Secular

Planning first Guinness record-breaking Shabbat dinner, and not bitter about being beaten - opinion

But the real difference wasn’t the finances, at least from what I can see from afar. It was in the overarching vibe.

|ByDEBORAH DANAN/JTA
Deborah Danan speaks about the White City Shabbat Guinness Record-breaking dinner before it began in Tel Aviv, June 13, 2014.
Dr. Tomer Persico

Tomer Persico: The evolution of individualism and collective identity in Judaism

Dr. Tomer Persico explores how the biblical idea of humans created in God’s image shaped Western values like individualism and equality.

|ByJERUSALEM POST PODCASTS
Preparing for the Jewish holiday of Sukkot, in the northern Israeli city of Safed, October 5, 2025

Days of Awe: Israel’s turn toward tradition - opinion

Increasingly, Israelis are forgoing the religious-secular binary. Instead, many are locating themselves along a continuum.

|BySHUKI FRIEDMAN
The Bukharan Market remains a vibrant and bustling place for locals to shop.

The Bukharan Quarter: A long way from the Silk Road

Neighborhood Corner: How a community of Central Asian Jews created one of Jerusalem’s most distinctive neighborhoods.

|ByALEX WINSTON

JPPI poll: October 7 brought secular Jews closer to Diaspora Jewry

Some 17% and 21% of secular and secular-traditional Jews in Israel, respectively, said that they were brought closer to diaspora Jews by "the events of October 7 and the war."

AUGUST 18, 2024ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF
RELIGIOUS AND secular Jews gather on Tisha B’Av outside Independence Hall in Tel Aviv to hear the annual reading of Eicha, the Book of Lamentations, last year.

Despite disconnection from rabbinic authorities, Israelis still seek out spirituality - opinion

As we hope for better days, leaders concerned with preserving Israel’s strong Jewish identity need to find a way for religious life to flourish without coercion.

JUNE 22, 2024ByRABBI KENNETH BRANDER
A soldier's prayer book and army-issued tzitzit are seen at a staging area near the border with Gaza, Nov. 15, 2023.

Youth united: Religious and secular teens march together calling for an end to polarization, hatred

Many of the 20 thousand teens have lost family and friends in the war and experienced its horrors firsthand.

JUNE 20, 2024ByJERUSALEM POST STAFF
Israeli teens march calling for unity during a time of deep division in Israel, June 19, 2024.

'Spinoza: Freedom’s Messiah': Paving the way for secular Jewish identity - review

Beyond his contributions to philosophy, Spinoza helped pioneer secular scholarship of the Bible by stressing its human authorship.

JUNE 11, 2024ByTIBOR KRAUSZ
PROBABLE PORTRAIT of Spinoza by Barend Graat, 1666

Is Israel a Jewish ghetto or Hebrew kingdom in our ancestral homeland? - opinion

Israelis and Jews have yet to decide due to the harsh public debate in the country for the past couple of years.

APRIL 11, 2024ByITAMAR BEN-DAVID
An illustration of lit candles and in the background the Israeli flag on December 17, 2023

Wartime Purim unity bridges secular-religious divides

Kesher Yehudi hosts unlikely encounter between haredi and secular Israeli families amid hostage crisis.

MARCH 29, 2024ByTANIA SHALOM MICHAELIAN
SECULAR AND haredi mark and even celebrate an introspective Purim, this past Sunday.

Is secularism too seductive? Haredi youth should be allowed to serve in the IDF - opinion

The free market in ideas demands that the haredim accept the consequences of allowing their youth to encounter the full range of possibilities of the human experience.

MARCH 13, 2024ByDAN PERRY
HAREDI MEN protest outside the IDF recruiting office in Jerusalem.

Secular unease at municipal elections results in Jerusalem, fear of change in city governance

A Tale of Two Jerusalems: Secular Unease Rising as ultra-Orthodox parties win over half the seats in Jerusalem’s City Council, indicating a potential change in the city’s governance.

MARCH 5, 2024BySIMCHA PASKO/THE MEDIA LINE
A group of ultra-Orthodox Jews blocked traffic and the light rail in Jerusalem demonstrating against a Haredi draft into the IDF. February 26, 2024.

Tolerance and respect is key amid wartime municipal elections - opinion

As Israel holds local elections today, which by definition emphasize disagreements and generate division and contrariness, here are two examples that show a different way.

FEBRUARY 27, 2024ByTOVA HERZL
AN INSCRIPTION with an excerpt of Lord Allenby’s address at the dedication of the YMCA in Jerusalem in 1933 is on display at the entrance to the complex.

A look at competitive victimhood in Israeli society

RELIGIOUS AFFAIRS: As Israel continues to navigate the complexities of its societal fabric, this study offers a crucial insight into the mechanisms of conflict and perception among its people.

FEBRUARY 9, 2024ByNECHUMI YAFFE
WHEN QUESTIONED about discrimination in state budget allocations, ultra-Orthodox respondents overwhelmingly felt they were treated unfairly, while secular respondents tended to deny such discrimination.