Israeli law officially recognizes five religions within Israel: Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Druzism and the Baháʼí Faith – all monotheistic. The smallest Abrahamic faith, Samaritanism, has fewer than 1,000 adherents in Israel. In a census, they are counted as a distinct religious community, but the Chief Rabbinate defines them as ethnically Jewish.
Israel, a country of fewer than 10 million people, punches above its weight in many fields. Newsweek lists Sheba Medical Center as the 9th best hospital in the world. The Center for World University Rankings lists 4 Israeli universities in the top 1% worldwide: Hebrew University, the Weizmann Institute, Tel Aviv University and the Technion. The UN’s WIPO lists Israel as #14 in its Global Innovation Index.
