JERUSALEM — Jerusalem's lesbian and gay community has unintentionally succeeded in doing something that has eluded the world's greatest thinkers: Unite the three major monotheistic religions.

Orthodox Jews, conservative Muslims and prominent Christian leaders are united in their opposition to a gay-pride march in Jerusalem, a city that's holy to all three religions.

The pope called for today's march to be canceled. Muslim leaders criticized it as a disgrace. Orthodox Jews organized weeks of violent demonstrations.

Jerusalem police warned that violent opposition could lead to tragedy and urged Israeli leaders to call it off.

On Thursday, faced with new security concerns related to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, organizers shelved the march and offered to hold a more isolated rally at Hebrew University's stadium instead.

The city's ultra-Orthodox opponents of the march hailed the deal as a victory.

"A lot of people are very happy because a level of purity has been returned to Jerusalem," said Rabbi Yehuda Levin, head of the Rabbinical Alliance of America. "The holy city of Jerusalem now breathes a sigh of relief that it is not going to be sullied by this kind of event."

Even though the agreement was expected to defuse potential clashes today, the monthslong emotional controversy evolved into much more than a debate over the gay-pride march. It became a battle over the soul of Jerusalem.

"We are struggling with something that is much deeper than gay rights," Sa'ar Nathaniel, Jerusalem's only openly gay city councilman, said before the agreement was announced. "We are struggling about the image of Jerusalem: Will it be pluralistic and tolerant and democratic, or a twin city of Tehran or Kabul?

"And maybe we are not just struggling about Jerusalem," Nathaniel added. "We are struggling about Israel."
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At its heart, the fight pitted Jerusalem's increasingly influential ultra-Orthodox community against the dwindling numbers of secular Jerusalemites. While the conservative Jews make up about a third of the city population, they represent the fastest-growing Jewish sector and control nearly half of the City Council's 31 seats. In 2003, the city elected its first ultra-Orthodox as mayor.

This rise in political power has coincided with a slow exodus of secular residents from Jerusalem, tilting influence in the city Israel considers its political and spiritual capital toward the ultra-Orthodox.

Outside Jerusalem, Israel is considered relatively progressive on gay rights. Tel Aviv has a reputation for tolerance, there's no ban on gays serving in the military and the country's anti-discrimination laws cover homosexuals.

Although the gay-pride march had been held for four years in Jerusalem, it struck a nerve last summer when organizers made the parade the centerpiece of a planned international gay-pride festival. The march was twice delayed, most recently because of the war in Lebanon. But opponents kept up their pressure when it was rescheduled for this month.

Elchanan Glatt, executive director of a Zionist youth organization who helped organize a protest, called the march "a slap in the face in public."

"The major problem is choosing Jerusalem," Glatt said. "It's not Amsterdam."

For two weeks, ultra-Orthodox known as Haredi in Jerusalem's Mea Shearim neighborhood torched cars, threw Molotov cocktails and injured 45 police officers to derail the event.

In an attempt to address concerns, organizers tried to keep the march low-key.

At first, organizers agreed to move the route to the government center, away from more populated areas. Then, on Thursday, they offered to cancel the march and hold the rally at the stadium instead.

Related developments

Civil unions OK'd: Mexico City's assembly Thursday voted for the first time in the country's history to legally recognize gay civil unions, a measure that will provide same-sex couples with benefits similar to those of married couples. The mayor was expected to sign the measure into law. The bill, which would not approve gay marriage, would allow same-sex couples to register their union with civil authorities, granting them inheritance and pension rights, as well as other social benefits. Heterosexual couples who are not legally married would also be allowed to register.

Same-sex-marriage bill: A parliamentary committee approved proposals for same-sex marriages in South Africa on Thursday, clearing the way for the passage of legislation that would be unique on a deeply conservative continent. The compromise upset religious groups, traditionalists and even some members of the governing African National Congress while gay-rights activists said it didn't go far enough. The civil-unions bill will go to a full session of parliament Tuesday, where it is expected to pass.

Copyright © 2006 The Seattle Times Company

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