Mechiza
A Mechiza (also Mechitza ; מחיצה; Hebrew "separation") is a device (wall, wall, barrier, curtain, etc.) for spatial separation of the sexes in a synagogue . The plaza in front of the Western Wall has the status of a synagogue.
According to the religious justification, it is intended to prevent distraction and reduced concentration and is derived from the passage Sukka 51b, 52a of the Babylonian Talmud .
In larger synagogues there is a women's gallery , which makes a mechiza superfluous.
Under the Babylonian Cupids (after 200) a separation between the rows of seats for men and women was introduced; a women's gallery was - at least Talmudically - unknown. In Western Europe, this development took place later, but special rooms were introduced here for women (women’s school ), which were separated from men by increasingly dense bars and who were not accorded the same degree of holiness.
Since the 19th century and individual protests on the part of women, the mechiza, also depending on the religious orientation in question, took a different development, was modified or completely abolished. In Orthodox communities, it or the women's gallery is still common and the norm.
In Orthodoxy, however, there is disagreement as to whether it is a halachic rule or a custom to be respected ( minhag ). Often, but not always, the mechizot are opaque, at least from the male to the female.
In August 2010, based on the requests of several women who would like to observe the ceremonial ceremonies carried out on the men's side, it was decided to replace the existing metal mechizot with one-sided mirrors for the Western Wall so that the women can then see what was going on on the men's side.
literature
- Judith R. Baskin: Mehiza. In: Dan Diner (Ed.): Encyclopedia of Jewish History and Culture (EJGK). Volume 4: Ly-Po. Metzler, Stuttgart / Weimar 2013, ISBN 978-3-476-02504-3 , pp. 108-114.
- Article synagogue. In: Jüdisches Lexikon , Berlin 1927, Volume IV / 2, especially Sp. 797–798.
- Baruch Litvin (Ed.): The Sanctity of the Synagogue: The Case for Mechitzah-Separation Between Men and Women in the Synagogue - Based on Jewish Law, History, and Philosophy. Ktav Publications Inc. 1987
Individual evidence
- ↑ Die Jüdische Zeitung No. 31, Zurich, 26. Aw 5770/6. August 2010, p. 6.