The world feels like it’s falling apart. There are divisions along every possible line of our society: racial, religious, geographic, political and the list continues. Everywhere we look there’s separation: college campuses, congress, along generational lines and regional borders. We feel these rifts in ways that are real. Our heart hurts as we acknowledge the utter brokenness all about us.

That said, every time I walk into KI these days I am reminded that togetherness is possible. 

Maybe you have witnessed what I have seen every day at KI this summer. Our building has quickly become a bastion of interfaith and interdenominational life: Not only is our Reform community bustling with programming, services and gatherings every day, we now have both an Orthodox and Conservative presence here as well. The Congregations of Shaare Shamayim are quickly settling into our Rothschild space at the end of the building. A significant portion of our building is also being used this summer by Camp Seed, an Orthodox girls camp, who bring verve and enthusiasm to our hallways. We are passing by each other in the lobby, schmoozing in the parking lot and slowly getting to know each other. These, in addition to our Holocaust Awareness Museum and Education Center, Temple Judea Gallery and ongoing partnership with AADD, Or Hadash and other community partners, have turned our beloved KI into a place where togetherness is very much alive.

I often wonder what the world would look like if this type of coexistence were the norm. Imagine a world where we lived side-by-side in harmony, not judging or denigrating each other. Imagine a world where we got to know each other, learned about each other, shared with each other. As the twelve tribes of Israel each strengthened our people and contributed to the diverse make-up of the group, so do our unique identities stand to come together to strengthen our broader human community. 

Especially within the Jewish community these days, when we are so maligned and so misunderstood, we need to remember our shared roots and shared mission. We need to remember we are family. This unity has at times felt palpable as we’ve prayed across every line in the name of the release of the hostages and the end to this horrific war. We’ve felt it at rallies and in taking in images almost too difficult to bear.  

May we remember to always see the good in each other. May we remember to recognize the sanctity in each other. May we find a way to exist together.