster contest on mesuravot get and one of the winning posters now hangs in the Knesset Committee for the Advancement of the Status of Women. In Jerusalem’s French Hill neighborhood, Midreshet EMUNAH, a college that trains women instructors to lead groups dealing with various aspects of Jewish family life, there is a new special two-year course to train rabbis to lead groups for families and couples. “Rabbis in Israel today are being called upon more and more for advice in all areas,” states Rina Wasserman, Deputy Chair of EMUNAH-Israel and Director of EMUNAH’s Family Department. “They are often asked very personal questions. We are giving them the tools to hear these questions not just from a Halachic viewpoint but also from a psychological perspective. A person may ask one question but is really seeking an answer to another. There is a subtext and the rabbis have to be able to listen and hear the subconscious hidden flow. We have graduated two classes of rabbis and when they finish, they speak another language. They were given the tools to hear and understand those coming to them for advice.” Midreshet EMUNAH also trains madrichot kallot (bridal instructors) who work with young women to prepare them for a Jewish marriage.

On the individual level, EMUNAH has 13 Family Counseling Centers throughout Israel providing family counseling and therapy as well as legal advice and aid to women and families. “A large number of our clients are referred by rabbis and many times rabbis are the best way to send a message to husbands,” relates Wasserman. “Sometimes there are Halachic questions that come up during the counseling. Our therapists do not give Halachic advice. We only treat psychological aspects. Because we are a religious organization, we can call upon rabbis and they can play an important role in the process.”

“Our centers believe in family unity,” Wasserman goes on. “The aim of our counseling is family unity and only in extreme cases do we bring a woman to divorce and then we accompany her throughout the process. We have many non-religious couples who come to our centers because of our Jewish concept of the family. We are not focused on self-realization but rather on commitment to the family and children. Our goal is to find yourself within the family. I always say that the Holy One is in the treatment room in the language, outlook and approach. We see treatment of the family as part of Tikkun Olam. This is very different for our non-religious colleagues.”

EMUNAH also helps individual women. Dina Hahn helped free a woman who was refused a get for 10 years when she enlisted the assistance of an aide to Israeli President Shimon Peres in settling the husband’s National Insurance Institute debt, thereby paving the way for him to grant the get. EMUNAH’s Women for Women business group allocated money for another mesurevet get to hire a private detective in order to present proof to the Rabbinical Courts that her husband was now living with another woman. And EMUNAH led a demonstration outside the home of a leading rabbi whose son fled Israel without giving his wife a get, thereby leading to the son giving his wife a get.

On the political level, in addition to the amendment to the joint marital property law, EMUNAH brought an appeal to the High Court of Justice about a year ago resulting in a ruling against the appointment of a slate of Rabbinical Courts judges (dayanim). EMUNAH asked to change the slate to include dayanim who are not haredim and, more importantly, do not have negative attitudes towards women. Unfortunately, the new list submitted and approved was not any better. But EMUNAH is still working in the Knesset to influence the appointment of MKs to the Committee to Appoint Dayanim who will be more concerned with women’s interests.

When the idea was recently raised to split the Ministry of Education into two parts – haredi education and the rest, EMUNAH successfully lobbied against this. “We are for State education and the need to have general studies as well as religious,” explains Minka. “It is important to keep State religious education strong.”

“Our job as EMUNAH is to bring women a long-term vision of the future of the Jewish people. Our role is tremendous and we have to lead the way,” concludes Minka.

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