Israel's religious split over the time of day

But even with such support for its ideas, it has been a rough ride for Shinui, especially lately, because Prime Minister Ariel Sharon needs the support of the National Religious Party (NRP), an orthodox pro-settler coalition partner, and of ultraorthodox Knesset members for his plan to withdraw Israeli troops from the Gaza Strip and northern West Bank.

On Sunday, the NRP torpedoed Poraz's time change by arguing that it would disrupt morning prayers by religious Israelis. Morning prayers can only be recited according to orthodox law after the "first appearance of the sun" The prayers take up to an hour to recite.

"Hundreds of thousands of Jews who pray in the morning will not be able to get to work on time because a late sunrise will force them to pray later than 7 [a.m.]," says Zevulun Orlev, the NRP Social Welfare Minister.

Mr. Sharon's support for the smaller NRP on the clock issue, analysts say, is part of a pattern of the Likud party tilting the balance against Shinui reform.

"Likud is no longer a secular party, it is traditional, and they don't want to cut their ties with the traditional sector," says Menachem Hofnung, a Hebrew University political scientist. By traditional, Mr. Hofnung means Israelis who do not follow orthodox religious law, but observe some traditions, such as keeping a kosher home and fasting on Yom Kippur.

"There is religious coercion of a minority that tells the majority what to do," Poraz says bitterly of the killing of his idea by a 13-5 cabinet vote.

Another factor in Shinui's inability to translate its electoral success into secularist legislation is that, unlike the NRP, it has no credible threat of resigning from the coalition, analysts say. Two NRP Knesset members (MKs) left the government to protest the Gaza withdrawal plan and the party actually bolted from its partnership with then Prime Minister Ehud Barak in 2000. "Shinui has leverage, but is afraid to use it," says Akiva Eldar, a columnist for Haaretz. "They are afraid to be outside. They don't want to lose their ministerial jobs." In August, the party reversed its promise never to serve with an ultra-orthodox party in the same coalition

Ronny Brison, a Shinui MK, says that the Gaza disengagement plan "has limited our political maneuvering capability" on religious-secular issues since the party wants to stay in government to ensure there is a withdrawal from Gaza. "This is such a major issue that you don't make the usual threats to leave," he says. But he stressed the party is determined to pursue its current effort to legislate civil marriage. He concedes it had to forgo its effort to start transportation on the Sabbath and to gain recognition for non-orthodox conversions, but says Shinui did succeed in abolishing the ministry of religious affairs and reducing welfare payments to large ultraorthodox families.

Shinui's real problem, says Eldar, is the continuation of the conflict with the Palestinians, something that marginalizes its secularist agenda. "When push comes to shove Israelis expect their parties to deliver the goods on the Arab-Israeli conflict, and everything else is secondary" says Eldar. "Separating church and state is like dealing with how to set up chairs on the deck when the Titanic is sinking."

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