Holiness as a Political Category: Reimagining Society Through the Mosaic Tradition

Ronen Shoval is dean of the Argaman Institute of Advanced Studies and head of the Herzl Program in Philosophy and Culture. This post is based on chapter 3 of his book Holiness and Society: A Socio-Political Exploration of the Mosaic Tradition (Routledge 2024).

 On Capitol Hill, the seat of the U.S. Congress, 22 relief portrait plaques are installed above the gallery doors of the House Chamber. These plaques, collectively known as the Lawgivers, depict figures noted for their foundational contributions to the principles underlying the concept of law. Among these figures are Hammurabi, Justinian, and Solon, lawgivers whose ideas shaped legal thought across civilizations.

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The Constitutional Crisis in Israel: Religious Dimension

Many observers call Israel’s current constitutional crisis the biggest political challenge for the state since its establishment in 1948. Both parties—the coalition government and the opposition, as well as their supporters—are extremely polarized, with little room for compromise. While the major cause of the crisis (the reform of Israel’s Supreme Court) seems to be purely secular, a deeper look reveals a variety of religious aspects to the crisis.

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Interview: Ori Aronson on Religion and the Constitutional Crisis in Israel

Ori Aronson is an associate professor of law at the Bar-Ilan University Faculty of Law, where he also serves as the deputy director of the Menomadin Center for Jewish and Democratic Law. He is a scholar of constitutional law and theory, courts and judicial decisionmaking. Much of his research concerns the institutional conditions of adjudication and the organization of legal power more broadly, with a focus on the ways legal systems accommodate, reflect, and challenge cultural and ideological difference. During the 2023–24 academic year Ori is a visiting scholar with the Harvard Center for Jewish Studies. Ori Aronson was interviewed by Dmytro Vovk.

This interview was recorded before the first law to limit the Israeli Supreme Court was adopted by the Knesset on 24 July 2023. The text has been lightly edited.

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