Ramat Beit Shemesh resident Aryeh Sonnenberg was arrested on Monday morning 12 Iyar 5773 for disturbing the peace on Har Bayis. He was davening, Srugim reports. Attorney Aviad Visuli explains police lack any legal basis for his client’s arrest.
Sonnenberg explains he was exercising his right to daven on Har Bayis, the holiest place possible, which he adds is backed by no less than 15 High Court rulings. He explains he did not violate any law.
When contacted by YWN-ISRAEL, Sonnenberg added “The conduct of police to specifically prohibit Jews from davening at the holiest place cries out to Heaven and it must be stopped. I was asked to stop by a Jewish policeman and not by a Waqf! The Supreme Court has repeatedly ruled that davening is permitted but police continue to ignore these rulings when in actuality, it is legal”.
Jewish visitors to Har Habayis are informed as they enter the area that they are forbidden to recite any tefilos. Police regularly act to detain anyone violating this, claiming Jews davening sparks Arab violence.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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9 Responses
Only in Israel today do Jews get arrested for praying.
terrible that a Jew is arrested by other Jews for the offense of davening and at the holy site of har habiyat.
Well Al Pi Halacha people aren’t allowed on har habayis anyways. So stay off of it!!!
This is a moot point, since the Gedoley Poskim do not allow Jews to go onto Har Habayis anyway. Traditionally the charedim of the old yishuv never went there. This is a new “psak” which is not supported by the living Poskim, like Rav Chaim Kanievsky, Rav Nissin Karelitz etc. Rav Elyashuv did not endorse this in his lifetime either.
Rav Ovadiah Yosef has a multi page teshuva where he goes thru every view of the Rishonim as to exactly where one may and may not go on Har Habayis. He shows the diversity of opinions in the Rishonim. In conclusion Rav Ovadya Yosef PPaskens that NO ONE should go there since there is no place where there is an agreement among poskim that it is OK to go there!!!
The Talmid of The Rashba writes that the absolute best place to Daven is at the Kosel, that is the place where the shechina resides. Period! That means that it gets no better anyplace than at the Kosel. When the Bais Hamikdosh is rebuilt with the coming of Moshiach and the ending of Golus, that will change. But not until then!
If this was a piece of meat there would not be a single Posek that would allow anyone to eat it, and that is an Issue “LAV” Why would anyone put his eternal existance into peril by going there.
Who cares what the WAQF says? Who cares what the police say? This is what halacha says!
Going up there is misplaced, misguided and a mistake!
what are people doing going on har habayis when the gedolim clearly say we don’t know the demarcating lines that we may not cross even going to a mikva (some thing need para aduma, etc)? Playing with Kareis is not a joke…
Apparantly going there is a political staement rather than a religiouis one.
Interesting, was he arrested for disturbing peace or for praying?
Contradiction in the article.
In israel those are one and the same…
I am happy to have this forum to answer your questions.
My Rav and posek allows entering Har Habayis (after mikva, and according to the other halachos involved) as long as one is going for the right reasons. Not as a tourist or as a political gesture, for example. I went to daven. I am responsible to his psakim, as he is my Rav.
The Radvaz, also of the Gedoley HaPoskim, paskens that the rock under the dome is the Even Hashesiya, which together with all measurements in Maseches Middos, gives us the tchum of the Cheil.
We stay several meters away from the Cheil to ensure that we are nowhere near even the issurei derabanan, let alone issurei kareis.
So, “my” halacha (and the Rambam, Rebbi Akiva Eiger, the Chassam Sofer and countless others after the Churban) is that it is mutar to go.