Women Take Chief Rabbinate Exams After Four-Hour Delay

Overview

• Three women seeking Chief Rabbinate certification were kept waiting in a separate room for about four hours, then received their exam papers and finished several hours after the men.
• The Rabbinate said a technical malfunction caused the holdup, while the advocacy group ITIM alleged senior rabbis ordered staff not to give the women the tests.
• ITIM filed an emergency motion that sought to halt the men’s exams, and minutes before a court-imposed deadline the exams director delivered the papers, citing the lack of a supervising rabbi earlier in the day.
• A Supreme Court ruling in July 2025 required the Rabbinate to let women sit these exams, which the court defined as a public service, and a later request for a further hearing was denied.
• Certification affects pay scales and eligibility for religious and educational roles, and the episode drew sharp reactions from lawmakers and religious leaders, with some decrying a breach of the ruling and others defending halachic autonomy.