Can an Orthodox Jew Participate in the Public Life of the State of Israel?

תקציר

More than 20 percent of the residents of Israel are observant Orthodox Jews. The first question facing them with respect to "religionand state" is not weather they can support - or even accept - any specific legal arrangment in the state of Israel, but rather weather they can accept and participate in the legal system of a Jewish secular state. State that does not comply with Halakhic political model at all. In this paper I pursue the road less taken and try to demonstrate that halakhic may be interpreted to allow not only passive recognition but also active participation in the Israel secular system.