Israel cabinet now allows non-Orthodox Jewish to pray at Western Wall

Israel’s Cabinet voted to allow non-Orthodox Jewish prayer at the Western Wall in Jerusalem.

Israel’s Cabinet voted Sunday to allow non-Orthodox Jewish prayer at the Western Wall in Jerusalem, a move advocates said marked a historic show of government support for liberal streams of Judaism.

Traditionally, only Orthodox Jews are allowed to pray at the Western Wall – and men and women are kept separate.

The new policy, at one of Judaism’s holiest sites, would create a space for egalitarian prayer and mixed-gender ceremonies for non-Orthodox Jews.

Rabbi Danny Rich, chief executive of Liberal Judaism, the sister movement of Reform Judaism in Israel, said: “This is a landmark decision for Jews across the globe. This is something we are doing for Israel, to help build a vibrant democratic state”. Since then, a temporary prayer platform was built for Conservative Jews, but they said it was not always available for them to use.

For years, a liberal Jewish women’s group has angered ultra-Orthodox Jews by holding prayers that do not follow Orthodox religious restrictions on women.

The Wailing Wall is considered the only standing remnant of the complex that once housed the Jewish Biblical Temple, the holiest site in Judaism.

Shmuel Rabinowitz, the ultra-Orthodox rabbi of the Western Wall, said in a statement that the decision left him with “a heavy heart” but that he feels relieved that the Women of the Wall group has agreed to pray in the new area.

Deri, who was handpicked to be Interior Minister by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, went on to say that the Kotel (Western Wall) compromise was a bad thing.

At present, men and women – irrespective of whichever branch of Judaism they belong to – are segregated whilst praying at the wall, with the male prayer section disproportionately larger than the female section.

Irina Nevzlin, chair of the board of directors of The Museum of the Jewish People at Beit Hatfutsot, said in a statement: “To see such a thorny issue resolved, through discussion and compromise, underlines the huge importance of building bridges and connections across the Jewish world”.

“This decision will enable Prime Minister Netanyahu to say he is living up to his promise to the Jewish Federation of North America to enable any Jew to feel at home in Israel”, Regev said.

“If you look at the charter of WOW from 20 years ago it talks of prayer in the women’s section of the Western Wall”.

North American Jewish leaders are praising the vote to create the new arena.

“It stands to open the floodgates of women’s rights in the public sphere in Israel… and opens the floodgates for Jewish pluralism in Israel”, said Shira Pruce of Women of the Wall.

Last year, the government undid sweeping reforms its predecessor pushed forward aimed at easing conversion to Judaism and weakening the grip of Israel’s Orthodox establishment. “We’ll continue to argue for equal treatment for our rabbis”, said Wernick, who participated in the negotiations over mixed-gender prayer.