Rabbi's Messages

Whose Kotel Is It Anyway?

On Monday, November 21, 2016

(HAVE YOU JOINED ARZA CANADA YET?)

The last few months have brought some remarkable developments for the Reform Jewish relationship with Israel. Earlier this year, the Israeli government and the liberal movements agreed in principle to the creation of an egalitarian section of the Western Wall. But since the government backed away from that plan shortly thereafter, the rest of the year has seen such dramatic events as: mixed-gender services at the Kotel Plaza, disrupted by whistling from Ultra-Orthodox bystanders; the continuation of Women of the Wall’s monthly prayer services, amidst escalating protests; Reform and Conservative rabbis openly and defiantly carrying Torah scrolls, singing Hineh Mah Tov surrounded by jeering crowds.

The irony is that the Western Wall, which has become such a flashpoint and such an important symbol, is in reality just a wall. If you go back 2000 years, it was simply the outer retaining wall of the huge platform that held the Temple in Jerusalem. Certainly it was part of the Temple complex, and in that sense imbued with some kind of holiness, but it was not in itself a place of prayer or ritual.

So what’s changed? What has made that wall – that pile of bricks - holy and special, worth fighting over (even with fellow Jews)? I believe it’s because the Kotel – and the Temple that it was part of – are meant to belong to all Jews.

Our ancient ancestors believed that the Temple in Jerusalem was the centre of the world. Literally. The medieval map to the side shows the continents of the known world laid out like a flower, with Jerusalem at its middle. And, for Jews, the Temple served as a uniting force – in times of war they defended against conquerors, and in times of peace they brought their first fruits, to the geographical middle of the country.

That notion of the Temple as a uniting force, as a heritage of ALL Jews, is part of what motivates the Reform and Conservative campaign to “liberate” the Kotel today. And it informs our views of Israel as a whole –the Jewish state should be a place in which all Jews are free to worship and live their Jewish lives. This is the work being done by our Reform movement (which has quietly grown into more than 40 congregations and dozens of preschools around Israel). It is the work being done in our partnership with Congregation Birkat Shalom at Kibbutz Gezer, and it is the work being supported by our membership in ARZA Canada.

ARZA Canada, the Reform Zionist voice in Canada, represents our unique Reform Jewish perspective - one that is loving and supportive of Israel, but also working to create an Israel that is a home for all Jews and a shining example of our Jewish values. We are lucky this year to have an ARZA Scholar in Residence – Rabbi Benjie Gruber – with us in the GTA for the year! Our support for ARZA Canada (annual membership is $36) supports that work of programming, advocacy, and building Reform Jewish life in the Jewish state. If you are interested in joining the nearly 1/3 of our congregation who are ARZA members, let me know or call the office.

L’shalom,
Rabbi Micah Streiffer