Solberg and Hendel
Solberg and HendelFlash 90

The two religious judges on the Supreme Court who ruled on the case relating to the opening of supermarkets in Tel Aviv on Shabbat, Neal Hendel and Noam Solberg, presented a minority opinion against that of the five judges who upheld Shabbat desecration.

In his opinion, Judge Hendel said that Shabbat is of significant import in the Jewish tradition, while the consideration of local authorities seeking to approve commerce on Shabbat is of a limited scope. “And I repeat, the Sabbath is the queen whose dominion the State of Israel wants to force the judges to determine.”

Later, Hendel referred to the significance of Shabbat in the Jewish tradition, noting its dualistic nature: On the one hand, it bears universal significance as a “reminder of the act of creation,” and on the other hand bears a conspicuously national character as a “reminder of the [Jewish] exodus from Egypt.”

In addition, he noted, Shabbat bears another dualistic aspect: its significance as a commandment which brings man closer to his Creator, alongside its significance as a “social experience which breaks down barriers and brings man closer to himself.”

Judge Solberg said that “In the current legal situation, local authorities do not have the authority to instruct the opening of businesses on Shabbat.” He added that Shabbat “is the concept around which everyone can unite, without giving up an iota of religious or secular ideology.”