The only prayer platform with access to the Western Wall stones for progressive Jews has been shut for almost two years. Jerusalem City Hall has raised new obstacles to the repair of some wooden planks in that platform.
In July 2018, a large stone fell out of the wall above the prayer platform, which is part of the egalitarian prayer section of the Western Wall at its southern end. It caused damage to the wooden floor of the platform.
That part of the egalitarian prayer section was closed down for safety reasons, allowing the Israel Antiquities Authority to carry out repairs when it was found that other stones were in danger of falling.
After some 20 months, the work was concluded in March.
Efforts to repair the wooden planks of the platform have stalled due to an appeal against the work that was upheld by the Jerusalem Municipality engineer. He issued a work-stop order.
Although the larger section of the egalitarian prayer area is still open, it has not been possible to touch the Western Wall stones as in the central plaza.
Dr. Yizhar Hess, director of the Masorti Movement in Israel (Conservative), said he was “at a loss” as to how to proceed after two years of delays and obstacles in reopening the site.
“It is now nearly two years since the stone fell from the Western Wall, and it is not just that the repairs [of the wall] took an unreasonable amount of time,” he said. “Now we have to wait even longer for repairs to the platform, which could be done in half an hour.”
The ongoing delays and obstacles were “deliberate abuse,” Hess said, adding that if a stone had fallen out of the wall above the central plaza, any repairs would not have taken more than a week to fix.
“It is hard to get away from the feeling that there is a deliberate attempt at foot-dragging,” he said, adding that increasing numbers of Israelis had been conducting bar- and bat-mitzvah ceremonies and praying at the egalitarian prayer site before the COVID-19 pandemic erupted.
“We had more than 100,000 worshipers a year, and nearly 1,200 religious ceremonies… Many families understood that it is so logical to celebrate together as a family, and that to send a grandmother to stand on a chair in order to peek at their grandson is not respectful, not appropriate and not necessary,” Hess said.
Rabbi Jacob Blumenthal, CEO of the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism and its Rabbinical Assembly, said the egalitarian prayer space was created “after a long and challenging set of negotiations. Jerusalem City Hall should “permit the repairs to be completed forthwith so that families may continue to pray and celebrate together,” he said.
Senior level sources level involved in the issue told the Post said that in July 2018 Jerusalem City Hall issued a dangerous structure order following the stone fall at the site, and that the City Hall issued an administrative order preventing the completion of the repairs at the prayer platform.
The Prime Minister’s Office said it is working through the Israel Antiquities Authority and with Jerusalem City Hall to remove the current obstacles.
Jerusalem City Hall said in response that “recently building work at the site was noticed which required the examination of the necessary permits to continue the work. This issue is currently being examined by the professionals.”