Born in Poland · Nationality Israeli — Religion / Judaism / Chief Rabbinate of Israel

Israel Meir Lau

Also known as: Yisrael Meir Lau, ישראל מאיר לאו

Israeli rabbi born in Poland in 1937, Holocaust survivor and Chief Rabbi from 1993 to 2003.

A Holocaust survivor, Israel Meir Lau served as Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi from 1993 to 2003. His 1993 election campaign featured personal allegations that he denied. Other disputes concerned fees accepted for wedding ceremonies and his positions on non-Orthodox conversions.

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Profile No. 6092 · Updated on 8 November 2026

1Documented controversy

1Source

0Formal charge · all time

0Conviction

§ Legal statuses reflect the documented sources as of the date shown; they replace neither court decisions nor the presumption of innocence. Counts are not a rating. Methodology

I. Documented controversies

March 1997

1997: controversy over payments for conducting weddings

No legal proceedings

Press reports revealed that Lau received payments for conducting religious weddings although couples already paid institutional fees. Following criticism, he said he would stop accepting such payments and would suggest charitable donations instead.

State of the evidence: Disclosure and announced change of practice reported by JTA.
Legal status — source text: No known personal criminal charges or conviction concerning these facts.
Attribution: Accepting disputed payments for religious ceremonies.

Sources · 1

[1]
Jewish Telegraphic AgencyIsraeli Chief Rabbi Reneges on Charging Wedding Fees25 March 1997News agencyHigh reliability

Last verified: 8 November 2026

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II. Constellation of documented links

No documented link with another published profile for now.

Two profiles are linked when a documented controversy of one names the other. The link points to that controversy and its sources; it does not indicate a personal relationship.

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Controversia profile, updated 8 November 2026. Latest version: https://controversia.info/en/fiche/israel-meir-lau