The grass that grows between the weathered stones of the Western Wall has sparked a new dispute between Israel’s perennially feuding Ashkenazic and Sephardic Chief Rabbis. Chief Rabbi Shlomo Goren ruled several days ago that the grass cannot be removed. His Sephardic counterpart, Chief Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, ruled that if the grass endangered the Wall, it may be removed. Both rabbis issued their contradictory rulings after consulting halachic sources.
The problem arose recently when engineers warned the Ministry for Religious Affairs that the continuing spread of grass roots might cause the ancient stones to shift and eventually collapse. Rabbi Dov Perla, the Ministry official in charge of holy places, consulted his own engines who confirmed that the warning might be justified. Perla decided to put the problem to the two Chief Rabbis.
Rabbi Goren contended that since the Wall has been standing for nearly 2000 years, grass and all, there was no danger. The opposite verdict by Rabbi Yosef created a dilemma for the Religious Affairs Ministry. It was decided to consult other engineers and agronomists before deciding whether or not to pull out the grass.
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