The Shabbat Test: Which city is the freest in Israel?

The case of presenter Odia and the closing of the Adika website on Shabbat proves that the debate over the nature of Shabbat and religious coercion still wounds Israeli society on both sides of the map. 'While national politics prepares for an election campaign, the reality on the ground is determined by the municipality,' states the introduction to the 'Shabbat Test' report, a comprehensive examination conducted by 'Free Israel' for the fourth year.

This report checks what the urban Shabbat really looks like and what services are available to the public. It identifies cities where commerce, dining, transportation, sports clubs, and pharmacies operate on Shabbat, and conversely, identifies municipalities that reduce the freedom of choice for their residents. Thus, the vast majority of 'free' cities are those with a clear secular majority, while cities ranked at the bottom are those with a traditional, religious, or Haredi majority.

The Israeli Paradox

The Israeli paradox is that precisely the residents of cities disconnected from transportation, which have fewer car owners, adhere to the shutdown of public transportation on Shabbat. Those who want to leave the city use special taxis or hitchhike. It is important to remember that although the municipality is granted the authority to regulate the opening and closing of businesses on Shabbat through a bylaw, this authority is not absolute and requires the approval of the Minister of Interior.

The Shabbat Test includes the 60 most populous Jewish cities in Israel. The test includes for the first time a check of coffee carts operating on Shabbat, alongside an examination of accessibility to essential services such as on-call pharmacies. The answers are binary: 'yes' earns a point, 'no' leaves the city without points. The maximum sum is 6 points.

Who is at the bottom and who is at the top?

It seems that despite local attempts in some authorities, the national situation still significantly limits the freedom of choice on Shabbat:

• 0 points: Ofakim, Beit Shemesh, Netivot, Safed, and Sderot.

• 5-6 points (leaders): Givatayim, Herzliya, Ramat HaSharon, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Eilat, Hod HaSharon, Haifa, Kfar Saba, Modi'in-Maccabim-Reut, Kiryat Ono, Kiryat Motzkin, Ramat Gan, and Ra'anana.

The analysis reveals a significant gap in Shabbat activity between residents of the center of the country and the periphery. With an average score of 4.2 in Gush Dan and the Sharon compared to only 1.5 in the Jerusalem and Southern regions, residents of the center have 3 times the chance to receive services on Shabbat. Data proves that joining intercity transportation projects like 'Na'im BeSof Shavua' does not only grant points for transportation, but simultaneously allows for leisure, culture, and commerce.

Accessibility to Services

The examination shows that in 13 authorities, there is no pharmacy available on Shabbat and no definition of duty. In cities like Beit Shemesh, Ma'ale Adumim, and Safed, residents are forced to travel over 20 minutes by car to neighboring cities for urgent medication. Culture and sports fields show relatively high scores in many authorities; even in cities almost completely closed to commerce and transportation, one can find open swimming pools and sports clubs.

The category with the fewest municipalities — only 10 — is the attempt to change the bylaw to allow commerce on Shabbat. In 20 authorities, there is no actual commerce, meaning no shopping centers or supermarkets are open. However, coffee carts and food trucks have recently become centers of attraction, and 20 cities now enjoy the activity of food carts that are open on Shabbat.