Women of the Western Wall: Holy places Rabbi stole our Torah scroll

Neither men or women are allowed to bring Torah scrolls to the Western Wall, but men are given access to Torah scrolls present on the site whereas women are not.

JANUARY 1, 2020 23:59

Yochi Rappeport-Zierler (center) at a Women of the Wall prayer service at the Western Wall (photo credit: HILA SHILONI) — Yochi Rappeport-Zierler (center) at a Women of the Wall prayer service at the Western Wall

(photo credit: HILA SHILONI)

The Rabbi of the Western Wall, Rabbi Shmuel Rabinovitch, allegedly confiscated a Torah scroll owned by a Jewish community in Sacramento, California because women attempted to use it to pray, Women of the Wall said in a press release on Wednesday.

Neither men nor women are allowed to bring Torah scrolls to the Western Wall, but men are given access to Torah scrolls present on the site. Women are not, a spokesperson for the group told The Jerusalem Post. The women entered the Western Wall on Sunday and their Torah scroll was taken from them, they said.

When they finished their prayers and requested it back they were asked to sign a document stating they violated the holiness of the site. When they refused, the Torah Scroll was not returned to them, the press release stated.

Rabinovitch, the press release claims, gave the Torah Scroll to the police, claiming it was lost on the site.

“It was stolen,” the organization said, adding “we regret the bullying behavior by the Rabbi of the Western Wall and demand he apologizes.”