Tearful chief rabbi holds Orthodox prayers at egalitarian Western Wall plaza

Jerusalem’s Sephardic chief rabbi on Tuesday conducted an Orthodox prayer service at the mixed-gender plaza at the Western Wall, a site newly designated for Reform and Conservative worship.

Accompanied by police and some two dozen worshipers, Rabbi Shomo Amar had a makeshift barrier to separate men and women erected before presiding over prayers at the site.

The new egalitarian pavilion at the Western Wall has pitted the Reform and Conservative movements in Israel and the United States against Israel’s Orthodox-controlled Chief Rabbinate, which administers the holy site. The Conservative Movement in Israel was outraged by the “provocative” visit Tuesday, and called it an act of “deliberate sabotage” for Jewish relations.

Amar, who last week publicly denounced the new plaza as an “unforgivable wrong,” burst into tears after concluding the Tuesday morning prayer service, where he vowed to remain “vigilant” in the face of the desecration of the Western Wall.

“The entire Kotel [Western Wall] is drenched in holiness and was given to the people of Israel by God,” he said. “Dividing the wall damages the sanctity of this place, damages the unity of the nation, and will cause weeping for generations to come,” Amar warned.

“The holiness of this place cannot be undone. Not by the courts, the government… or gentiles, the UN, or any other power — it is impossible,” he said.

A police officer stands in front of a makeshift partition erected ahead of an Orthodox prayer service at the mixed gender Western Wall plaza on June 14, 2016. screen capture: Facebook)

“We will remain vigilant as we attempt to honor God, the divine presence, the Jewish people and the land of Israel,” Amar added.

As he exited the plaza, Amar can be heard saying: “May God bring these evil people back into the fold.”

The Conservative movement in Israel denounced the “defiant” and “provocative” visit, and demanded Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rein in the chief rabbi.

“Rabbi Amar’s provocation deliberately sabotages the Israel’s relations with world Jewry. It affects hundreds of thousands of Israeli Jews who wish to pray at the Western Wall free of partitions,” a statement by the movement said.

“Using bullying, coercion and backed by the police…a partition was erected contrary to custom of the place.” it said. “During the service, Amar spoke out against the Western Wall compromise, the government and the courts — all of whom he has determined lack the authority to give the wall to anyone.”

Noting that Amar had previously referred to Reform and Conservative Jews as “villains,” the statement called on Netanyahu to intervene.

The Western Wall compromise, passed in a January 31 cabinet decision that reflected the work of years of negotiations, called for a permanent prayer platform to be built along the southern end of the Western Wall in an area of the Davidson Archaeological park, otherwise known as Robinson’s Arch. There is currently a temporary prayer platform set up there in two distinct areas of the park.

The plan was heralded as a symbol of “Jewish unity” throughout most of the Jewish Diaspora. But within days of its jubilant announcement — a headline which splashed across international media — the cabinet decision drew the ire of the ultra-Orthodox parties in Netanyahu’s coalition who view the Western Wall pavilion as an open-air Orthodox synagogue. Its implementation has been stymied for the past four months.