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By LETTERS TO THE EDITORLetters(photo credit: REUTERS)Judaism in food...A Jewish woman who claims to be a practicing Jew orders food at a treif (non-kosher) restaurant and then sues the restaurant because it served her treif (“Bacon in their food,” September 6).This should be a lesson for similarly “practicing Jews.” Make up your mind! You can’t have it both ways!CHANA PINTOTel Mond ...and among JewsYou write in your editorial “Houston and the Kotel” (September 6) that Israel has an obligation to make the world’s only Jewish state a place that is welcoming for all Jews, regardless of their denomination and affiliation, and that the present government should stop dragging its feet on plans for establishing an egalitarian prayer space at the Western Wall.This is misleading. The Kotel has always been a welcoming place, day and night, for over 10 million visitors yearly, mainly Jews, from Israel and all over the world.Reform and Conservative Jews are also welcomed as long as they respect and behave according to the established halachic rituals that have been performed at the site for ages.The few hundred Reform Jews who want to destroy the unifying power of the site are not looking only for changes in rituals, like mixed-gender prayers or women wearing tefillin and performing the Blessing of the High Priest. This is just the beginning. The next stage will be to perform single-gender and mixed marriages there, as well as having a fine meal there at midday on Yom Kippur and bringing hametz on Passover.Let’s stay where we have been for the past 1,000 years: peace, tranquility, respect and sanctity at the Western Wall. Reform Jews can continue to visit, only with respect. This is the real unifying power of the site.A little bit of respect, please.SHLOMO FELDMANNGivatayimIn your editorial you say: “Mutual responsibility or sticking up for one another (arvut in Hebrew) is a central Jewish value” and “every Jew, including the Jewish state, has an obligation to help.” On the same page there is an op-ed by Yosef Landa on unity and different opinions of Jews (“Forget about Jewish unity?” Comment & Features, September 6). It states that as Jews, “our kinship is not the product of similar ideas or shared values, or even our commitment to Torah and mitzvot....”These are concepts that I believe are very central to our Jewish faith. However, actions are louder than words.My husband and I have been members of the Bet Israel Masorti Congregation of Netanya since we made aliya in 2009.Unlike the roughly 200 Orthodox synagogues in the city, our shul, like the Reform synagogue here, does not get financial support from the state.We depend on dues, fund-raising and donations to maintain our place of worship.Bet Israel is providing support for Russian immigrants, a daily minyan, services on Friday nights, Saturdays and all the holidays, and a secretary available to help those in the community who have difficulty with Hebrew.We have programs to enrich the Jewish experience and we welcome everyone to study and pray with us.Our synagogue is badly in need of support and financial aid. Our beautiful building, built some 25 years ago, has failing heating and cooling, and the roof needs major repairs. Since the building is on a 99-year lease, the roof should be the responsibility of the city.(When ceramic tiles on the exterior were falling off several years ago, it was difficult getting it repaired by the city, so we are not optimistic about getting the roof fixed without a struggle.) Therefore, it is difficult to read the concepts in your editorial and the op-ed without wondering where the generosity and unity of Israel are when we are trying to survive yet are not recognized or supported as Jews.SUZANNE GOODMANCaesarea
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