Chana Rachel, as Wikipedia describes, lived in the 1800s and was the only independent female rebbe. in the history of the hassidic movement. Intriguing description, no?
Anyways, Jerusalem has decided to name a street after her, though has not yet decided which street or in which neighborhood it would be.It turns out that for the past year and a half, while the issue has been on the table, the Haredi councilmen in Jerusalem have opposed the proposition, specifically because of the proposed name. The original proposed name was "הבתולה מלודמיר" - the "Maiden of Ludmir" as per the name she was famously known for. Those opposing the proposal were opposed to the use of the word maiden/virgin. Once the submitters agreed to drop that word from the proposal, they agreed to name a street Chana Rachel of Ludmir.
source: Mynet
What a silly thing to fight over.
And, it is not like the Haredi community shies away from the word virgin. Every wedding invitation of a first-time married couple, including in the Haredi community, describes the bride as a virgin.
Not every little thing needs to be a fight. At most they could easily have asked that the street not be located in a haredi neighborhood.
Though, on the other hand, I guess it is good that they eventually agreed to the name and did not insist that the street be named "Ms. Ludmir" or something like that dropping her first name...
------------------------------------------------------ Reach thousands of readers with your ad by advertising on Life in Israel ------------------------------------------------------
