[Avodah] There was no mechitzah at the Kotel

[Micha Berger]

On Fri, Jan 07, 2011 at 01:25:51AM -0500, T613K at aol.com wrote:
: 1. Davening at the kosel, when the population was tiny in comparison to  
: today's, was considered like davening at a kever.  There was no mechitza at  
: Kever Rochel or at Me'aras Hamachpela when I first visited those places...

Which is why I argued that at the time, none of the three were considered
batei keneses.

:                                                        IIRC there was  
: originally no mechitza in the BHM'K even, but the crush of people on yom tov  
: eventually necessitated that a balcony be installed for the women.

It was simchas beis hasho'eivah in particular. Not even davening.

However, that was dividing the ezras nashim. There was already an ezras
yisrael. R' Moshe Feinstein argues from this that mechitzah is deOraisa.
But even if deRabbanan, as most would say, you're just showing there was
life before the gezeira. Doesn't affect us.

: 2.  We cannot allow the goyim to keep us away from the kosel, our  holiest 
: site.  That alone is she'as hadechak...

I'm not sure that's valid reasoning. Dochaq doesn't mean that we have
a strong need that I'm not even sure is halachic (albeit I'll give it
aggadic merit); it means we are stuck.

And if you do stand by this argument, does this mean you would be okay
going onto the delineated areas of Har haBayis? I could easily argue
that today that's a parallel "she'as hadechaq" (goyim keeping us from
our holiest site)?

Tir'u baTov!
-Micha

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