Ultra-Orthodox lawmakers and Jewish Agency officials made efforts Tuesday to tone down the harsh rhetoric characterizing the dispute over the government's decision to shelve the plan to open a mixed-gender prayer area at the Western Wall in Jerusalem. The decision, together with the government's endorsement of a bill giving the Chief Rabbinate exclusive authority over conversion, including the power to disqualify conversions performed by Reform and Conservative rabbis overseas, has sparked scathing criticism from Reform Jews, Diaspora Jewish communities, and some in the political echelon in Israel. One of the harshest responses came from the Jewish Agency, which on Monday canceled a meeting of its board of governors with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Cabinet Secretary Tzachi Braverman on Monday defended the decision to cancel the framework compromise on egalitarian prayer at the holy site, saying that other, less controversial solutions are being reviewed. "We don't want to fight secular people. I observe the coalition agreement we signed with everyone -- with the prime minister, the finance minister, Habayit Hayehudi and [Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor] Lieberman," United Torah Judaism head Yakov Litzman told Israel Hayom. "We want to mend a status quo others seek to undermine. Reform Jews appealed to the [High] Court and impaired the status quo. All we do is mend it. The mayor of Tel Aviv impaired it over mini-marts and we are repairing it. All we are doing is getting things back to how they were." Jewish Agency Chairman Natan Sharansky held a telephone briefing with the organization's 200 emissaries worldwide, saying they must underscore the unbreakable bond between the State of Israel and the Diaspora. "We must listen to the expressions of anger and criticism heard in many communities around the world and bring these sentiments to the attention of public and political figures. ... But we must also oppose the voices calling for a break from Israel and for an end to their support of it. We must make it clear that without close ties with Israel there is no future for Diaspora communities and that at this time, the right thing to do is to listen to all the positions so as to foster diversity of opinions and bring people together," he said. Habayit Hayehudi also attempted to allay the concerns of Jewish communities in the United States. Party leader Naftali Bennett, Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked and Deputy Defense Minister Eli Ben-Dahan reached out to representatives of the Jewish Federations in the U.S., Sharansky and the heads of the Conservative and Reform movements to try to bridge the gaps. Bennett told reporters that "there's a real crisis with the American Jewry's leadership. They feel as if Israel slapped them in the face, a subjective feeling that they're not wanted here. This is not reality, of course, but that's how they feel. "They are our brothers, they are wanted here, they constitute a strategic basis for the State of Israel, and we will remain united with them. Mistakes were made and there has been some broad disinformation suggesting prayer will no longer be allowed in Ezrat Yisrael [the pluralistic prayer area south of the Western Wall's plaza]. This is not true. It is open to all streams and it will remain permanently open," he said. In a meeting held Tuesday between members of the Jewish Agency's Board of Governors and the Lobby for Strengthening the Jewish World, lobby chairman MK Nachman Shai (Zionist Union) said, "This meeting is not for or against the government. We oppose the blatant decisions made by the government, which deeply harm the unity of the Jewish people and equality between Jews. We call on the government to annul these decisions and erase this evil chapter." U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman, speaking at a B'nai B'rith conference in Jerusalem, said, "Yesterday I heard something I thought I would never hear. I understand the source of the frustration and the source of the anger ... but for Jewish organization to say they needed to 'rethink' their support for the State of Israel -- this is something unthinkable." Also on Tuesday, Habayit Hayehudi said it would promote a compromise over the controversial conversion law, by which its limitations would apply only on those seeking to convert with the intent of becoming Israeli citizens, or in matters pertaining to the Law of Return.
Video: Paz Bar
