In Israel, Jews are united by homeland but divided into very different groups
There are only about 6 million Jews living in Israel, but there are major religious, social and political chasms that divide them.
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10. Religion, politics and public life
Israeli law defines the country as a Jewish and a democratic state, and there is widespread agreement among Israeli Jews that their country’s Jewish identity is compatible with democratic principles. About three-in-four Jews – including majorities of all four Jewish identity groups – say the country can be both a Jewish and a democratic state. […]
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2. Religious affiliation and conversion
The vast majority of Israeli respondents in this survey identify as Jews (81%), including 40% who identify as Hiloni, 23% as Masorti, 10% as Dati and 8% as Haredi. The sample also includes Muslims (14%), Christians (2%) and Druze (2%). Few Israelis analyzed in this study say they have no religion (1%). After accounting for […]
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Israel’s Religiously Divided Society
There are deep divisions in Israeli society over political values and religion’s role in public life — not only between Jews and the Arab minority, but also among the religious subgroups that make up Israeli Jewry.
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11. Intergroup marriage and friendship
Members of Israel’s major religious groups tend to be isolated from one another socially. When it comes to friendships as well as family relationships, Jews, Muslims, Christians and Druze often stay within their own religious communities. For example, 98% of Jews say most or all of their close friends are Jewish, and 85% of Muslims […]
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About this report
This report uses data collected by Pew Research Center. To analyze gender differences in religious affiliation, it draws on estimates of religious composition in 192 countries and territories published in the Center’s April 2015 report, “The Future of World Religions: Population Growth Projections, 2010-2050.” The estimates are based on data from more than 2,500 censuses […]
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7. Education, values and science
Although they have differing perspectives on many political issues, members of Israel’s major religious groups – Jews, Muslims, Christians and Druze – place great importance on a few core values, including family relationships, education, career success and helping the needy. Israeli Jews across the religious spectrum say these values are important to them. Although they […]
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Methodology
Between Oct. 14, 2014, and May 21, 2015, Pew Research Center completed 5,601 face-to-face interviews with non-institutionalized adults ages 18 and older living in Israel. The sample includes interviews with 3,789 Jews, 871 Muslims, 468 Christians and 439 Druze. An additional 34 respondents belong to other religions or are religiously unaffiliated. Five groups were oversampled […]
