This week's Torah portion, Parashat Tetzaveh, addresses many dimensions of our sacred practice, the priestly garments, the structure of the Tabernacle, the arrangement of the showbread, and more. Yet among these details, one instruction stands out for its profound message about Jewish continuity: the commandment regarding the ner tamid, the eternal flame. The Torah specifies that the oil fueling this everlasting light must come from olives pressed by all the Children of Israel (Exodus 27:20), not from a single tribe, not from the priests alone, but from the collective contribution of the entire people. Our tradition teaches us that Jewish survival has always depended on this principle: that our light burns brightest when it is kindled by the oil of everyone's investment, everyone's voice, and everyone's way of living a Jewish life.

This week, we are confronted with a challenge to that very principle. A bill introduced in the Israeli Knesset seeks to place exclusive authority over prayer at the Western Wall, one of our most sacred sites, in the hands of a single religious authority, effectively extinguishing the voices of those whose Jewish practice differs from one particular tradition. As your local Jewish Federation, we are committed to ensuring that the flame of our people continues to burn with the light of all Israel, not just one group or one way. Please see the message below from Eric Fingerhut, CEO of the Jewish Federations of North America, sent to all the local Federation CEOs across North America, for important context on this critical moment. Because we are Stronger Together.

Shabbat Shalom,

Nammie Ichilov
President & CEO
Jewish Federation of Greater Naples

 

Feb 29, 2026

Dear Colleagues:

We understand that many of you are receiving inquiries from your communities about the Kotel bill that was introduced and passed on first reading this week. This issue has been deeply important to our Federation system for many years. have also been responding to similar calls from our friends and stakeholders.

Immediately upon learning about this bill, I called the Israeli Ambassador to the United States, Dr. Yehiel Leiter. In addition to his duties in Washington DC, Ambassador Leiter is a close confidant of Prime Minister Netanyahu and very intimately involved in the current government’s policy making process. Ambassador Leiter assured me without equivocation that this bill is not the policy of the government and will not pass. I conveyed this message directly to Rabbi Jacobs and urged the ambassador to call Rabbi Jacobs himself, which he did. I have also been in touch with our own team in Israel as well as the Jewish Agency to compare our information and to ensure that we are not missing anything on the legislative front in the Knesset that would impact our immediate next steps.

The bill was introduced by Knesset Member Avi Maoz as a Private Members Bill, which is very distinct from a Government Bill. Maoz is a unique parliamentarian in that he is literally a party of one. As such, he was entitled to a first reading. Given the election season and especially the impending Likud primaries, it was unlikely that the first reading would be defeated (it passed in a vote of 56-47). It is significant, however, that the vote on first reading did not have the support of either Prime Minister Netanyahu or Speaker of the Knesset Ohana. 

Under Knesset practice, the first reading is held before a bill goes to committee and begins the process of hearings and amendments. Most bills never come back to the full Knesset for second and third readings after the committee process. It is also certain that the Knesset will dissolve at some point in the coming months and elections will be held no later than November. When that occurs, all pending legislation is automatically dropped. For this reason, it is apparent that this is not a serious legislative endeavor, but rather an election issue that Israeli voters should take into consideration when they vote. It is of course frustrating and deeply disappointing to see this issue used in such a manner once again. We are working today to be certain that there will be no further legislative activity, and once again confirming with our colleagues in Israel. Should there be any further movement legislatively we will organize opposition as we have done on this issue numerous times in the past.  

We will keep you posted on this and in the meantime, here’s a social media message that the Jewish Agency posted that captures the sentiment well. We will also convene our Communications Advisory Committee over the coming days to discuss the situation and any potential JFNA statement.  

I am including some background below, to refresh your memory on the issues involved. Also see this editorial from today’s Jerusalem Post, for further reading.

I’m happy to answer any questions, and will keep you updated if any further developments occur.

Warm regards,

Eric Fingerhut

Background

Israel’s Supreme Court, sitting as Bagatz (the High Court of Justice), issued a new decision on the Western Wall (Kotel) dispute last week, ordering state authorities to move forward—on a set timetable—with long-delayed upgrades to “Ezrat Yisrael,” the egalitarian prayer platform (which is the mixed gender / non-Orthodox area south of the main plaza).

The new ruling came from an expanded seven justice panel and was framed as a practical, implementation-focused intervention aimed at ending years of bureaucratic stalling by the national government and the Jerusalem Municipality over permits and approvals needed for repairs and infrastructure improvements, especially regarding direct access from the platform to the stones of the Wall itself. (A few years ago, a number of large stones fell near the egalitarian platform, requiring direct access to the Wall itself to be restricted; and this is yet to be repaired, despite numerous court and other directives for this to be done).

The recent court decision is part of the many-years struggle over religious pluralism at the Kotel. In 2016, the Jewish Federations of North America was part of a government-appointed committee, chaired by former Jewish Agency chair Natan Sharansky, and including representatives of the religious streams, among others, charged with forming a plan to allow greater access and freedoms for all at the Kotel. A government-approved compromise envisioned formalizing and improving an egalitarian prayer area known as Ezrat Yisrael, that was initially ordered constructed, as a temporary measure, by then-Minister of Diaspora Affairs, Naftali Bennett. However, the plan was subsequently frozen by the government, prompting petitions by the Reform Movement, Masorti/ Conservative representatives, Women of the Wall, and allied pluralism groups.

Petitioners to the Court argued that the existing Ezrat Yisrael setup has remained hard to access and insufficiently developed, including lacking meaningful proximity to the Wall’s stones—conditions they view as discriminatory compared to arrangements at the main plaza, which is governed by Orthodox practice. In addition, the Court heard reports of recurring disputes among responsible authorities (including around planning steps and antiquities-related approvals) as central reasons for delay.

The Supreme Court decision pressed authorities to implement upgrades already on the books, without further delays. The Court issued a decision last week ordering the government and the Jerusalem Municipality to move forward — with binding deadlines — on long-delayed bureaucratic steps to obtain building permits and upgrades for the egalitarian prayer area. The Court’s decision focused solely on implementation, by ordering the relevant authorities to finally act on agreed-upon changes and technical improvements to the area and accessibility. The Court did not rule again on, or discuss, any underlying legal questions of prayer rights, or the “Kotel Compromise Agreement” as a whole.

In response, a new bill (The “Holy Places” Law) was introduced as a Private Member’s Bill, after the ruling. It would place authority over prayer arrangements across all parts of the Western Wall, including the southern/egalitarian area, exclusively in the hands of Israel’s Chief Rabbinate (or a body acting on its behalf). In other words, the legislative response seeks to reassert (and formalize) a single religious authority over the site—effectively bypassing any pluralist input and undoing the important work that has occurred on this matter over the years.  The bill would also extend the Rabbinate’s jurisdiction over the Western Wall Plaza (the large area immediately behind the Kotel’s main prayer zone). This area is currently used by many individuals and groups, including Birthright, the IDF, and others, for ceremonies and events.