ABSTRACT
The divorce procedures, which are the focus of this chapter, are governed by strictly religious law and there is no civil marriage to speak of. This chapter presents a portrait of the religious sphere of family law and Israeli women's navigation through the contradictory forces which shape the patriarchal structures that they inhabit. It starts by presenting the classical Jewish law of divorce, general rules which are followed with more or less rigidity by various denominations of Judaism. For instance, if a woman enters into a relationship before having obtained a get from her husband, she will be considered 'adulterous' and she will not be allowed, even after an eventual Jewish divorce, to marry her partner under Jewish law or remarry her ex-husband. Furthermore, despite its numerous flaws and shortcomings, the very existence of the (religious) Sanctions Law seems to indicate that Israeli women have attained some form of (long fought for) empowerment.
