HANNATON, Israel (SDJW) — Students from the Hannaton Educational Center, a pluralistic school at Kibbutz Hannaton, participated in an egalitarian service at the Kotel last Thursday which was disrupted by Haredi men opposed to the genders praying together. Pushing and shoving and numerous insults such as “You are not Jews” marred the occasion.
The prayer session had been organized by representatives in Israel of the Reform and Conservative (Masorti) movements.
“I’m very proud that our 37 mechina students chose to attend this service, and especially proud of their maturity and restraint and their commitment to ensuring that the Kotel be a place for everyone,” commented Yoav Ende, director of the educational center.
Among the reactions of the students to the melee were two articles written in English. They follow:
How Can Such A Thing Happen?
By Adiella Finer
We decided as a group to attend the rally that took place as a result of a mechitza (partition) that was put up at the egalitarian section of the Kotel by the chief rabbi of Jerusalem. When we arrived, it took a while until all of the anger, from both sides, came out. We started with prayers and moved on to songs. There was verbal and physical abuse, objects flew through the air, and I felt the hatred from both sides. And the feeling was terrible.
How can such a thing happen in our nation, a nation that is supposed to be united? How can we come to a compromise when one side is trying to physically push them out of the Kotel plaza and delegitimize their right to live according to their beliefs and the other side is trying to protect its place and its existence in the state?
In the end, we were pushed into a corner, one side starts to sing “Peace will come” and the other side pushes and breaks into the circle. I cannot describe to you the emotions we all felt. It was so hard not to respond back. I felt so much anger inside when they screamed at us “you are not Jews”.
I so want to believe that a day will come when we will live in peace and both sides can live their lives as they choose, according to their beliefs, and receive legal recognition. The people who stood next to me believe: “You are not required to complete the work, but neither are you free to desist from it.” Our obligation is to work towards change, without expecting that we ourselves we see that change.
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‘Not a Jew’
By Zehava Amar
Not a Jew,
That’s what he said a moment before he spit, cursed, yelled, threw a stone, shoved.
Not a Jew,
That’s what he thinks of me, just because I believe in real equality.
Not a Jew,
He turned red from all the effort invested in screaming at the world.
Not a Jew,
That’s what I am in the eyes of my charedi brother.
We came to the Kotel today in order to pray in an egalitarian service, without any separation based on gender, without masks, without any preconceptions, just with the wish to demonstrate love. Each time, they surrounded us, whistled, pushed us. Why? I ask over and over again.
We will never stop, never. We will fight for full and honest recognition that other opinions exist.
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Preceding provided by the Hannaton Educational Center