Standing for Unity with Diversity: A Message for the Jewish Community

Delivered at Beth Jacob Congregation on March 26, 2022.

This weekend we come together as a united community and are reminded once again why we chose to be part of Beth Jacob. The sense of connection, the inspiration, the ambience. Each of you is a valued member who helps us achieve our vision of creating a caring community infused with Torah, tefillah, chesed and Zionism, in which families and individuals can grow, make an impact, connect and find a sense of belonging. 

This is what we’ve all built together and we have so much to be proud of. Specifically, you have all demonstrated incredible resilience these past two years to push forward despite the challenges and it’s because you stepped up that we’ve reached this point of reuniting and being stronger than ever.

On this Harmony Shabbat, it’s a good opportunity to refresh our understanding of the core principles that animate our shul. What does Beth Jacob stand for? What character traits define our shul family? In the words of Paul Venze z”l, what do we love about Beth Jacob? In my mind, Beth Jacob stands for four principles that guide everything we do: 

1. We stand for bringing people together. As a quintessential beit haknesset, we celebrate the social component of Jewish life. One of my greatest joys is when people meet through shul or the Shabbat table, because these new and lifelong friendships give us much needed support through thick and thin.

2. We stand for bringing Torah and faith to our modern lives. As a proudly modern Orthodox shul, we dare to be both Orthodox and modern, and believe there is no contradiction between the two. We take our Jewish tradition and apply it to our daily engagement with the world, enriching and guiding that interaction. Recognizing modern realities is also what drives our Zionism, as we commit our energies to the continued growth of the modern-day miracle we call Israel.

3. We stand for the notion of dor l’dor and Jewish continuity, and when we step into this sanctuary, we’re reminded that we’re part of a glorious chain of generations. As Vivian Berger z”l once put it, we’re connected to the past and committed to the future.

We are proudly Jewish but also respect every single human being, because every individual is endowed with Divine dignity regardless of their race, creed, lifestyle or color.

Beyond those three signature traits of number one, we bring people together, number two, we take the Torah and apply it to our modern reality, and number three, we celebrate Jewish continuity, the fourth guiding principle is that at Beth Jacob we stand for unity with diversity, encapsulated by the word we used to describe this shabbat: harmony. We share a unified commitment to Torah but also value every single Jew, regardless of their level of observance or lifestyle. We are proudly Jewish but also respect every single human being, because every individual is endowed with Divine dignity regardless of their race, creed, lifestyle or color.

At Beth Jacob we stand for creating a warm and inclusive environment, where everyone is welcome. A member asked me whether they need to wear a tie to shul today and my response was that a tie is always a nice way to honor Shabbat, but with or without a tie, you can come as you are and you have a place in our community. 

It was the opening day of the Mishkan, our parsha relates, and Moshe was inquiring about the goat sin offering that was brought in honor of Rosh Chodesh. Moshe discovered that the sacrifice had been burned entirely on the altar when it should have been eaten by Aharon and his children. Vayiktzof Moshe—Moshe gets upset and asks Aharon and his children: Why didn’t you follow protocol and eat the required parts of the offering? Aharon responds: “Vatikrena oti k’eileh v’achalti chatat hayom hayitav b’einei Hashem.” With the tragedy that happened to me today, would G-d approve of me eating the sin offering? 

Aharon and his two sons were mourning the sudden tragic loss of Aharon’s two other sons Nadav and Avihu. In mourning, kohanim typically don’t eat from offerings that require a spirit of festivity. However, Moshe had instructed Aharon that while I recognize that you’re grieving, since today is the opening day of the mishkan, it’s a major communal moment, which makes it an exception, and you should follow the regular protocol and eat the sacrifices. 

After Moshe questions his brother as to why he deviated from the plan, Aharon responds poignantly: “Now that this tragedy had befallen me, were I to go ahead and eat the sin offering, were I to continue as if nothing happened, were I to continue my normal routine, would Hashem approve?” Moshe hears this response, and as all the community leaders and elders are watching this standoff, Moshe listens, and with great humility approves of Aharon’s explanation. 

