An interesting survey conducted just before Pesach reveals that 77 per cent of Jewish Israelis believe in God, including a majority (71 per cent) of those Israelis who describe themselves as secular. This statistic, according to the Yediot Ahronot newspaper which commissioned the poll, makes Israel the most God-fearing country in the West, even more so than the United States, where "only" 70 per cent of the population say they believe in God. In terms of religious practice, most Jewish Israelis (70 per cent) do not eat chametz on Pesach and 65 per cent keep kosher at home. According to the survey of 1,000 people, around a third describe themselves as traditional, although the majority of this group will drive on Shabbat or watch television. And among those who describe themselves as traditional, almost half (41 per cent) agree a person is Jewish even if they simply define themselves as Jewish "and commit themselves to the Jewish people". At the same time, 39 per cent of secular Israelis want their children to marry in an Orthodox ceremony. Sever Plocker argues, and he is probably right, that some will view this as the failure of Zionism, which sought to create a new type of Jew detached from his past and ghetto-like characteristics. This type of interpretation is erroneous: The more the nationalist elements of Judaism are strengthened the more Zionism will thrive, because it serves as the Jews' national freedom movement.
This post was written by Jeff Barak
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