About this episode

Rabbi Seth Farber discusses the implications of the women's exam controversy on the authority and future of Israel's Chief Rabbinate.

Check out Orthodox Conundrum Commentary on Substack and get your free subscription by going to https://scottkahn.substack.com/ - and paid subscribers get this and other episodes of the Orthodox Conundrum Podcast ad-free and with early access and additional bonus content! Three women recently took Israel's rabbinate exams after an eight-year legal battle. What should have been a routine academic exercise instead became a national controversy, complete with delayed tests, last-minute changes, emergency court filings, and the subsequent cancellation of the next rabbanut exams for both men and women. But this episode is about far more than three women. Rabbi Seth Farber joins me to discuss what this story reveals about the current state of Israel's Chief Rabbinate. Why would an institution fight so hard against women taking exams that do not even lead to ordination? Why were future exams suddenly canceled? Who actually controls the rabbinate today? And what happens when religious institutions become increasingly bureaucratic, political, and disconnected from the communities they are meant to serve? Our conversation explores questions of authority, transparency, public trust, and…

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