Israeli Jews love Cyprus, but it has religious equality problems too

Many Israels marry in Cyprus to avoid the rabbinate and an increasing number are migrating there. But minority faiths face problems in the Orthodox Christian state.

The Jewish population in Cyprus has swelled over the past three years, according to the country’s chief rabbi, Arie Zeev Raskin.

“The number of people coming from Israel has increased tremendously. A lot of the newcomers come because the life in Israel has become complicated for them, with too much stress. So people who can work from home have moved here,” he said.

 Religious marriages from Israel are also increasingly taking place in Cyprus, not only by couples with halachic issues but also those who don’t want the rabbinate dictating what they can do.

But there are serious barriers to religious equality in Cyprus, an Orthodox Christian country. The US Department of State report on religious freedoms in 2021 noted that all minority faced big challenges in obtaining equality of religion.

Specific to Jews, the report stated: “Representatives of the Jewish community continued to report that authorities performed autopsies on deceased members of the community for deaths that were not suspicious, a practice they said violated Jewish religious beliefs and practice. They stated that despite their continuing efforts to raise the issue with government authorities during the year, it remained unresolved.”

The Cypriot authorities also continue to deny permission to perform shechita (ritual slaughter). In December 2020, the EU Court of Justice ruled that EU member states may impose a requirement to stun animals prior to slaughter and that such a requirement did not infringe on the rights of religious groups.

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Israeli Jews love Cyprus, but there is a religious equality battle (Jerusalem Post)

Photo: A wedding ceremony in Cyprus (Ionian Weddings)