EDITOR'S WATCH

> The Strife Within

"In spite of everything, I still believe that
people are really good at heart. "
—Anne Frank ✓

ews reports that fervently
Orthodox Jews (haredim)
harassed Conservative Jews
at mixed-gender
Shavuot services
on the Western
Wall Plaza in the
Old City angered
me.
They angered
me because heck-
ling and assault
have no place at
this holiest of
ROBERT A.
sites for our
SKLAR
4,000-year-old
Editor
faith.
And they
angered me
because these haredim, who disrupted
200 members of the Israeli Conserva-
tive movement, contrasted sharply
with those I had encountered on the
third Michigan Miracle Mission to
Israel this spring.
Well aware of the tension between
Orthodox and non-Orthodox Jews in
Jerusalem, and how the Western Wall
— the Kotel — is unwittingly the bat-
tlefield of choice, my Kabbalat Shab-
bat visit on April 23 was intimidating
at first.
I waited anxiously as the yeshiva
students gathered in the plaza to
dance to the Wail ro welcome Shab-
bat. But I hesitated approaching the
Wall myself out of fear that the hared-
im already there would spurn me.
But as the yeshiva students chanted
and danced, and in a welcoming ges-
ture invited men from our group to
join them, I headed straight to the
Wall, where I'd longed to be since
arriving in Israel five days earlier.
Stunningly, I witnessed Reform and
Conservative Jews from Detroit pray-
ing alongside black-hat Israelis, who
c ffered a hand in help, not to harm.
One of my most cherished memo-
ries was sharing precious moments
davening with a Lubavitch Jew, who
cared more about me as a human
being than a wallet bearer (begging is
rampant at the Wall).
Norman Finkelstein of Temple Kol
Ami, also on the mission, found him-
self caught in a very personal, very
peaceful moment at the Wall. As he
recounted:
"I felt a direct pipeline to God. I
felt more connect,::d there than I had
anywhere else. I'm not especially

observant, but
this made my
Jewishness even
more important.
Ar that moment,
I talked to God
— and God
talked to me."
But admitted-
ly, there was no
reason for anyone
to question our
being there, given
that we followed
Orthodox tradi-
tion and didn't
engage in mixed-
gender prayer.
Fast forward to
May 22 —
Shavuot, which
ironically marks
the time 3,200
years ago when
God gave the
Jews of Moses'
time the Ten
Michigan Miracle Mission III goers pray at the Western Wall during Kabbalat Shabbat on April 23.
Commandments
and they, in turn,
I respect the centuries-old tradition
Zedek students studying at Nativ, a
accepted them as laws to live by.
of
separating
men and women in
college-level
leadership
program
in
Trouble brewed about 90 minutes
prayer
at
the
Kotel.
But I see no rea-
Jerusalem,
e-mailed
to
me
is
especially
into the Conservative minyan. It
son
to
honor
that
separation
in the
insightful
and
tolerant.
In
part,
they
boiled over following recitation of the
farthest
reaches
of
the
modern
plaza.
wrote:
Shehechiyanu (blessing of gratitude)
The
traditions
of
other
Jews
may
not
"It
is
not
the
fault
of
the
haredim;
and the singing of Israel's national
be
as
old,
but
they
are
just
as
strong
as
they
are
not
bad
people.
In
our
opin-
anthem, Hatikva.
those
of
the
haredim.
ion,
it
the
fault
of
the
education
sys-
That's when protestors — a small
We as a people should celebrate
tem, and of the rabbis, whom many of
group of misguided teenagers among
our
spiritual diversity. But in our
the
ultra-Orthodox
the thousands of
obsession
to label ourselves —
blindly
follow.
We
peaceful haredim
whether
Orthodox,
Conservative,
hold
no
grudge
who were there —
Reform
or
Reconstructionist
— too
against
any
indi-
tossed verbal epi-
many
of
us
overlook
that,
ultimately,
vidual
involved
in
thets and plastic
were all Jews.
what happened at
bottles; at least
As a people, we've won tougher
the Kotel."
two women were
battles
against slavery and persecution.
Some of the
hit.
We've
joined
forces to deny the
protestors
were
Fortunately, the
..
enemy.
Now
strife
lurks within the
Americans
study-
Jerusalem police
shadows
of
our
holiest
site.
ing
in
Israeli
and Israeli soldiers
One
group
of
Jews
has
neither the
yeshivas.
Their
bot-
ringing the Con-
religious
nor
divine
right
to
summarily
tle
tossing
at
the
tra-
servative minyan
decree
that
another
somehow
isn't
ditions
of
non-
blocked physical
"Jewish enough" just because it's
Orthodox Jews is
contact. That
engaging in mixed-gender public
worlds away from the attitude of
allowed the minyan to conclude and
prayer in a respectful way on the
Detroit's
Orthodox
community
The
worshippers to leave in relative calm.
Western
Wall Plaza.
vast
majority
of
our
Orthodox
neighbors
If the protestors were out to win
Alas,
I
want my Judaism, the kind I
in
Oak
Park,
Southfield
and
West
converts, however, they failed. Instead,
can
be
proud
of, to ripple not with con-
Bloomfield
acknowledge
Judaism's
many
they showcased their ignorance, the
frontation
but
with lovingkindness.
faces
and
don't
resort
to
proselytizing
or
byproduct of teachers who eschew a
ridicule.
But
they
do
strive
to
teach
tolerant mindset.
Torah to those of us thirsty enough to
For these haredim to brand non-
To reach Robert Sklar, leave a
learn.
Orthodox Jews as Nazis, and shower
voice
mail message at (248) 354-
This
Shabbat,
I
hope
and
pray
that
them with sexist remarks, is inexcus-
6060,
ext. 258, or e-mail
blessings
replace
bottles
on
the
plaza
able. It's a curious tactic for a group
rsklar@thejewishnews.com
of
the
only
remaining
wall
of
the
desperately trying to elicit support.
mount of the Second Temple.
What two Congregation Shaarey

... to brand
non-Orthodox
Jews as Nazis .
is inexcusable.

6/11
1999

Detroit Jewish News

35

