Secular

In the shadow of October 7: How Yom Kippur has changed for some secular Israelis

The October 7 attack has affected all Israelis somehow. Some have questioned God’s existence. Others have gotten closer to religion, and sought connection to spirituality.

|ByLINDA GRADSTEIN
The empty streets in Tel Aviv, on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, and the holiest of Jewish holidays. Israel came to a standstill for 25-hours during the high holiday of Yom Kippur when observant Jews fast and Israelis are prohibited from driving, October 2, 2025.
A Jewish man blows a shofar at the Western Wall in Jerusalem’s Old City during the final Selichot prayers ahead of Yom Kippur, September 19, 2026.

Most Israeli Jews fast on Yom Kippur, while over half take part in prayer services, survey finds

Only a small number of those reported to be fasting partially or not at all are older people, according to the survey data, suggesting that the reasons are more linked to health or principle.

|ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF
Haredi protestors stand under a bridge, blocking a road near Bnei Brak on Wednesday, 17 June.

Bnei Brak Municipality allegedly blocked road with dumpsters before Shabbat in protest - report

Tensions rise between secular and haredi residents in Bnei Brak as police say, "Secular people also intentionally provoke haredim, drive recklessly, and do burnouts."

|ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF
THE ZIONIST identity didn’t overcome the Jewish identity, nor did the opposite occur: An IDF soldier puts on tefillin.

National-religious men overrepresented in IDF reserves as haredim stay absent, IDI analysis finds

National-Religious men were found to have increased in service substantially from the start of the war until 2025, while the participation of secular men decreased the most of any group.

|ByJONAH DAVIDOV

Haredi, secular Israelis clash in northern Israel indoor playground

Police were called after reports that "dozens" of haredi men had broken into an indoor playground in the northern Israel city of Harish.

MAY 21, 2023ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF
HAREDI PROTESTORS scuffle with police as the Women of the Wall movement holds Rosh Hodesh prayers at the Western Wall, in March.

The most important difference between secular and religious Zionism - opinion

God’s providence has provided the blessing to the Zionists that built this land - remembering this will ensure our people’s continued success.

MAY 14, 2023ByURI PILICHOWSKI
A MAN PRAYS in a cotton field at sunrise, at Kibbutz Hulda. Religious Zionists believe that while they must do their part, their actions will be successful only if they have God’s help.

Bus line in Ashdod doesn't allow women, drivers say it's line for 'only men'

Bus drivers on the Ashdod 80 line have barred women from riding the bus multiple times.

MAY 6, 2023ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF
Illustrative image of an Electra-Afikim bus.

Is Israel's secular nationalism how God preserves Judaism? - opinion

There are millions of Jews whose sole affiliation with Judaism is their love and commitment to the State of Israel. Their nationalistic loyalty is merely the hidden hand of God.

MAY 5, 2023ByMOSHE TARAGIN
FLOWERS, SIRENS and songs are all cross-cultural, international symbols.

Can we find a compromise between religious and secular Jews? - opinion

Statistics do not lie. The reality is that the haredi sector is expanding, and will likely eventually become the majority in Israel.

MAY 3, 2023ByMENACHEM BOMBACH
THE WRITER addresses the demonstration last Wednesday, outside the President’s Residence in Jerusalem, calling for a broad consensus.

A call for compromise between religious and secular

Rabbi Menachem Bombach speaks at a demonstration calling for a broad consensus between the different groups within Israeli society that are currently in conflict.

MAY 1, 2023ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF
Rabbi Menachem Bombach

Have religious Israeli Jews given up on Israel's secular society? - opinion

At the heart of the crisis plaguing Israel lies the age-old divide between religious and secular Israel.

APRIL 28, 2023ByMOSHE TARAGIN
DO WE still share a common narrative?

Tel Aviv residents protest plans for new yeshiva in city center

A small community synagogue in central Tel Aviv is planned to turn into a 250-student yeshiva, and the local resident are not happy about it.

APRIL 1, 2023ByWALLA!
A YESHIVA in Bnei Brak: The Greeks, during the Hellenistic period, decreed to uproot the law of the Torah from the life of the Jewish people.

Crohn's disease: An unexpected bridge between Israelis - opinion

When we see ourselves on the same side, with a common challenge, that common challenge builds ties that matter and last.

MARCH 25, 2023ByBARBARA SOFER
‘No one is exempt from this disease, in which the body turns on its own digestive system’

Zionists didn’t wait for the Messiah - opinion

To those who believed in waiting for the Messiah, they said we can return to Israel without a Messiah.

MARCH 5, 2023ByURI PILICHOWSKI
GOD’S PROVIDENCE is perceived in Israel’s success. Former prime minister David Ben-Gurion said, ‘In Israel, in order to be a realist, you must believe in miracles… Life is more than blind forces.’