Israel's Chief Ashkenazi Rabbi David Lau has come out in defense of what has been seen by many as divisive remarks he made in an interview following the massacre at Pittsburgh's Tree of Life Synagogue.
Lau told the Makor Rishon newspaper that the shooting attack was "unforgivable" but referred to the Conservative synagogue merely as "a place with a profound Jewish character" rather than a synagogue.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday that the 11 Jewish victims of the Pittsburgh shooting attack were killed in a "synagogue," taking a veiled swipe at the ultra-Orthodox chief rabbi.
The exchange exposed some of the recent tensions between Israel and the more liberal Jewish Diaspora, even in the wake of the deadliest anti-Semitic attack against Jews in U.S. history.
The shooting has drawn fierce condemnations and calls for unity among Jews in Israel and around the world. Several ultra-Orthodox Israeli newspapers, however, refrained from calling Pittsburgh's Tree of Life Synagogue a Jewish place of worship since they do not recognize non-Orthodox denominations, instead mostly referring to it as a "Jewish center."
In a tweet, Netanyahu seemed to rebuke him.
"Jews were killed in a synagogue. They were killed because they are Jews. The location was chosen because it is a synagogue. We must never forget that. We are one," he wrote.
In a post to Facebook, Lau said his words were "grossly taken out of context – not a single news report actually quoted the full interview, in which the rabbi mourned the victims and emphasized that a conversation about denominational differences is irrelevant here.
He explained that he had been asked on ultra-Orthodox news coverage of the massacre, which referred to the Tree of Life Synagogue as a "Jewish center."
In response, Lau asked, "How is that relevant? Don't bring that up in [connection to] this topic. We are talking about Jews murdered because they are Jews. Why is this even a question?! I don't hear or understand what kind of a discussion [there] can be in regard to this question. They were murdered because they were Jews. Why does it matter in what synagogue or what liturgy they were praying?!"
"We cannot turn this pain into a topic of debate - this is not a topic [of debate] at all. Yes, I have a hard ideological difference with them, on the subject of Judaism, about its past and its implications for the future of the Jewish people throughout the generations, so what?! But because of this, they are not Jews?!"
When pressed on whether or not Tree of Life was, in fact, a synagogue, Lau answered, "Jews were murdered in a place where the murderer saw a place with a prominent Jewish character, a place with Torah scrolls, Jews with prayer shawls, there are prayer books there, there are people who came there for the sake of closeness to God. The reality is that the murderer went to murder specifically there, and not to another place."
In the post, Lau argued that those interpreting his remarks as an attempt to dodge the question were doing so for political reasons and sowing division.
Lau maintained in the post that he had used "a classic, emotional description of a synagogue, a description that he knew would resonate with his readers. He depicted a synagogue scene in detail, so Orthodox readers would relate to it beyond denominational differences."
"Criticize the Israeli rabbinate all you want – but reading into the chief rabbi's horror over this massacre, and using it as a way to sow division between American and Israeli Jews, and between Orthodox and non-Orthodox Jews, is really not what we need right now, while the dead still lay unburied."
Israel's ultra-Orthodox authorities maintain a strict monopoly over daily Jewish life in the Holy Land, including oversight of weddings, divorces, conversions and burials. They often question the faith and practices of the more liberal Reform and Conservative streams of Judaism, to which most American Jews belong.
Netanyahu's coalition government relies on the support of key ultra-Orthodox parties, and he has often had to capitulate to their demands on matters of religion and state. The ultra-Orthodox establishment views other strains of Judaism as too lax and is deeply opposed to interfaith marriage and the ordination of women and gays, while American Jews have increasingly felt that they haven't been valued in Israel as equals despite their ardent backing and identification.
A government decision to scrap plans for a mixed-gender prayer area at Jerusalem's Western Wall, and insults hurled at those pushing for it, has led American Jewish leaders to warn that it could undermine their long-standing political, financial and emotional support for Israel.
The recent passing of a controversial law enshrining the state's Jewish character, which critics at home and abroad say has undercut Israel's traditional democratic values, has also irked American Jews, who increasingly find themselves at odds with the government's nationalist, religious and pro-settlement bent.
Conservative Jews in Jerusalem held an event in solidarity with the Pittsburgh Jewish community at the city's Moreshet Yisrael Synagogue, Monday.
Speaking at the event, Regional Cooperation Minister Tzachi Hanegbi said, "We went into deep mourning when we learned of the carnage in Pittsburgh at the heart of a sacred place, in the heart of a warm and Zionist community. All hearts are bleeding, and the pain is immense with the sense of loss. We are all Conservative. We are all Reform. We are all Orthodox."
Opposition head Tzipi Livni (Zionist Union) said, "The Jews who were killed were murdered for tikkun olam [repairing the world], and that is what bothered the despicable murderer. It makes no difference in what manner anyone translates their faith, in what language they pray and in what synagogue. We all belong to our Jewish nation."
Jewish Agency chief Isaac Herzog said, "It is precisely in this period that a terrible and horrible event takes place, which without a doubt will impact the community and the people. The Jewish heart beats as one. Am Yisrael Chai [The people of Israel live]. A Jew is a Jew is a Jew, and it makes no difference in which synagogue he does or doesn't pray. If our enemies do not differentiate between the various streams of Judaism, we shouldn't either."
Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid said the tragic shooting should serve as a reminder to "those who claim the Reform and the Conservative are not real Jews." He called on the government to restore the mixed-gender prayer site and to recognize the conversions of all strains.
"The State of Israel bows its heads for their deaths, but this is not enough," he said in the Knesset. "Not only in their deaths are they Jews like us, but in their lives. Not only in their deaths should the government respect them, but also in their lives."
