On Monday, Women of the Wall announced that they would move to the new plaza if and when “all of their conditions and specifications are met.” Though the organization is claiming to “lead the Jewish People towards change,” there is nothing new here. For the past year, Women of the Wall have been speaking out of both sides of their mouth, paying lip service to the solution proposed by Jewish Agency Chairman Natan Sharansky, while at the same time presenting far-fetched demands and refusing any semblance of compromise.

“If Women of the Wall want to become the agents of change, they should do so through action, not pronouncements, by moving to the new plaza immediately,” said Leah Aharoni, co-founder of Women For the Wall.

For the past 1,700 years, Jews have chosen various spots along the Western Wall as the sites of prayer closest to the remains of the Holy Temple. The contention that the Kotel had never been an Orthodox synagogue, because it never had a mechitzah (divider) doesn’t take into account the Ottoman and later British ban on constructing a mechitzah or bringing Jewish symbols to the Kotel.

Commentary Magazine: WOW is used by Israel’s political left to make American Jews believe that Israel is going fundamentalist, and to bring American pressure to bear upon the Jewish State. This false picture is designed to overrule Israeli choices at the ballot box.

It was never my intent to try to tell other people how to pray. I hoped to give a voice to those who treasure and wish to protect traditional religious practices at the Kotel. In my personal life, I am a proponent of live and let live.