The Western Wall (Sh'ma Journal: Independent Thinking on Contemporary Judaism Book 44)

The Wall, or the Kotel, is a mere 187 feet in length and 62 feet in height — a fraction of the 1,600 foot-long remnant of the Second Temple. This collection of stones has been, time and again, the focal point of great contention. The Kotel is simultaneously a spiritual oasis, a place for reverence and prayer, and a fraught symbol, a flashpoint for anger and recrimination. How significant a symbol should this Wall be in Judaism and Jewish life? Is the Wall, post-1967, more about Jewish nationalism than Jewish faith? Why has the battle waged by Women of the Wall (and countered by Women for the Wall) sparked such fierce reactions? This issue of Sh’ma examines these and other questions about the Wall’s history — its construction, its archeology, and the creation of the Wall’s plaza where visitors congregate. It includes six thoughtful and diverse viewpoints on the “Women of the Wall” movement.