Netanyahu rejects statements by government ministers, lawmakers attacking liberal Jews

Bennett declined to say whether the decision would lead to additional recognition for religious pluralism in Israel or equal funding for non-Orthodox institutions and rabbis.

A fter years of disputes, the Israeli government on Sunday made the historic move of approving a plan to designate an area at the Western Wall in Jerusalem for egalitarian prayer for non-Orthodox Jews.

Netanyahu’s statement comes after some government officials attacked liberal streams of Judaism and associated movements, who signed on to the agreement approved on Sunday, including the Reform and Conservative movement, Women of the Wall and the Jewish Agency.

It is easy to assume wrongly that American Jews either don’t matter or they will continue supporting Israel because they have no other Jewish homeland. They resist any inroads from liberals often considered to be second-class Jews who ordain women and gays and are overly inclusive toward converts and interfaith marriages.

Traditional and separated men’s and women’s sections will remain at the Wall’s northern end, while the mixed gender section will be situated at its southern end.

This decision provides for a third prayer space at the Wailing Wall, the holiest site of Judaism, in addition to those already booked separately for men and women and run by ultra-Orthodox Jews.

 The Western Wall, in Hebrew known as Kotel, is a remnant of the wall that surrounded the Temple Mount.

In the piece, titled “Don’t Shoot the Messenger, Israel”, Ban reiterates many of his earlier comments, calling Israeli settlement activity “an affront to the Palestinian people”, adding that “it is human nature to resist occupation”.

The women’s demands were anathema to Israel’s ultra-Orthodox religious establishment, which manages the site.

A battle lasting more than a quarter of a century over the Western Wall, the religious site revered by Jews all over the world, has resulted in a historic deal to create a space where men and women are permitted to pray together in equality.

The area will be located at the south of the Western Wall Plaza, near Robinson’s Arch, the area of the Kotel where, in 2013, women were first allowed to wear prayer shawls while praying at the Wall. Monthly Rosh Chodesh worship led by Women of the Wall has at times been met with violence, sparking anger between Diaspora leaders and Israeli religious authorities. He also said, the Times of Israel reported, “The Reform are responsible for the bad intermarriage that we’ve been witnessing in the United States”. “It’s totally clear that the most minimal step of giving access to every Jew according to his views and beliefs in this holy place is the most basic thing that is required”, said Yedidia Stern of the Israel Democracy Institute think tank.

With this new poll, we see that most Israelis don’t just need American Jews on board, they also want American Jews as part of Israel’s Jewish family.