8 July 25 • 2019
jn
views
W
hat happens when two
rabbis from two differ-
ent congregations in the
Detroit area gather in Jerusalem with
a diverse group of 23 other Orthodox,
Conservative and Reform North
American rabbis and three Israeli rab-
bis to study Jewish sacred scripture in
one of the most prestigious leadership
programs for rabbis in the field? “Ki
mitzion teitzei Torah u’
dvar HaShem
meYerushalayim” — For out of Zion
shall go forth the Torah and the word
of God from Jerusalem (Isaiah 2:3).
With profound gratitude to the
William Davidson Foundation and
with deep appreciation to our respec-
tive synagogue families, we are hon-
ored to be part of the seventh cohort
of the Rabbinic Leadership Initiative
(RLI) of the Shalom Hartman Institute.
“Hartman,” as it is warmly called, is a
leading center of Jewish thought and
education, serving Israel and North
America. Its mission, founded on
rigorous text study and collaborative
peer learning, “is to strengthen Jewish
peoplehood, identity and pluralism,
enhance the Jewish and democratic
character of Israel, and ensure that
Judaism is a compelling force for good
in the 21st century.”
Over the next three years, we will
spend 17 weeks at the Hartman
Campus in Israel as well as countless
hours of online distance learning state-
side, exploring issues of peoplehood,
faith and spirituality, ethics and moral-
ity in order to provide visionary lead-
ership to our synagogues, our Detroit
Jewish community and the Jewish
people.
We write this from Jerusalem, pre-
paring to return to Detroit after com-
pleting our nearly four-week summer
unit of learning with scholars such
as Rabbi Dr. Donniel Hartman, Dr.
Yehudah Kurtzer, Dr. Elana Stein Hain
and Rabbi Lauren Berkun.
EXPANDING AND SETTING BOUNDARIES
We wrestled with that which will guide
our studies for the next year: issues of
peoplehood, including a special empha-
sis on the relationship between Israel
and world Jewry. We are immersed in
traditional and contemporary texts that
explore ancient, medieval and mod-
ern definitions of the boundaries of
Judaism and the Jewish people — who
was and who is “in” and “out.” Perhaps
more importantly, we are discussing
in our diverse group the implications
of inclusion and exclusion with an eye
toward the 21st-century American
Jewish community and the implications
for our relationship with Israeli Jews.
Our own synagogue families are case
studies of the expanding boundaries
of modern Judaism. The Downtown
Synagogue and Congregation Shaarey
Zedek warmly welcome many who pre-
viously may have experienced rejection
by the mainstream Jewish communi-
ty, including Jews of color, Jews who
are LGBTQ+, non-Jews interested in
Judaism and the non-Jewish partners
of Jews, among others. In addition, we
firmly believe in partnering with and
building bridges among Jews of all
streams and with our Israeli brothers
and sisters, as well as our non-Jewish
friends with whom we share the goals
of pursuing peace in the world and in
offering compassion and support to
those in need.
At the same time, the boundaries of
the Jewish people cannot be completely
open. Lines must be drawn. In some
communities, they continue to exclude
in one way or another those whom we
now welcome. In other communities,
they may draw their lines, for example,
to exclude those identifying as Jews but
who have not (yet) begun conversion,
those who want to sit among the con-
gregation but are practicing Christians
or those who reject the right of Israel to
exist in peace and security as a demo-
cratic Jewish state. There is an endpoint
to a community’
s level of tolerance, and
communities are challenged in how
they draw that line.
IS EXCLUSION NECESSARY?
Moreover, while questions of boundar-
ies about those with whom we would
associate religiously and those with
whom we would not associate religious-
ly naturally occupy our conversations,
the learning expands to address the
current state of discourse in the United
States. That is to say, might someone’
s
political beliefs or how they express
those beliefs justify their exclusion
from our lives? For many in our area
and around the country, the answer is a
resounding “yes.”
In addition, at what point is one jus-
tified or unjustified in calling another
“traitorous,” “unwelcome” or “apostate”
— whether with regard to that person’
s
religious beliefs or political beliefs? We
believe there are moments when exclu-
sion is justified, but that the lines are
being drawn way too often and way too
narrowly so that our society is quite lit-
erally breaking down before our eyes.
There is no question that our Tanach
guest column
The Beginning of a Leadership Journey
Rabbis Ariana Silverman and Aaron Starr at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem
COURTESY OF AARON STARR
continued from page 5
Those of us from Michigan who
have been part of the inSIGHT
fundraising process in Florida
were gratified when our state
mandated instruction about the
Armenian genocide along with
the Holocaust. Clearly it has
never been more important to
teach that such horrific events
happened, considering the huge
number of Americans who have
never heard of Auschwitz or even
know the unimagined horrors
of the Jewish people’
s mass
extermination.
The Florida principal was
removed from the school and
reassigned, which brought
some satisfaction. Members
of the community had stated
his remarks were offensive and
incomprehensible in view of his
administrative position, and the
survivors, many of whom we
know, expressed anguish and
disbelief.
In response to this obvious
need for more attention to
Holocaust education, inSIGHT
has joined with Federation,
the JCRC and numerous other
organizations. Along with its
purpose to teach about the
Holocaust, it recognizes the
importance of opposing hatred
and bigotry and encouraging
tolerance and respect.
As two of the original founders
of inSIGHT, we believe it offers
a model for Michigan and other
states to follow. Educators need
tools and training if we expect
them to teach the lessons of the
Holocaust. The dramatic event
in Florida verifies ignorance that
must be addressed.
Edith Broida
Anita Naftaly
InSIGHT Through Education
Co-presidents
continued on page 10
RABBI ARIANA SILVERMAN
RABBI AARON STARR
Correction:
In the story “Shutterbugs”
(July
4, page 23), Jonah Rifkin was
misidentified. Aaron Rudman is
going to be attending Michigan
State University, not U-M as
published.