views commentary Kol Nidre And Jabotinsky: The Season For Jewish Unity I a “Jewish Unity Challenge” that t can be claimed that no sin- comes to mind again as we gle day in the Jewish liturgi- celebrate the High Holidays. cal calendar is clearly meant This “Challenge” is a personal to showcase the unity of the call to all Jews, including you, Jewish People than Yom Kippur. to start reaching out across the And during Yom Kippur, no aisle — to create one united single service symbolizes that Jewish people. Just because unity more than the famous Kol Nidre. A short declaration Joshua Goldstein Jews come from many different backgrounds and hold different made with a call that we all beliefs doesn’t mean that we stand together is made near the cannot show love and respect start of the service: for one another. “By the authority of the Our diverse types, colors and Court on High and by author- traditions should be seen as ity of the court down here, by a strength for all of us, rather the permission of One Who Is than foster exclusivity, elitism, Everywhere and by the permis- selectiveness and even superi- sion of this congregation, we ority. hold it lawful to pray with sin- Ahavat Yisrael — the uncon- ners.” ditional love of our fellow Jews So, all Jews, regardless of Moshe Phillips — should not be seen as some religiosity and regardless of unattainable dream. In our their mistakes, are all to stand time, we can make it a reality. together, in prayer together, as We should not have to rely on one united congregation at Kol the threat of anti-Semitism and Nidre. impending dangers affecting Israel as And if that is not clearly a goal of the only things. the day, then why are so many of the The lack of love and unity was con- pronouns used in the liturgy in the sidered by the ancient Jewish sages of plural, such as “We” and “Our,” includ- the era of the Mishnah to be the root ing the well-known and beloved Avinu, Malkenu (Our Father, Our King) prayer? cause of the destruction of the Second Holy Temple in Jerusalem, the Temple We are each praying for ourselves and we plead with God to allow us to for each other: for all Jews, everywhere rebuild throughout the High Holidays. in the world. If we can re-introduce ourselves Also on Kol Nidre night, we plead: “May all the people of Israel be forgiven, and start the process of accepting one another, in the spirit of Ahavat Yisrael, including all the strangers who live in we can again grow as individuals — and their midst ...” as a collective nation. We in Herut North America, as part The Jewish Unity Challenge is of the Herut World Movement, conduct Contributing Writers: Ruthan Brodsky, Rochel Burstyn, Suzanne Chessler, Annabel Cohen, Don Cohen, Shari S. Cohen, Shelli Liebman Dorfman, Adam Finkel, Stacy Gittleman, Stacy Goldberg, Judy Greenwald, Ronelle Grier, Esther Allweiss Ingber, Allison Jacobs, Barbara Lewis, Jennifer Lovy, Rabbi Jason Miller, Alan Muskovitz, David Sachs, Karen Schwartz, Robin Schwartz, Steve Stein, Joyce Wiswell Arthur M. Horwitz Publisher / Executive Editor ahorwitz@renmedia.us F. Kevin Browett Chief Operating Officer kbrowett@renmedia.us | Editorial Managing Editor: Jackie Headapohl jheadapohl@renmedia.us Story Development Editor: Keri Guten Cohen kcohen@renmedia.us Arts & Life Editor: Lynne Konstantin lkonstantin@renmedia.us Digital/Social Media Editor: Hannah Levine hlevine@renmedia.us Editorial Assistant: Sy Manello smanello@renmedia.us Senior Columnist: Danny Raskin dannyraskin2132@gmail.com Contributing Editor: Robert Sklar rsklar@renmedia.us | Advertising Sales Sales Director: Keith Farber kfarber@renmedia.us Account Executives : Martin Chumiecki, Wendy Flusty, Annette Kizy | Business Offices Billing Coordinator: Pamela Turner designed to spark a conversation between diverse types of Jews, so that we can achieve greater things for the State of Israel and the Jewish people. It is time to put aside differences that we may have with other Jews and focus on the wonderful, time-honored things that unite us as Jews. This is your individual challenge. And this is our collective challenge as a commu- nity. What we are talking about is simple, yet we call it a challenge because it is not so easy. When it comes down to it, many of us have a knee-jerk reaction to leaving our comfort zones. It is time to look at the bigger picture, to let go a little and to reach across the table. The High Holidays force us to re-examine our biases and to change our thinking. The Herut World Movement is dedi- cated to the values of Ze’ev Jabotinsky (1880-1940), who was a key leader of world Zionism before World War II; he was a mentor of Menachem Begin and a champion of Jewish unity. And in Jabotinsky’s honor, we conduct this campaign. Let us discuss what we believe may be best for Israel and the Jewish people. Let us argue, but as we discuss these opinions, we must remember that all Jews are responsible for one another — no matter our backgrounds, beliefs, colors, etc. Late last year, we marked the 30th anniversary Freedom Sunday for Soviet Jews. That Dec. 6, 1987, rally saw more than a quarter-million American Jews unite on the National Mall in Washington to stand up for Soviet Jews | Operations Manager Tara Lennon tlennon@renmedia.us | Production By FARAGO & ASSOCIATES Manager: Scott Drzewiecki Designers: Kelly Kosek, Amy Pollard, Michelle Sheridan, Susan Walker | Detroit Jewish News Chairman: Michael H. Steinhardt President/Publisher: Arthur M. Horwitz ahorwitz@renmedia.us Chief Operating Officer: F. Kevin Browett kbrowett@renmedia.us Controller: Craig R. Phipps at what was the single largest gathering of Jews in U.S. history. In decades past, U.S. Jews instinc- tively knew that the High Holiday period was the time to concentrate on Jewish unity. On Oct. 6, 1943, three days before Yom Kippur, 400 rabbis marched in Washington, D.C., to call for Allied action to save European Jews. Organized by the Jabotinsky move- ment activist leader Hillel Kook (under his pseudonym Peter Bergson) it was the only effort of its type during the Holocaust in America. Later in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, an annual Simchat Torah Rally for Soviet Jewry was organized through- out the U.S., including in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. For example, in 1968 and 1971, rallies were held at the Washington Monument. Natan Sharansky’s Philadelphia speech at the rally in 1986, just half a year or so after his release from the Soviets, was a remarkable highlight of these rallies. Let us show that we can all love each other in Jewish unity during this High Holiday season and always. The Talmud Bavli introduces the Aramaic phrase, Kol Yisrael arevim zeh bazeh, meaning “All of the People of Israel are respon- sible for each other.” Let each of us meditate on that idea, grow from it and take action. • Joshua Goldstein is the chairman of Herut North America and a board member of the American Zionist Movement on behalf of Herut. Moshe Phillips is national director of Herut North America’s U.S. section. Herut is an international movement for Zionist pride and education. | Departments General Offi ces: 248-354-6060 Advertising: 248-351-5107 Advertising Fax: 248-304-0049 Circulation: 248-234-9057 Classifi ed Ads: 248-234-9057 Advertising Deadline: Friday, 2 p.m. Editorial Fax: 248-304-8885 Deadline: All public and social announcements must be typewritten and received by noon Tuesday, nine days prior to desired date of publication. 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