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There are moments in a long campaign for justice when the most important thing is grit. Monday, three women Torah scholars demonstrated courage in fighting through an attempt to undermine their dignity, and they emerged proud.
I want to share how I experienced the events at the Ministry of Religious Affairs because several inaccurate accounts are already circulating. The real story is both more frustrating and more inspiring than what’s been reported.
The rabbinic certification exams were scheduled to begin at 10:30 a.m. Following an almost decade-long battle in Israel’s Supreme Court, and after a decision in July 2025 by the court, Monday was the first time women were to be allowed to sit for these exams. Three women who have spent years preparing for this moment arrived at the Ministry by 9:30.
They were not alone. ITIM’s legal team, which had fought the case in court, accompanied them, along with representatives from a remarkable coalition of organizations that have stood behind this effort: Matan, Ein HaNatziv, Maharat, Kolenu, and the Rackman Center, among others. That coalition walked these women to the door of the Ministry, a location that had itself been a compromise, since the original exam site was supposed to be Jerusalem’s International Convention Center, Binyanei HaUma. When they went in at 10, I went back to my office.
But the exams did not begin at 10:30.
At 11:09, I received a brief text from the head of ITIM’s legal department, Ofra Sitesmar, who was stationed at the ministry for the day. The exams had not been delivered to the room. I immediately called Rabbi Itamar Tubul, head of the Rabbinate’s examinations department, who was........