Matchmaking & formerly religious singles

YNet reports:

Following the varying initiatives to solve the singles problem amongst young religious-Zionists, there is a demand for matchmakers amongst the formerly religious. The Rosh Yehudi (Jewish mindset) Center in Tel Aviv will hold its first-ever singles seminar next month which is intended for young people who left the religion. The seminar will also include rabbis and marriage counselors.

In an announcement published recently by the movement, young people were called upon to sign up for the seminar which will take place on the Saturday of the Noah Torah portion at the West Bank settlement of Maale Hever in south Mount Hebron.

“This is an untreated sector for which no one takes responsibility,” said one of the organizers. “We have no intention of bringing them back to the religion.”

The advertisement insisted that people inform their friends; formerly religious people who do not go to synagogue and who do not see these announcements.

On the agenda: Lectures and seminars with rabbis and marriage counselors. The most prominent speaker there will be Safed's Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu. In a conversation with Ynet, Rabbi Eliyahu explained that the main goal is to give off a positive feeling towards those who left the religion.“Sometimes, there is a feeling that they are outsiders, and that’s not true,” claimed the rabbi.

“If a semi-unbeliever will find a complete non-believer that’s good too,” said Zeira.