Rabbi Chaim Druckman, head of the Yeshivot Bnei Akiva movement and a former MK of the NRP, explained to Arutz-7 this morning the pluses of the NRP-Shinui agreement:
"We must certainly be tremendously cautious regarding any possibility of civil marriages, which is of course very dangerous. The bottom line is, however, that the only thing that was agreed was that there would be a committee that would look into it...
"We must also realize that whether we like it or not, among our new immigrants are many thousands of non-Jews who are recognized as Jews as far as the Law of Return, but who may not marry as Jews. Neither are they Christians or Moslems. There is therefore an objective problem here, and the intention is to find a solution for them, and not in any way to legitimize civil marriages. The situation today is that those who can't or don't want to marry according to Jewish Law already have the option of going to Cyprus or finding a lawyer who can arrange it for them; but of course we don't want the State of Israel to grant legitimacy to this phenomenon. I hope that the committee will find a solution for these immigrants, who are the bulk of the problem, while at the same time not harm that which is sacred in Judaism."
Rabbi Druckman said that the fact that Shinui is in the government has its positive sides, as "this will show that Shinui won't be able to get all that it wants, and it will therefore lose support in the next election. Shinui had a lot of demands, but essentially signed an agreement that, except for the establishment of a couple of committees, basically continues the status quo."
"We must certainly be tremendously cautious regarding any possibility of civil marriages, which is of course very dangerous. The bottom line is, however, that the only thing that was agreed was that there would be a committee that would look into it...
"We must also realize that whether we like it or not, among our new immigrants are many thousands of non-Jews who are recognized as Jews as far as the Law of Return, but who may not marry as Jews. Neither are they Christians or Moslems. There is therefore an objective problem here, and the intention is to find a solution for them, and not in any way to legitimize civil marriages. The situation today is that those who can't or don't want to marry according to Jewish Law already have the option of going to Cyprus or finding a lawyer who can arrange it for them; but of course we don't want the State of Israel to grant legitimacy to this phenomenon. I hope that the committee will find a solution for these immigrants, who are the bulk of the problem, while at the same time not harm that which is sacred in Judaism."
Rabbi Druckman said that the fact that Shinui is in the government has its positive sides, as "this will show that Shinui won't be able to get all that it wants, and it will therefore lose support in the next election. Shinui had a lot of demands, but essentially signed an agreement that, except for the establishment of a couple of committees, basically continues the status quo."