22 HAREDISM VERSUS TRADITIONISM A New Reading of Mizrahi Religious Politics at the Start of the 21st Century Nissim Leon Introduction One of the major focuses of ethnic studies in Israel is the population referred to by sociologists as “Mizrahim,” and the “Mizrahi identity.” The word “Mizrahi” (plural – “Mizrahim”) literally means “eastern,” or “from the east.” In Israeli society, the geographic distinction between east and west has long been borrowed and applied to the realm of social and cultural diferences. In this article, I address the devaluation implicit in this term, and the two most prominent attempts at revaluation via the sphere of religious life. I shall argue that these attempts have been accom- panied by the bottom-up consolidation of two new elites seeking relevance and recognition in the molding of Mizrahi identity in Israel. On the one hand, there is the Sefardi-Haredi (see next for an explanation of this term) – rabbinical leadership, which has sought a place for itself and infuence among the non-Haredi Mizrahi population by advocating the repair of Mizrahi ethnic traditions and religious life in the direction of full observance of halakha (Jewish law). On the other hand, we fnd a series of Mizrahi intellectuals, educators and social activists seeking a place for themselves and infuence among the broader Israeli public by advocating a tolerant, inclusive and non-reactionary religious agenda, which they identify with the religious outlook and lifestyle referred to by Israelis as social scientist Yaakov Yadgar suggested as “traditionism” (Yadgar, 2011a). Following Yadgar work on traditionism, it should note up front that i do not focus on “tradition” as the description of a historical or current cultural phenomenon, but as an emotional inclination to be part of what is perceived as “tradition”. This is “traditionism,”which is practiced by “traditionists.” It designates the need felt by human beings to belong to a group, while maintaining freedom of choice with regard to the practices ostensibly handed down for generations that are viewed as “tradition” (Leon and Shoam, 2018). From a sociological positivist perspective, the term “Mizrahim” refers to a large and very diverse sociological category of Jews who originated (or whose parents originated) in the Mid- dle East, North Africa and the Balkans. At the same time, the term distinguishes this category from a diferent sociological category of Jews, who originated (or whose parents or grandparents originated) in Central and Eastern Europe, known as “Ashkenazim” (Smooha, 2008). There are no clear fgures as to the size of the Mizrahi population in Israel today, since in the mid-1990s, DOI: 10.4324/9780429281013-27 299