The Reform and Conservative Movements in the United States are not sitting by idly and accepting planned changes for the egalitarian prayer area near the Kosel, the latter being the result of chareidi pressure. Leaders of the movements are organizing an emergency visit later this month to Israel, at which time they will meet with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, and express their protest in person.
PM Netanyahu towards the end of March met with chareidi leaders to hear their objections and his bureau chief, David Sharan, is expected to present his modified plan, one that is mutually acceptable. This is to be accomplished in 60 days, the end of May and that is why the Reform and Conservative leaders are arriving at month’s end, to pressure the Prime Minister at the time a new arrangement is to be agreed upon.
Sharan has also met with Reform and Conservative leaders in Israel and the latter explained they are unwilling to accept major changes to the planned egalitarian prayer area and they are insistent that they are represented on the prayer area’s governing body as was first announced by Mr. Netanyahu. The leadership of the Reform and Conservative communities are fighting to maintain the advances they achieved of late in Israel as they plan to apply pressure in person rather than lobbying from N. America as they have often done in the past.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
Join the official YWN WhatsApp status
3 Responses
they are the destruction of the jewish people
may hashem hold back his anger
They shouldn’t even have a say nor should they be able to own property in Eretz Yisroel. Before the 1930’s they wouldn’t even be counted amoung the Jewish people.
It seems strange that Reform and Conservative leaders are concerned with any kind of “prayer” anywhere, surely not at the Kosel. The entire business is stuff interpreted and propagated in the (gasp!) Talmud. That the Kosel is a “holy site” altogether is something those black-clad Orthodox rabbis have been promulgating since anyone can remember. All of a sudden, these movements are concerned with “interpretations” of Orthodox rabbis, that the Temple Mount used to have some “holy” structure on it? And lo and behold, these “tribal notions” about an old wall suddenly have validity in their eyes? BTW, I’d make the same argument for the WoW who insist on donning Tefillin (although this is not mentioned in the article). Goodness, why on earth would they want to wear those “ugly black boxes” that are the product of those “black-clad rabbis’ interpretations.” At least paint them pink or violet, not black! I would have thought they’d prefer to wear flowers on their heads, much prettier than those black boxes (and what about the poor animals needed to produce those boxes…?) Bottom line: the rabbis who “made up” the rules about women singing aloud and separating the genders during prayer — are the same ones who promulgate the “legend” about a Temple having stood on that hill, and about that wall being “holy,” and made up the rules about those “black boxes.” Why are some rules and traditions acceptable to the Reform -Conservative, and some are not? Talk about inconsistency?