Ultra-Orthodox Rabbis Renew Call for Protests Against Women of the Wall

Image by Haaretz

By Haaretz/Judy Maltz July 7, 2013

Tensions are running high ahead of Monday morning’s Rosh Chodesh prayers at the Western Wall, as leading ultra-Orthodox rabbis have called on young seminary women to come out in large numbers to protest the monthly service held by Women of the Wall, a pluralistic prayer group.

Since the seminaries are currently on summer breaks, special arrangements are to be made to transport the young women to the Western Wall. The rabbis instructed them to arrive at the Kotel at 6:30 A.M., a half hour before the scheduled start of the Women of the Wall prayer service.

According to the Haredi portal Kikar Hashabat, the call was put out by Rabbi Aharon Leib Shteinman, the leader of the Lithuanian ‏(non-Hasidic‏) branch of the Ashkenazi ultra-Orthodox community. It said he had the support of other prominent ultra-Orthodox rabbis.

Two months ago, thousands of young seminary girls came to the Kotel in an effort to disrupt the Women of the Wall service. The plaza area became a scene of violence then when ultra-Orthodox young men began hurling chairs and water bottles at members of the women’s activist group, and later, rocks at the bus that delivered them from the scene. Last month, only a few dozen ultra-Orthodox female protestors showed up at the wall, and security was especially high with physical barriers erected to distance ultra-Orthodox protestors from Women of the Wall.

Read more at Haaretz.com.

A message from our Publisher & CEO Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

The coming year promises to be filled with more complex and historic developments. We are entering an era where independent, fact-based Jewish journalism will be more important than ever. We need to be ready for whatever 2025 will bring, and with your help, we can be.

We’ve set a goal to raise $260,000 by December 31. That’s an ambitious goal, but one that will give us the resources we need to invest in the high quality news, opinion, analysis and cultural coverage that isn’t available anywhere else.

If you feel inspired to make an impact, now is the time to give something back. Join us as a member at your most generous level.

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO