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By Ira Sharkansky
 JERUSALEM--A committee of leading ultra-Orthodox rabbis has called on their communities to desist from violence, and all demonstrations outside their core neighborhood. They forbid verbal as well as physical violence, name calling, throwing trash, blocking roads, burning trash containers, and spitting.at secular Israelis or the police.
What brought this on are signs that the demonstrations had gotten out of hand, and threatened serious conflict among Jews. Last Saturday a young man laid down in front of a car on one of the main streets and the driver either did not see him or did not care, drove on and dragged him for some distance before he was pulled away with moderate injuries. A day later an Arab taxi driver attempted to drive through a demonstration. Yeshiva students pulled him from the car, beat him seriously and damaged his vehicle.
Police for the first time opened fire, most likely warning shots in the air.
For the rabbis, the use of "live fire" was a dire change in police behavior that, along with the two serious injuries, indicated that things had gone too far.
All know that if the level of confrontation seen in and near ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods had occurred in Arab towns, there would be bodies in the street and families marching to funerals. And instead of a few yeshiva students held by the police for a day or two, there would be trials and jail sentences meted out against Arabs who led the demonstrations, or who were caught with fire arms, throwing stones, or using slingshots.
The different rules that prevail around ultra-Orthodox and Arab demonstrations trouble Israelis as well as others, but deserve some consideration for what they reveal about this society.
No doubt that both groups break the law against demonstrations that proceed without the permits given by police for protests that do not threaten public order. The difference begins with the threat perceived from spontaneous Arab demonstrations, often incited by religious or political extremists, that may involve fire arms as well as stones and home made fire bombs. They recall deadly riots, and the efforts of some Arabs to provoke a widespread uprising. The demonstrations of ultra-Orthodox are typically limited to massed efforts to block roads, the burning of trash dumpsters, throwing stones (rather than more deadly slingshots), dirty diapers and other garbage, curses and spitting.
Peace has not descended on the Jews of Jerusalem. Ultra-Orthodox rabbis and Knesset members promise to continue the struggle. They are accusing the municipality of insensitivity in not honoring legitimate demands to preserve the sanctity of the Sabbath, and are accusing the police of a violent overreaction.
There is nothing new in this. The details of these protests (concerning the opening of a parking garage near the Old City on the Sabbath, the prosecution of an ultra-Orthodox woman for abusing one or more of her children, and police efforts to take the body of a murder victim for an autopsy) may differ in detail from those in the past. However, every so often there are protests coming out of the ultra-Orthodox communities that follow similar routines. An incident, real or imagined, ignites the distrust of the secular community that prevails within the
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ultra-Orthodox community; teachers at religious academies call on their students to march in protest; the word spreads from congregation to congregation and results in mass
movement on main streets in and near the ultra-Orthodox neighborhoods; the police try to keep the streets clear; protesters escalate with stones, dirty diapers, spitting, curses, and burned garbage bins.
The process repeats itself for several days, usually in the evenings. The police respond with their hands, perhaps staves and mounted riders, but avoid the use of firearms or dogs. They arrest some of the demonstrators and hold them for a day or two. Seldom are there more than minor injuries, either to police or demonstrators. Eventually, leading rabbis and secular authorities counsel restraint. Often they mention the most recent Jewish civil war that occurred in the first century, and facilitated widespread destruction by the Romans.
What we are seeing, both in the demonstrations and the lack of serious violence, is the accommodation between the ultra-Orthodox and secular Israelis. It resembles the accommodation between Religious Zionists who lead the drive to settle the Land of Israel, and the leaders of major parties who govern the country. Both the ultra-Orthodox and the Religious Zionists are outside, or on the fringes of the main stream, but they are significant minorities. Without their support or toleration, the society could not function peacefully.
Moreover, both the ultra-Orthodox and Religious Zionists represent elements long established in Jewish thought and tradition. They are part of society and the Jewish state, even though many Jews view them as nuisance, or a threat to stability, economic viability, and the capacity of the country to withstand Arab threats or demands from great powers.
Realism demands accommodation, even if some view it as distasteful. We see this not in the commentary of the ultra-Orthodox, the Religious Zionists, or those who oppose them. We see it in the pragmatic decisions of Israelis who reach high office.
And what about Arab demonstrations? Not all threaten the society, but some do. Not all Arab politicians or religious leaders aspire to the destruction of Israel, but some do. And not all responses to Arab demonstrations end badly, with corpses and increased animosity.
The more serious problem is not this or that demonstration, but demographic projections that see ultra-Orthodox and Arabs combined as an eventual majority of the population. About Arabs, this is threat to Jewish culture and safety. About ultra-Orthodox Jews, it means a parasitic population of men who insist on studying religious texts full time throughout a working life, at public expense, and refusing military service.
Optimists know that demographic predictions are often wrong. They do not take account of changes that may occur within or around the populations. In the case of Arabs, there is already a trend of declining birth rates associated with increasing education. Among the ultra-Orthodox, there are signs of young people tiring of the low standard of living associated with perpetual study. Some are leaving the religious academies to learn something practical, getting jobs, and accepting military service.
There is much to ponder. Stereotypes are part of the political discourse among Jews and Arabs. Israel is destined to wrestle with multiple tensions. By all indicators, the results are better than ever before experienced by a Jewish community. Remember that Joshua did not conquer the whole Land of Israel. From the death of King Solomon it was pretty much down hill, most likely worse than described in Holy Text. 1948 was a turnaround. We are still at work.
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