It’s an incredible conversation with Moshe’s admission teaching us an important lesson in our polarized society. Imagine a political candidate for president or Congress admitting he was wrong or responding along the lines of: “You know, that’s an interesting point that I hadn’t thought of.” It might well jeopardize his or her candidacy.In Judaism, while of course we strive to have clear and correct opinions, even our greatest Torah commentator, Rashi, on occasion admits he “doesn’t know” the meaning of a phrase. And admitting that another person is correct is not a sign of weakness but a display of tremendous strength.

But moreover, we learn from this story a powerful lesson that we need to take to heart, which is that the Torah recognizes the humanity of Aharon. He was a tzaddik and the kohen gadol, and Moshe made the law clear that the sacrifices should be eaten, but ultimately what takes precedence over everything is Aharon’s humanity. 

At Beth Jacob, the fourth principle we stand for is recognizing the humanity of every human being—from the kohen gadol to marginalized individuals who need even more care. We cherish unity and value diversity. We have our values and not despite those values but driven by them, we have a welcoming community that under no circumstances tolerates hate or the dehumanizing of others. 

I’ve spoken in the past about how we as Jews, as human beings, absolutely reject racism, bigotry and denigrating, hurtful speech about the LGBTQ community. These issues, however, are on my mind because of an incident that happened over Purim in our community that exhibited egregious behavior contrary to our Jewish values. Like many of you, I have been distraught over the chilul Hashem that occurred and realize that certain things that I took as a given apparently need to be restated and emphasized.

As I said two weeks ago when speaking about derech eretz kodmah latorah, we must always remember that frumkeit without menshlichkeit is not yiddishkeit.

I must state unequivocally that derision, hateful or hurtful speech have no place in our community. We have our convictions and opinions, but they always need to be shared respectfully and we should never mock, disparage or belittle. Our community stands proudly for the values of openness, warmth, and inclusion. Therefore, when we speak to one another and about one another, it needs to be with kindness, empathy and sensitivity. As I said two weeks ago when speaking about derech eretz kodmah latorah, we must always remember that frumkeit without menshlichkeit is not yiddishkeit.

If schools and shuls are putting down other institutions instead of just working to raise themselves up, then mission control, we have a problem.  

What also needs to stop once and for all is the negative talk about neighborhood institutions. If schools and shuls are putting down other institutions instead of just working to raise themselves up, then mission control, we have a problem. We need to seize this moment and commit to supporting one another, giving credit to each other and supporting other shuls and schools. There are thankfully enough children in the neighborhood for all the yeshivot to thrive and enough families for all the shuls to succeed.

Yes, I know the halacha, Aharon says, but what about the fact that I’m a human being? 

Our parsha reinforces what we stand for at Beth Jacob, which is that to be frum is not just about Shabbat, kashrut and tefillah, as important as they are, but it’s also about being kind, respectful and acting with kavod habriyot—giving dignity to others. I am proud that you, our dear members, and particularly all those who reached out to me this past week, stand up as exemplars of these values, and we are already working on charting out meaningful steps in the future to grow as a community. 

The Gemara Shabbat (31a) relates that when a non-Jew approaches the rabbis to be converted by being taught the Torah “al regel achat”—in one brief session—Shammai kicks him out of his office. Hillel takes a different approach, and our general principle is that we follow Hillel, who with flexibility and openness, takes up the challenge. He responds that the core principle of Judaism, adapting the verse “love your neighbor as yourself,” is “what is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor and the rest is commentary.” With that declaration, Hillel teaches us the primacy of ethics and morality in the way that Judaism is taught and lived. His lesson reflects the fundamental idea that every human being is endowed with Divine dignity and needs to be respected accordingly. The rest is commentary. 

Like the Jewish people brought down the Divine presence on that opening day of the Mishkan, we have the capacity to do that too for our modern-day sanctuary. Let us keep davening, learning, and connecting, and take the shul built by those who preceded us and seize the opportunity to bring our community to new heights. If we recommit to our core guiding values—if we bring people together, take the Torah and apply it to our lives, celebrate Jewish continuity and finally, cherish unity and value diversity—then we will truly sanctify the name of G-d and bring the Divine presence to rest upon all of us, so that we can serve as a model and inspiration for communities around the world.

Rabbi Kalman Topp is the Senior Rabbi at Beth Jacob Congregation in Beverly Hills.