Kiryat Ono Chief Rabbi HaGaon Rav Dr. Ratzon Arussi Shlita warns that the egalitarian prayer area that is being set up near the Kosel may chas v’sholom lead to civil war. He explains the Kosel is the place Am Yisrael used to daven, and it should be a location that unites, not divide as will be the case once the new area is up-and-running.
The rabbi points out that unfortunately, the cabinet reached its decision prior to consulting to the Chief Rabbinate Council, of which he is a member. He feels that the council would form a committee to probe the matter and then report to the cabinet and only then should a decision have been reached.
In addition to being the chief rabbi of a city, dayan, and av beis din, Rabbi Arussi has his bachelors in law from Bar Ilan University, as well as a masters and doctorate in law from Tel Aviv University.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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8 Responses
The HAGAON that is also a DR.that is also a Rabbi, that got his Degrees in various Universities.
Sound very Conflicted.
The Civil war mentioned, may very well be the different sides of the Esteemed “Rabbi DR. Gaon” Competing.
If ,by accident, hagbah and g’lila was does by men only, would they have to do it over or would they just use women only the next time around and call it a day? Just curious.
The sefer torah they using is prbly not kosher any way right?
Al aile ani boichiyou.
One of these type of people reported feeling spiritually uplifted after doning a Tallis. Turned out their weren’t any ציצית attached to the corners!
These people are the New Hellenists full of American goyishe values.The Torah clearly defines that Jewish prayer is not mixed or “egalitarian”.These foreign ideas should have NO PLACE at the Kotel .WE WANT JUDAISM NOT “PLURALISM” AT THE KOTEL. These Neo-hellenists are going the way of the previous hellenists -either assimilating or coming back to Judaism and becoming frum.They destroyed large segments of American Jewry,we certainly don’t need them here!
#1 Of course, this is not the main issue here, but even if higher general education is not the approach of major segments of Torah-loyal Jewry, it _is_ part of other segments’outlook which are also loyal to Torah. Labeling them as “conflicted” or a engaging in a “civil war” is, in my view, counterproductive. This goes back to the different approaches of different groups within European Jewry in the 19th century. Let’s not let lack of respect for different groups all loyal to Torah interfere in the united front that needs to be made assuring that those not loyal to Torah do not corrupt the “kodesh” and make additional inroads.
Given that the hilonim have the guns and control the economy and have overwhelming foreign support, a civil war isn’t likely. But the more secular Israel gets, the more the religious zionists will be discredited, and the more the hareidim will be pushed into position to pose an alternative. If the religious zionists have to choose between being religous and being zionists, most will choose to remain Jews, and will be forced to ally with the hareidim, giving the hareidim the demographic strength to serious attempt “regime change” (using ballots not bullets).