January 15, 2001
U.S. rabbis push plan for Temple Mount
___NEW YORK CITY (RNS)--More than 100 U.S. rabbis said last month there is no theological rationale for Jewish control of the disputed Temple Mount in Jerusalem and that both Jews and Muslims should share control of the holy site.
___The statement, signed by 101 rabbis from the Reform, Conservative and Reconstructionist traditions, lamented the recent weeks of violence that have seen nearly 300 people--mostly Palestinians--killed.
___"We are horrified by the shedding of blood in our Holy Land," the rabbis said. "We are more horrified by the emergence of mob violence on both sides of the ethnic divide."
AN ISRAELI woman holds a sign reading "the Temple Mount is ours" at a rally outside the Old City's Jaffa Gate in Jerusalem Jan. 8. Gathering in a sea of flags, tens of thousands of Israelis rallied at the walls of Jerusalem to state a biblical claim to all of the holy city at the center of the Middle East peacemaking stalemate. (Reuters)
___The rabbis criticized both heavy-handed tactics by the Israeli army against Palestinians and the Palestinian mobs that have attacked Israeli soldiers. The rabbis warned both sides against inciting youth, saying, "This is a weapon over which you will ultimately have no control."
___The Temple Mount, which contains the ruins of the ancient Hebrew temple as well as two major Islamic shrines, has been the major sticking point between negotiators from both sides.
___Israelis do not want to surrender complete control of the site, while Palestinians want the area as part of a Palestinian-controlled independent state.
___The rabbis cited the prophet Isaiah's words that the site should be a "house of prayer for all peoples." They said they do not want the site to be an "obstacle" to peace.
___"It is desecrated by shows of military force, by cries of hatred and the throwing of stones, and most of all by the shedding of blood," the statement said.
___The statement was drafted by Arthur Green, a professor of Jewish thought at Brandeis University, and Rabbi Rolando Matalon, spiritual leader of B'nei Jeshurun Synagogue in New York City. It was circulated with the help of the Jewish Peace Lobby, a Maryland-based group that tries to unite Jews and Muslims on common projects.
___Green told the New York Times that there is "no reason" the site cannot be shared between the two faiths.
___"The prophecy of Isaiah says the mount is meant to be a house of prayer for the whole human race, and not just the Jewish people," Green said. "The Jewish people should therefore welcome the Muslim presence, and of course we think the Muslim authorities should also welcome the Jewish presence on the mount."
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