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Israel’s Ministry of Religious Services for the first time will allow non-Orthodox rabbis to serve in communal positions with state-funded salaries.

The May 30 announcement of the intention to change policy follows a petition to the Israeli Supreme Court filed in January by the Reform and Conservative movements arguing that it was discriminatory for the state to employ only Orthodox rabbis in state-funded positions. In response, the ministry wrote that it was revamping its policies to permit communities to receive funding for rabbis of their choice.

The ruling represents a milestone victory for the Reform and Conservative movements, which long have chafed at what they see as second-class treatment by the Israeli government.

“We welcome the Religious Services Ministry’s intention to support in an equal manner communal rabbis of all denominations, as well as the recognition that the current reality of appointing neighborhood rabbis does not appropriately serve the Jewish public in Israel in all its forms,” said Rabbi Gilad Kariv, the executive director of Israel’s Reform movement.

Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of the Union for Reform Judaism, said “We believe that there should be choice in the system, and we will continue to be engaged with this issue alongside our brothers and sisters in Israel until religious equality is codified in Israeli law.” — jta