Israel and the Israeli Supreme Court: a Comparison of Sermons by R. Ovadia Yosef and His Offspring

This article, published in The Journal of Jewish Thought and Philosophy, examines sermons delivered by Rabbi Ovadia Yosef and his children – his sons, who hold rabbinic and political positions, and his daughter Adina Bar-Shalom. While Rabbi Yosef took an ambivalent yet pragmatic approach to Zionism and the secular state, the article argues that, despite rhetorical similarities, his sons express diasporic or nationalist views foreign to their father’s mamlakhti (statist) vision. These shifts are influenced by ideological borrowings from both Ashkenazi Haredism and Religious Zionism. Addresses by family members are compared to demonstrate generational splits and to situate the judicial reform debate within larger historical and theological frameworks.

Schramm - 2026 - Israel and the Israeli Supreme Court a Comparison of Sermons by R. Ovadia

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