Legal scholar Dr. Shai Stern argues that to bring the Haredim into Israeli society, we need to do something at odds with the liberal mindset: namely, truly understand them.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1825,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1824","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-inclusivity","has-post-title","has-post-date","has-post-category","has-post-tag","has-post-comment","has-post-author",""],"builder_content":"
The Faculty of Law<\/h5>\n
Understanding Haredim<\/h1>\n
Legal scholar Dr. Shai Stern argues that to bring the Haredim into Israeli society, we need to do something at odds with the liberal mindset: Namely, truly understand them.<\/h3>\n
A Communal Approach<\/h6> Prof. Shai Stern<\/figcaption> <\/figure>
\u201cIt\u2019s very hard to be a true pluralist,\u201d concedes Prof. Shai Stern, an expert on private property and state-community relations at Bar-Ilan\u2019s Faculty of Law. \u201cPluralism means accepting others\u2019 choice of beliefs and lifestyles that are different from one\u2019s own. But when it comes to the Haredim, the liberal mind can\u2019t wrap itself around that difference. It struggles to understand what motivates the Haredi community.\u201d For Stern, who was appointed last year head of the Institute for Strategy and Haredi Policy\u2014an independent think tank aimed at developing the Haredi sector\u2019s capacity to contribute to Israel\u2019s state and society\u2014the word \u201cunderstand\u201d is key. If we want to break through the impasse that often defines state relations with Haredim, he says, we need to begin with in-depth research.<\/p>
\u201cAfter October 7th, for example, we at the institute set out to understand, why is it that so many Haredim don\u2019t see themselves as part of what\u2019s happening? When you start from a place that\u2019s not judgmental but instead purely academic, you can then say, \u2018Okay, if this is what they\u2019re thinking and what matters to them, then this is what the government can do encourage cooperation,\u2019\u201d Stern explains, adding that the \u201cthis\u201d is almost never individual sanctions. \u201cHaredim already face the threat of sanctions in their own community on account of non-conformity,\u201d he says. And in a society in which there\u2019s no concept of \u2018individuals,\u2019 but only a collective, \u201cthe government can\u2019t tell a Haredi youth to enlist if his community is telling him that it\u2019s wrong or that he\u2019ll be ostracized. The answer,\u201d concludes Stern, \u201cis to approach Haredim as a community. To understand their concerns and priorities, and despite deep disagreement, engage them with dignity.\u201d<\/p>
Pointing out that by 2065, Haredim will comprise a full fourth of the Israeli populace, Stern insists that developing more effective relations with the Haredi sector is a national priority. To that end, he is currently overseeing a multi-year strategic plan\u2014with input from Israeli researchers and leading civilian and military figures\u2014for enabling Haredim to become an integral part of Israel\u2019s security and prosperity. \u201cA growing portion of the Haredi community wants to increase its involvement in the state,\u201d Stern says. \u201cOur challenge lies in moving past the liberal idea of what\u2019s \u2018right\u2019 or \u2018fair\u2019 and enabling them to make a contribution.\u201d<\/p>","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/presidentreport.biu.ac.il\/2025\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1824","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/presidentreport.biu.ac.il\/2025\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/presidentreport.biu.ac.il\/2025\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/presidentreport.biu.ac.il\/2025\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/presidentreport.biu.ac.il\/2025\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1824"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/presidentreport.biu.ac.il\/2025\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1824\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2454,"href":"https:\/\/presidentreport.biu.ac.il\/2025\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1824\/revisions\/2454"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/presidentreport.biu.ac.il\/2025\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1825"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/presidentreport.biu.ac.il\/2025\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1824"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/presidentreport.biu.ac.il\/2025\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1824"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/presidentreport.biu.ac.il\/2025\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1824"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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