Abstract - Salomon Harari

The first Sephardic chief rabbi of the State of Israel, Rabbi Ben-Zion Meir Hai Uzziel, strongly believed in following tradition. Yet many of his rulings on Jewish law surprisingly appear to be untraditional and liberal. This study attempts to illustrate Rabbi Uzziel’s uniqueness among other rabbis in his generation, to show a relationship between Sephardic tradition and modernity, and to demonstrate how Rabbi Uzziel understood this relationship and used it as a basis of his worldview. It concludes that the Sephardic tradition is adaptive to new situations, be it social, cultural or technological. All of the above becomes clear through a careful reading of Rabbi Uzziel’s literary works, mainly responsa, and through comparative analysis of one against the other. Interviews of individuals belonging to the same tradition as Rabbi Uzziel are also used to provide a broader perspective of the Sephardic tradition. Rabbi Uzziel did not attempt to harmonize modernity with Jewish law, as there was no need for it. Jewish law necessarily encompasses modernity. If it didn’t, Jewish law would not bear any relevance to future generations. With this information borne in mind, Rabbi Uzziel’s progressive rulings are really reflections of Rabbi Uzziel’s conscious effort to stay true to his tradition, by properly reapplying established legal principles to newer situations.

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