Israeli Rabinnical court forces American Jew to divorce his wife

[charlie]

This is really weird. The guy wouldn't grant his wife the get she'd wanted for 6 years, so the next time he entered the country, they jailed his ass until he relented.

After three nights in jail and a ban preventing him from leaving the country, however, the wanton husband - who is not an Israeli citizen - finally succumbed to the demands of the Rabbinic Court Administration (RCA) and agreed to free his wife from their marriage. It was the first time that Israel's religious court system has ever flexed its muscles in a case involving Jews from abroad.

"This is the first time that the Rabbinic Court Administration has imposed such sanctions on a person who is not a citizen of Israel," said a spokeswoman for the RCA, adding that the husband had "never really believed that the religious courts had this power, because he is not a citizen of this country."

She explained that a change in legislation three years ago gave the RCA jurisdiction over cases involving Jews residing here who are not citizens.

According to the information published Wednesday by the RCA, the man had been traveling back and forth between Israel and the US for the past two years, and therefore, under Israeli law, had established Israel as the center of his life.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1243346492788&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

[Chulanowa]

1. Sooo... who am I rooting for here?

I mean someone who refuses a divorce is a prick, and I can't blame an Israeli legal body for jailing someone who's done an offense against an Israeli. But on the other hand, I can't say I'm especially keen on the idea of religious courts at all.

Yup. Weird story. At least the (ex) wife got what was due.

[charlie]

3. Lol

Yeah, the guy sounds like a special class of jerk alright. It's just surprising the religious court seems to want to make the state into a sort of Jewish Vatican, the final arbiter of all things Jewish. Sounds like a recipe for future schismatic headaches. Can't be good for tourism, either :)

[JerseygirlCT]

6. I'm with you

He sounds like a real jerk. But the situation leaves me uncomfortable all the same.

[Ozymanithrax]

2. Now, this is Jewish marriage law.

I have two friends whose husbands have refused to grant them a divorce. They do not support their wives of children. In both cases the husbands are either Israeli citizens or live there most of the time. I've already sent this article to them.

[JerseygirlCT]

7. Seems to me that the change ought to come in

Jewish marriage law - not in jailing people... What if all it took was one party in order to have the state grant a divorce? Sounds like these men are just being assholes because they can be.

[IndianaGreen]

4. The man was an asshole!

While I don't care about religious courts of any type, they acted in good faith and did the right thing in this particular case.

[azurnoir]

5. it is that was religous proceeding

I think in most Western countries this would be a civil proceeding and due to "no fault divorce" the prick husband would not have been required to "grant a divorce" it would have been over and done with years ago.

[Meshuga]

9. But the problem is religious

Because even if a civil court recognizes the divorce the woman's orthodox community would not recognize the divorce without a Jewish get. In her world, she would still be married to the prick and not allowed to move on even if the civil divorce is granted.

[moobu2]

8. The Rabbinic Court could force you to stay married just as easily.

[DeSwiss]

10. What's really bullshit in all this....

...is the fact that even in the 21st century a man still has more rights than a woman in Israel, since only "he" can grant the divorce to his wife.

- On the other hand, all religion is bullshit, so I'm not really all that surprised.....

"It is mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it." - Aristotle