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| Fall 2004 | |
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We struggle each day to balance our
concerns over the local and the global. Our
families complete us; it is with them that we
spend so much of our time. Yet while our
passions often strike most closely at home,
we are nonetheless involved in our schools, our communities, and
our government. We are made nobler by this simultaneous concern for our intimate friends and family, and for the larger human community.
Within Jewish life, we encounter a similar multifaceted world. A shared
religion-at its
root the tradition of mitzvot-makes us one people, although we interpret
the imperatives of that religion in different ways. Some of us
observe a strict and very traditional Shabbat; others view observance in
more flexible ways. Some of us follow dietary rules with great
care; others a modified regimen. Some Jews place primary emphasis
on social justice, others on a life engaged in ritual mitzvot and
synagogue participation. The challenge we face is how to establish
a dialogue among ourselves, given our varying philosophies
To embark on that dialog, we must first cultivate a genuine respect for
the diversity of our people, a respect that requires both openness in our
attitudes and a willingness to examine all views, those of other communities-and our own.
In this process useless contentions would give way to a profound exchange of ideas and a broadening of the spirit.
In the interest of unity, too often we ignore what we have
to learn from other Jews and the strength that comes from our internal
Jewish debate.
Our children already
live in a world of great diversity, enriched by the views and cultures
of others even as they engage in Jewish life and values. Newspapers
carry proof every day that embracing diversity provides a path toward
greater creativity. Imagine the alternative: growing to adulthood in a
world where only one opinion or solution prevailed in any matter of
importance.
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Judaism encompasses different movements, and varying trends within those
movements, each contributing much to our larger tradition. The great
debate that is the Talmud pronounces that “These opinions and their
opposing opinions are both the words of the living God” (Eilu
v’eilu divrei Elohim Hayyim).
It is time to find the values in our discords and to turn those “chords”
into music
Toward that effort, let us build upon our tradition of open discourse by
listening to our fellow Jews. Rather than ignore or dismiss those whose
practices differ from ours, let us seek to understand the philosophy
that engenders them. Let us discover, for example, the rationale behind
the inclusion of the Matriarchs in the Amidah’s prayer entitled
“Patriarchs” and the value of that inclusion. Let us explore the
differences in liturgy between our synagogue and the one down the
street, and what those differences teach us about Judaism. How
enriching it would be for Jewish children of different backgrounds
and beliefs to learn about each other’s dietary habits, observance of one day less or more for a festival, or differing practices related to the blowing of the shofar should Rosh Hashanah fall on Shabbat. Ironically, an open and respectful dialogue would force us to consider the foundations on which we have built our intellectual commitments, foundations which we may have taken for granted or never fully developed. Such a dialogue would help us, and our children, gain a deeper sense of our authenticity as committed and growing Jews. Rabbi William Cutter is Professor of Modern Hebrew Literature and the Paul and Trudy Steinberg Professor of Human Relations at the Hebrew Union College - Jewish Institute of Religion in Los Angeles. Rabbi Cutter is also the Director of the Kalsman Institute on Judaism and Health. |
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