Random event listings:

1) Women at the Wall will meet, as always (on Rosh Chodesh, or RC Bet if it’s a 2-day’er), this Wednesday morning March 1, at 7am at the Kotel.

1) There’s a rally on behalf of agunot (“chained women,” whose husbands refuse to grant them a Jewish divorce) on this Tuesday, 28 February at 7pm at the Great Synagogue on King George.

I don’t have all the details, but presumably it relates to a recent decision of the Council of Rabbinical Judges. The Jerusalem Post reported Feb. 1:

The Council of Rabbinical Judges cut off ties with women’s organizations that fight for the rights of agunot. Agunot are women in the process of divorce who cannot remarry because a recalcitrant husband refuses to give a divorce document.

The decision of the council, a body representing over 90 judges of marital law, is a protest against repeated attacks launched by the women’s organizations against the rabbinical establishment that led to media scrutiny of the judges and public criticism….

[And then the superstar quote at the bottom:]

(Rabbinical Judge) Malka admitted that he encourages women to relinquish child support payments owed by the husband or other monetary obligations in order to facilitate the giving of a get (divorce certificate). ‘Listen, this is money that she never earned,’ explained Malka. ‘Only in theory does it belong to her. For instance, according to the law the wife is entitled to half of a man’s pension rights even though she never worked a day in her life. I do not think she should remain an aguna because she is stubborn about receiving her half.’

(Thanks to Out of Step Jew for calling the article to my attention and pulling the quotes so nicely.)

Brr the Rabbinut. The less I get on about what I think about the Rabbinut, probably the better for everyone involved. Suffice to say, I’m at least going to try to be there on Tuesday….