The Knesset's summer session, which began on Monday and will last for the next three months, will deal with the usual diplomatic and defense issues, as well as the need to pass an austerity budget. One should expect to hear these matters debated on the Knesset floor and in committee meetings. A distinctive feature of this Knesset session will be the relationship between the government and the ultra-Orthodox public. A symbolic indicator of this relationship was already seen on Monday in the sharp verbal confrontation between Finance Minister Yair Lapid (Yesh Atid) and United Torah Judaism MK Moshe Gafni. In the eyes of the haredim, Lapid is the bad guy who teamed up with Economy and Trade Minister Naftali Bennett (Habayit Hayehudi) to cut them off from the state coffers. The battles during this Knesset session will be diverse, crossing realms and dividing political parties in various ways. An equitable enlistment be will likely be at the top of the agenda. Yesh Atid and Habayit Hayehudi have committed to passing an equitable enlistment bill during the current session. Likud-Beytenu made such a commitment to its coalition partners, but not to the public. Would Likud-Beytenu thwart the passage of an equitable enlistment bill? Would it even have the ability to do so if it tried? The answers to these questions will define the nature of the relationship between the coalition partners over this government's term. The picture changes when it comes to the issue of choosing the next chief Ashkenazi rabbi of Israel. On this matter, Habayit Hayehudi doesn't see eye to eye with Yesh Atid. In order to block enlightened Orthodox Rabbi David Stav (who received the backing of Yesh Atid) from getting the job, the Chief Rabbinate of Israel Law would have to be changed to permit candidates aged 70 or older to run, clearing the path for 76-year-old Rabbi Yaakov Ariel (Habayit Hayehudi's preferred choice). The candidacy of Ariel, who was quoted by Channel 2's Amit Segal this week as making discriminatory statements against women, depends on Lapid, Avigdor Lieberman and Tzipi Livni, as well as Shelly Yachimovich. I don't think there is any substance to the claims that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wants to change the composition of his coalition, replacing Lapid with the haredim. In any case, it is inconceivable that he would act to do this. This means there is a chance that the Chief Rabbinate will return to the hands of religious Zionists with a modern outlook. It also means there is a chance to reduce haredi draft evasion. The first is a once-in-a-decade opportunity and the second is a once-in-several-generations opportunity. The issue of instituting core studies (mathematics, English, the poetry of Nahman Bialik, etc.) into the curriculum at all of Israel's schools, something the haredim resist, won't get done this Knesset session, which is a shame. The planning process for that is long and will continue over the next two years. But the Knesset can get things done over the next three months that will have long-term value beyond the horizon of the next election.
