The Jewish Federation of Greater Washington's Imagine Israel

Visionary activist Chaya Gilboa, an expert on the issue of Israeli religious reform, shares her desire for social change in Israel. In a country where politics are religious and religion is political, Chaya strives to transform Israel’s religious judicial system by challenging the Rabbinate’s legal monopoly on religious life to create a pluralistic, egalitarian alternative.

The compelling conversation addresses the conflicts and complexities that come with the current Rabbinate (Jewish governance) jurisdiction over issues of marriage, divorce and kashrut (Jewish dietary law); and Chaya’s approach to changing the system from outside of the Knesset (Israel’s Parliament).

Host Robbie Gringras interviews co-writer and director of the LGBTQ family drama “Ima v’ Abbas” (Mother and Fathers) about the intersection of his personal family dynamic in Israel (raising a child as a gay couple with a straight, single surrogate), his work, passions and Israeli society.