A poll released on Tuesday shows that while Israel isn't the global leader in religious nationalism, it ranks highest among high-income countries in the proportion of religious nationalists, News.az reports citing foreign media.
The Pew Research Center poll, which measured levels of religious nationalism among 55,000 people in 36 countries, found that 9% of Israelis could be classified as religious nationalists, placing the Jewish state at 14 out of the 36 countries polled, matching Greece and Turkey, both of which had the same rate.For respondents to be classified as religious nationalists, they had to hold four key beliefs: the country’s predominant religion is essential to national identity; national leaders should share their religious beliefs; its sacred text should influence the country’s laws; and the sacred text should overcome the will of the people when the two were in conflict.
Jerusalem on June 5, 2024, during the Jerusalem Day flag march. (Menahem Kahana / AFP)
A poll published Tuesday reveals that while Israel does not rank highest globally for religious nationalism, it leads among high-income countries in the proportion of religious nationalists.
The Pew Research Center poll, which measured levels of religious nationalism among 55,000 people in 36 countries, found that 9% of Israelis could be classified as religious nationalists, placing the Jewish state at 14 out of the 36 countries polled, matching Greece and Turkey, both of which had the same rate.
For respondents to be classified as religious nationalists, they had to hold four key beliefs: the country’s predominant religion is essential to national identity; national leaders should share their religious beliefs; its sacred text should influence the country’s laws; and the sacred text should overcome the will of the people when the two were in conflict.
The poll did not specify to what extent religious nationalists require the country’s leader to share their religious beliefs. While the religious majority in Israel is Jewish, there is a wide spectrum with varying degrees of religious observance.
It was unclear, however, whether ultra-Orthodox Israelis who were classified as religious nationalists, for example, require Israel’s prime minister to merely be Jewish, or whether they would require a leader who observed Judaism on the same or a similar level as them.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for instance, is not Orthodox or ultra-Orthodox, but he has consistently partnered with ultra-Orthodox and national religious parties in coalitions he has led during his six terms in office and has helped them achieve their policies, such as championing laws that would exempt ultra-Orthodox men from Israel’s compulsory draft.
Israeli respondents also included Muslim Israelis.
While Israel, with a 9% rate of religious nationalists, did not rank high globally, with Indonesia rating highest at 46%, it did lead high-income countries along with Greece, which scored the same.
The high-income countries with the second-highest rates of religious nationalists were the US and Chile with 6%.
Israel was also found to be the only high-income country in the study where at least a third of the members of the predominant religion believed that belonging to the religion was important for fitting in with the national identity.
Respondents were asked to rate the importance of religion, national language, being born in the country, and customs and traditions in shaping national identity within their respective countries, and among Israelis, being Jewish was ranked most important by 34%, placing it second only to speaking Hebrew (43%).
Customs and traditions were ranked most important by 26% and being born in Israel was marked most important by 22%.
A possible reason for being born in Israel being the least important for Israelis is the country’s right of return for Jews, which affords people with at least one Jewish grandparent an automatic right to Israeli citizenship. Many Israelis are immigrants or the children of immigrants.
In every other high-income country polled, belonging to the predominant religion was ranked the least important factor for national identity.
