Utah Online Marriages "Upend" Israeli Marriage Debates

[UPDATE: Though this is a practically important matter, it also just cries out "joke fodder" to me. I have no idea how it would go ("a rabbi, a Mormon, and a bride walk into a bar …"?), but I can just feel there's something there! Please post your candidates in the comments.]

From Times of Israel (Jeremy Sharon):

In a decision published on Friday, Judge Efrat Fink [of the Lod District Court in Israel] ruled that the Population and Immigration Authority of the Interior Ministry is obligated to register as married couples who wed through an online civil marriage service carried out under the auspices of the US state of Utah.

The decision means that Israeli couples can now get married in civil ceremonies without leaving the country, granting a de facto victory to advocates in the decades-long struggle for civil marriage in Israel.

Orthodox political parties have long fought efforts to institute civil marriage in Israel, citing their religious objections to the state sanctioning interfaith marriages and other unions prohibited by Jewish law….

Israeli law only allows for marriage through Israel's established religious institutions— e.g., the rabbinate for Jews, sharia courts for Muslims—meaning that hundreds of thousands of Israeli citizens cannot get married in Israel due to various religious barriers.

Although couples have been able to marry in civil ceremonies abroad and have them registered by the Population Authority for nearly six decades, this process involves considerable expense and inconvenience….

No considerable expense and inconvenience any more, thanks to Utah County, which has allowed online marriages starting 2020 (even before the pandemic began). And my sense is that, as with normal marriages, the online Utah marriages can be officiated by a wide range of officiants, presumably including those rabbis who go for that sort of thing.

Thanks to Prof. Howard Friedman (Religion Clause) for the pointer.

Comments

[Josh R]

I wish I had the Conspiracy Headline lottery ticket that had "Utah" "Marriage" and "Israel" on it.

[Rev. Arthur L. Kirkland]

" Israeli law only allows for marriage through Israel's established religious institutions "

A paltry law flattering paltry, illusory gods in a country that should know (and do) much better.

Utah, though, deserves substantial credit in this context.

[Currentsitguy]

Indeed. Seems like they managed to one-up Vegas in that regard. Who needs an Elvis impersonator of drive through when all you need is a webcam?

[Currentsitguy]

For the life of me I cannot understand the belief that one needs someone to "marry" them. When my wife and I chose to tie the knot after 7 years of dating and eventually moving in together (including about 6 of which we presented ourselves to everyone as husband and wife) we chose a Self Unifying Marriage (completely legit in PA) because we thought the entire concept of needing someone else to say some words over us to confer a state of marriage to be absurd.

We invited our friends and family to the back yard, said a few words, served up an utterly ridiculous amount of smoked BBQ to everyone, cracked open the $3500 we spent of single malt scotches, broke out the humidors, and played music on the temporary dance stage we rented. We even had the local cops involved riding people back up to their parking lot that we made use of for guests to park.

[MatthewSlyfield]

So, when does the Vegas wedding chapel industry sue Utah for unfair competition?

[Brett Bellmore]

So, yet another entry in the long record of judges deciding, "Screw the marriage laws the legislature wrote, I'm getting my way anyway!"

[Eugene Volokh]

Brett Bellmore: Why do you say that? I haven't read the actual decision, but the Jerusalem Post article reflects that it has apparently long been a principle of Israeli law (presumably viewed as consistent with Israeli marriage legislation) that foreign marriages are recognized, including marriages in foreign countries between Israeli citizens. That's why, for instance, Israelis often go to Cyprus to marry. Might the court decision just be an application of that principle to a Utah marriage?

[JJJSSS]

Yes, Israel has long recognized civil marriages abroad, and it's very popular for couples to go to Cyprus- which is the closest friendly country with civil marriage, and has a number of resorts for destination weddings too- to get married there. Israel also does have limited civil marriage in the country for two spouses of "no registered religion," though this is rare (the more common case is refugees from the Soviet Union recognized as Jews by the Interior Ministry but not by the Chief Rabbinate). And it has even recognized same sex marriages done abroad for a decade or more.

The question here wasn't whether or not civil marriage in general would be recognized; the question was whether or not Israel should recognize a marriage taking place online under Utah law as taking place in Israel or in Utah.

[Brett Bellmore]

I say that because Israel has long recognized foreign marriages, but the notion that a marriage where both parties are in Israel would qualify as a "foreign" marriage seems like the sort of work around a judge who doesn't want Israel's laws enforced would resort to.

[Tim B]

First marriage goes online, next certain, er, related activities.

And then? No more having to worry about rampant exchange of bodily fluids contributing to the society's downfall.

[SRG]

IIRC under strict Jewish law, the fact of a couple's cohabiting was sufficient to constitution a marriage, and the wedding would merely be a subsequent recognition of that fact.

Further, the Orthodox rabbis have no right even within Jewish law to require that the couple both be Jewish. That was not the tradition for the first (supposed) 2,000 years - and indeed, the Torah makes it clear that disapproval of intermarriage may even receive heavenly punishment - cf Miriam being afflicted with "leprosy" after slagging off Moses' shiksa wife.

Only cohanim are technically prohibited from marrying a non-Jew or a convert.

[SRG]

"To constitute"...rassfrassn no edit function

[neurodoc]

Noteworthy that Utah, which is for Mormons, that is Latter Day Saints, their Zion (I think), should be the state which made this legal (religious) stratagem work for Israeli couples?

And what about other marriages that would not be allowed by the rabbinate in Israel? In particular, does this ruling have any effect on same-sex marriages? I don't imagine that it would, but I don't know that this court ruling would have no bearing on SSMs.

[neurodoc]

"a rabbi, a Mormon, and a bride walk into a bar …"

The rabbi says, "I've never been in this situation before and don't know what exactly the plans call for, but I'm OK with most anything so long as there isn't to be mixed dancing."

[Cal Cetín]

A rabbi, a Mormon, a bride and a groom have joined the Zoom.

The Mormon says, "you guys got this?"

The rabbi says, "I now pronounce you man and wife, you may now sext the bride."

[John F. Carr]

Twist ending: The rabbi was the bride! Progressive Judaism.

[El Viento]

What do North Korea, Utah, and Israel have in common?

Not much. In North Korea, they print fake money so they don't have to work. In Utah, they print marriage licenses so they don't have to work. In Israel, everybody works. Even the rabbis have second jobs now that their monopoly on profitable marriages is over.