Jews can't marry in Israel

A guest post by Vicki

Author's Note: This was posted on Jewlicious last week. Just sayin'.

Maybe it’s just the fact that Tisha B’Av is winding down for me and I’m writing this in a spate of hunger/anger that rivals the Hulk’s. But you know what I think is even more ridiculous than the fact that I’ve been craving Frappuccino/pizza/pretzels all day? The fact that Jews can’t get married in Israel. Specifically, Russian Jews. That made aliyah and served in the IDF and now can’t marry because the Rabbinate doesn’t recognize that they are Jewish. And so they have to fly out of the country, and their huppah in Israel won’t count for anything legally binding. From the press release:

The Orthodox rabbinate forbids a legal wedding to Olga and Nico. On Israel’s Valentine’s Day, Tu B’Av, August 4 at 7:00 PM Israel time, Nico Tarosyan will marry Olga Samosvatov. The festive public ceremony in Tel Aviv’s Dizengoff Square will promote awareness of the human cost of the Orthodox monopoly on Jewish marriage in Israel.

If you want to throw them some cash to get to Prague, where they will actually marry, or so Olga can buy a hideous Israeli wedding dress that matches the completely hideous situation she had to go through just because she can’t get married legally in Israel, donate some money to their flight to Prague. I, for one, am giving them $19. Why $19? $18 for chai. And $1 so I can pay to punch the people who make these decisions in the face. Molodtsi, rebyata (kol hakavod) for furthering the cause.