Rabbis Haim Horvitz, 39, Aryeh Levin, 40, and Ben-Tzion Tzioni, 46, all of whom are completely ultra-Orthodox, live the Tel Aviv life on a day-to-day basis. However, when we asked to meet with them ahead of the Jewish New Year, they nixed the idea of meeting at a caf in the bustling center of the city and preferred instead somewhere quieter, perhaps at one of their homes or at a synagogue. Asked if they, like some of their counterparts in the ultra-Orthodox neighborhood of Bnei Brak or in Jerusalem, had concerns about being spotted at popular Tel Aviv hangouts, Levin responded: "The complete opposite is the case. When they see a rabbi sitting at a coffee shop, they know for sure that the place is kosher. This is how more and more kosher restaurants open, and I'm here to support them." This is a snippet of the experience of a rabbi in Tel Aviv, the city that serves as a symbol of secularism in the State of Israel -- and these three rabbis have their work cut out for them. After all, they are at the epicenter of the tough public battle over the issue of religion and state: demands for public transportation on Shabbat, legal debates over keeping supermarkets open on Shabbat, the recent cancellation of an event designed exclusively for men, the controversial customary atonement ritual of kapparot and more. Finally, we settle on a quiet place for the interview that suits everyone: the newspaper's offices. The three rabbis showed up. Horvitz, married and a father of four, works in the Tel Aviv neighborhoods of Tzahala and Yisgav. He attracts well-known political figures to the synagogues in these areas (Zionist Union Chairman Isaac Herzog, Zionist Union Co-Chairwoman Tzipi Livni and former Education Minister Limor Livnat), along with figures from the world of entertainment (actor Zvika Hadar) and sports (Hapoel Beersheba Football Club owner Alona Barkat). He even has a television show on Channel 2 and a program on Radio Kol Hai. Levin, a married father of 10, also works in the city's northern neighborhoods, where he meets well-known figures, some of them entertainers (actress Gila Almagor, musician Berry Sakharof and comedian Dov Navon) and some of them athletes and sports team managers (Uri Malmilian). Tzioni, married and a father of six, is the head of Beit Midrash Emek Mishpat-Shirat Dvorah, which trains rabbis and rabbinical judges. He spends his time along the central Ben-Gurion and Ben Yehuda streets, where he works to bring Jews closer to Judaism. This is their purpose -- and though they are not disconnected from the world around them, all three believe that there is a major gap between the media headlines and stormy public debate and what actually takes place in day-to-day life. "There is no religious war," Tzioni says. "I meet a lot of secular people, and I feel that this city can provide total harmony. I see mutual warmth in meetings between religious and secular people." Levin adds that "there is a sentence I hear a lot: 'If all religious people were like you, things would be fine.' But I say that many religious people are like me, only the secular Tel Avivian simply hasn't met them directly, just on television. I feel that there is actually a lot of consideration among the sides. In the building where I live, in Tel Aviv, there are no other religious people, but they still do not play loud music on Shabbat and they turn off the intercom to prevent the desecration of Shabbat. I do not feel this religious war that they speak of. "People live with a sense of conflict. Once, I was standing with actor Dov Navon and someone came up to us and asked which movie we were filming. He couldn't comprehend a situation wherein Dov Navon would talk to a haredi man outside of some kind of show. A Jew is a Jew. He can come to synagogue on Shabbat from the beach or the gym. It doesn't matter where he comes from, we will accept him with open arms." Horvitz agrees, saying, "Not only is there no war -- there is love! I meet people who love, who respect. People are sensitive on both sides. At the synagogue, we hold three prayer sessions each day and Torah study lessons for adults and youth -- a sizeable number of the participants are not religious. When you make it your motto that Judaism is not just for the religious, but that it belongs to all Jews, more people feel that they belong. It is comfortable for them to put on phylacteries or to show up for Shabbat. Once, a person who did not observe the Torah or the mitzvot, who did not observe Shabbat, came to a lesson about watching one's words, and it really affected him. From then on, he has refrained from speaking ill of others. Tell me, is that not a Jew-!" Relative liberalism With all due respect for the idyllic picture presented by the three rabbis, the time has come to dive into the burning public issues, the toughest one being Shabbat. Can you understand the secular public that is angry about not having public transportation or open supermarkets on Shabbat- Levin: "Factually speaking, that is not really correct. There are a few bus routes that do operate on Shabbat and there are also restaurants that remain open. But it doesn't matter, and I'll give you an example. A few high school students making a film interviewed me. They asked why we, the religious, oppose these things on Shabbat. I told them to forget about the religious issue. There is one day each week that families sit together -- don't call it Shabbat, call it family day. And here you have someone who cannot be with his family because he has to work at the supermarket, otherwise he will miss out on the money or would not even be hired at all -- and this is because someone else wants to buy things on Shabbat. Forget about religion, where is the consideration and reciprocity-" Tzioni: "This is not a significant issue. After all, you can shop until 5:00 p.m. on Friday and beginning at 5:00 p.m. the next day. We have managed this way for decades, so what happened now that we suddenly need to buy specifically on Shabbat-!" Horvitz: "I had people over who had stayed at a hotel in the north [of the country] where you could not speak on the phone or light cigarettes. This all had to do with a desire to disconnect and cleanse. No one there screamed, 'They are coercing us.' People understand that it is for their benefit, and Shabbat can be seen that way as well. It is not against secular life, rather in favor of family and quiet." And yet, the secular public still feels like it is against them. Levin: "If we want to find a solution instead of constantly fight, it can be found. For example, there are open supermarkets in