Current sectionJewish WorldShare to FacebookShare to XArticle printing is available to subscribers onlyPrint in a simple, ad-free formatSubscribeComments: Zen reading is available to subscribers onlyAd-free and in a comfortable reading formatSubscribeA shot from a wedding in Tel Aviv: A way to gain control over a reality that lacks stability. Credit: Ella BarakAmid ongoing conflict and uncertainty in Israel, young secular liberals are embracing traditional marriage – often through the Rabbinate – as a source of stability and continuity, even as Western peers increasingly favor cohabitation02:26 PM • May 20 2026 IDTLiel Friedland, a visual communications student at Jerusalem's Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design, has just celebrated her 25th birthday and is due to get married soon. It's happening earlier than she expected: "I was sure I'd follow the usual path. I'd probably live in Florentin near my friends, work for a few years, and then settle down," she says. In the NewsMore Young Secular Israelis Are Saying 'I Do' – to Marriage and the RabbinateElections Inch Closer as Knesset Passes Preliminary Bill to Dissolve ParliamentSally Rooney Still Boycotts Israel. So Why Is Her New Book Coming Out in Hebrew?IDF Was Caught Off Guard by Trump Stating He Was 'Hour Away' From Attacking IranMost of World Jewry Will Be Based in Israel Within 10 Years, Report PredictsRemembering and rebuilding two years laterICYMIHundreds Protest at New York Times HQ Over Column Alleging Abuse by IsraelisICC Prosecutor Seeks Warrants for Ben-Gvir, Smotrich, Other Israeli OfficialsEverybody Loses in the Cynical Israeli-Palestinian Sexual Violence CompetitionIsraeli Settler Filmed Abusing Palestinian-owned Dog in West BankWelcome to the Most Shameful Day in the Jewish CalendarIsraeli Teens Storm Muslim Quarter in Old City, Haaretz Reporter Attacked