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<\/p>\nBy Isabel Kershner, The New York Times<\/p>\n
JERUSALEM \u2014 It seemed a solution worthy of Solomon:\u00a0create a permanent egalitarian prayer space<\/a>\u00a0at the Western Wall alongside the gender-segregated area that has been the subject of vitriolic protest.<\/p>\n The Israeli government\u2019s compromise decision this week was hailed as \u201chistoric\u201d and \u201crevolutionary,\u201d yet it also underscored the divide between\u00a0Israel<\/a>\u00a0and its Orthodox establishment and the diaspora, particularly in the United States, where most Jews identify as Reform or Conservative.<\/p>\n Most American Jews say they\u00a0feel emotionally attached to Israel<\/a>. Many also say they do not feel at home here, and the Western Wall, the iconic place of worship in Jerusalem\u2019s Old City that attracts throngs of ultra-Orthodox Jews and tourists daily, has been the highest-profile symbol of that alienation.<\/p>\n \u201cThis would not have happened had it not been for strong, growing pressure from American Jewry,\u201d Uri Regev, a Reform rabbi and Israel-based advocate of religious liberty and pluralism, said of the government\u2019s move. \u201cIn my view, this was not predicated on the powers that be seeing the light, but it was a response to very concrete pressure conveyed to Israel through diplomatic representatives, Jewish federations and key donors.\u201d<\/p>\n Mr. Regev has long argued that too much attention had been devoted to the Western Wall compared with other areas of Israeli life where a growing number of Jews have been chafing at the grip of the strictly Orthodox rabbinate, which does not recognize Reform or Conservative Judaism. In the absence of any provision for civil marriage, some 300,000 Israelis who immigrated from the former Soviet Union, and who do not qualify as fully Jewish under the Halakha, or religious law, cannot get a marriage license in Israel, and the rabbinate also controls most of the country\u2019s burial sites.<\/p>\n Now the question is whether the new prayer space at the wall \u2014 also known by its Hebrew name, the Kotel \u2014 is a first step toward more fundamental change or only a resolution to a localized problem.<\/p>\n Mr. Regev acknowledged that the compromise, \u201cin some sense, can be described as dramatic.\u201d But, he added, \u201cI hope that this euphoric phase will not weaken our ability to look reality in the face\u201d and \u201cto understand that compelling battles still lie ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cA Kotel B that we can pull out and beautify \u2014 that luxury does not exist when it comes, say, to the right to marry,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The power of the Orthodox rabbinate largely stems from Israeli realpolitik. Governing coalitions on the right and left have for decades made deals with ultra-Orthodox political parties to give them wide berth over religious matters in exchange for support on diplomatic or budget priorities.<\/p>\n The current government, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is the most conservative in years. Its ministers have been promoting divisive legislation \u2014 like a\u00a0\u201cloyalty in culture\u201d<\/a>\u00a0initiative and legislation that would\u00a0require nongovernmental organizations to disclose funding<\/a>\u00a0they receive from foreign governments. Such legislation has brought condemnation from liberal Jews abroad.<\/p>\n The Kotel decision, after years of fierce discussion and delay, came as a rare contra to this trend. But the timing was more prosaic, and it probably does not portend any broader shift. Officials said the parties were pushed to wrap up negotiations because Mr. Netanyahu\u2019s point person on the matter, Avichai Mandelblit, was leaving his post as cabinet secretary to become attorney general.<\/p>\n The new prayer space, where men and women can worship together, is to receive public funding. It will be governed by a committee led by the head of the Jewish Agency, a quasi-governmental organization that works with the Diaspora, and will include representatives from the Reform and Conservative movements, the Jewish Federations of North America, the Israeli government and Women of the Wall, a group that for 27 years has been agitating against the male-dominated establishment.<\/p>\n Advocates say this amounts to state recognition of the non-Orthodox branches of Judaism, though the laconic cabinet resolution sidestepped the issue by avoiding the words \u201cReform\u201d and \u201cConservative,\u201d instead referring obliquely to \u201cthe issue of prayer arrangements at the Western Wall.\u201d<\/p>\n A last-minute argument over the wording at Sunday\u2019s cabinet meeting ended with the government decision \u201cto implement\u201d the recommendations of the advisory team, rather than \u201cto adopt\u201d them. The resolution passed, though the ultra-Orthodox coalition members voted against it \u2014 and got in their licks.<\/p>\n Referring to Reform Jews, Moshe Gafni, an ultra-Orthodox Parliament leader, said, \u201cThere will never, ever be recognition for this group of clowns, not at the wall and not anywhere else.\u201d<\/p>\n The plan is likely to face many hurdles. The wall is a remnant of the retaining wall that surrounded the Temple Mount, revered by Jews as the location of their ancient temples and the holiest site in Judaism. The mount also houses Al Aqsa Mosque compound, one of the three holiest sites in Islam.<\/p>\n