Jaffa. If someone urgently needs to shop on Shabbat, they can go to Jaffa." Horvitz: "We live in a country where the way to live together is to respect one another. The secular public knows how to respect Yom Kippur and knows that Independence Day is a day off. Everyone understands the importance of [Memorial Day], the sensitivity for the families of the fallen, the disasters and the wars. At the same time, there must be sensitivity and respect for the Jewish Shabbat -- it is what distinguishes us from all other nations. Shabbat is an important value in the Jewish tradition, and we must respect it even if it is difficult." Tzioni: "Israel is a Jewish and democratic state. Shabbat is a symbol of the Jewish aspect. No one wants to force a person to do something in his own home. Everyone can do what they want in their homes on Shabbat: use electricity, use gas, prepare food. But in the public sphere, the symbol of the Jewish people must be preserved." What will happen if a law is passed allowing supermarkets in the city to open on Shabbat- Horvitz: "It will hurt, but we will live with it. We are not legislators; we try to do everything peacefully." Will rabbis not instruct the religious public to take to the streets in protest- Horvitz: "If the Torah sages require us to go out, we will go out and protest. We are subject to the rabbis and 'to all that they instruct us.' But that is not our approach. None of us is in favor of protests or wars like that. We are in favor of explaining, of embracing." At this point, almost without noticing, the three rabbis are pulled discussing a particularly hot-button issue: the LGBT community. Levin explains, "There is no war in the city," adding that "sometimes the streets are closed for dancing on Simchat Torah and sometimes they are closed for the Gay Pride Parade." In contrast with other cities, the Pride events in Tel Aviv have become a sort of holiday period, as the city is draped in rainbow flags for several days. The rabbis' relatively liberal stance is surprising. "We had a circumcision ceremony for the son of a same-sex couple," Tzioni says. "Why should we not agree to that-! Is the child not Jewish-! Should he not be circumcised-! The entire beit midrash was at the event." Levin brings up a similar situation: "We had a circumcision ceremony for the son of a lesbian couple. The synagogue was full of people and the grandfather recited the blessings. We educate [our community] to be like a lighthouse and to accept everyone -- not to reject anyone." Alongside their declarations of openness, the rabbis are still subject to the directives of the Chief Rabbinate and to Jewish law. "Obviously, I cannot marry a same-sex couple," says Horvitz. "I am subordinate to the Chief Rabbinate and do not act against Jewish law. I don't have a problem with any Jew; they are all wanted. A homosexual once approached me and told me he was embarrassed to go to synagogue because he was sure that God was mad at him. I told him: 'You have no idea how much God is waiting for your prayer.' I explained to him that he was wanted." Tzioni seeks to clarify: "There are things that are simply prohibited by Jewish law. We can be welcoming and explain, but we definitely cannot go against the Torah." According to Levin, he doesn't have any bad feelings about the Gay Pride Parade. "If it causes traffic, that's the only thing we feel. Everything else doesn't matter. There are flags, so what? I am not looking for a fight. I am looking for positivity, love of mankind." Torah study alongside sporting events This conversation with the rabbis took place, by chance, a day after another sensitive issue made the headlines. A concert scheduled to take place in Tel Aviv's Rabin Square ahead of Yom Kippur, featuring only male singers and intended for an audience of men exclusively, was canceled over complaints about the exclusion of women. "The only exclusion of women that I am familiar with is about splendor and respect," Horvitz said, playing on the Hebrew word "hadarah" for exclusion and a word from the same root letters, "hadar" for splendor. "For us, a woman is everything. In the Torah, she is the symbol of importance. In every Jewish home a song ["Eshet Chayil"] is sung each Friday night in honor of women. On this issue too, I propose a different outlook to those who ask. They asked me why a woman may not shake hands [with a man]? I explained that a woman is so holy and honorable that she saves her intimacy only for her husband." Levin is slightly more bothered by the controversy over the concert. "I do not understand the complaint at all," he says. "Recently there was an instance of the mass exclusion of women. Twenty-two [soccer] players, men only, played in the Tel Aviv derby [soccer match], and that was even funded by the municipality. How did they allow that to go forward quietly? Why didn't anyone shout about the exclusion of women-" Horvitz takes issue with the comparison, saying, "It's not right to take it to that place. This is a different issue. There was no exclusion at all. It's not like there was a woman who was supposed to perform and they told her, 'No, thank you.' These were the singers that the organizers liked and felt like inviting. You could say that this was not 'the exclusion of women,' but the exclusion of Ethiopians. Russians and Arabs -- why was no one outraged that they were not invited. One can like a particular singer and invite him [to perform] without it being the exclusion of women." The rabbis move on to a topic on which they all agree -- no to religious coercion. "We do not force anyone," Horvitz says. Tzioni adds, "If someone asks me what to do, I tell him that 'Jewish law says such and such,' just so he will know and so he can do so if he wishes." According to Horvitz, every neighborhood rabbi has the important role of setting a certain atmosphere: "You can create an environment of arguments and fights, but you can also create a completely different atmosphere. An atmosphere that brings people together, is pleasant and connects you to Judaism and to tradition." How do you think Tel Aviv will look 20 years from now- Levin: "When I came to the city 16 years ago, many synagogues were closed and abandoned. Now they have filled up." Horvitz: "It will be a city that never sleeps, with nonstop Torah study lessons alongside nonstop sporting events. Nonstop acts of kindness and social events." Tzioni: "There will be many Jews who are close to Judaism, not just religious people or haredim, but those who simply observe the tradition -- and, God willing, we may even have the light rail by then."
