We are in a time when developing interfaith relationships is very important. For Jewish people, we feel isolated because of rising anti-Semitism and discord over conversations regarding Israel. For the rest of the world, partisanship and extremism seem to dominate daily life, which in effect creates alienation. And when people feel alienated, they don’t communicate. When people don’t communicate, they become strangers. Strangers evoke fear and fear is what leads to hatred.
The reality of American life is that there is no dominant culture or denomination. We come from different places, we speak different languages and often we look different. We have chosen to live in this great country, which models pluralism.
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This reality comes as a challenge to leadership — be it in education, politics or religion — to create a cultural shift to protect the values of an enlightened society.
One of the reasons I have chosen to be involved in interfaith work is to learn about others and to have others learn about me. Together with Father Andrew Sherman of St. Gregory’s Episcopal Church, Dr. Basem Alhalabi of ICBR and many religious leaders in this community, we created an organization, Boca Raton Interfaith Clergy Association (BRICA). This was done, not to sing kumbaya, quite the opposite. We are interested in both similarities and difference.
First, we need to recognize each other and our differences and commit to dialogue, where we find places of similarity and difference. That recognition is essential to living a human life. Second, there need to be models for young people to see adults can gather together with respect. Our traditions teach about modesty and that the world wasn’t created for “me alone” but rather we learn to approach the world asking what we can do for others. Locally, in our interfaith community, we have committed ourselves to that.
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We soon realized all this wasn’t enough. So we started a group for teens from a variety of religious backgrounds: the Boca Raton Interfaith Youth Association (BRIYA). These are young people who learn about each other, see their differences and also realize their similarities. They engage in projects that work with underserved populations to help others. They are Christians, Muslims and Jews.
BRICA meets monthly, learns about the institutions in our community from its leaders, shares an annual prayer day breakfast, joins together for Thanksgiving, does projects and gathers in prayer. We have mourned together after national and international tragedies such as the attack at Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, shootings at churches and schools, and the bombing of a mosque in New Zealand. Together, we have committed to learn about the plight of immigrants and the challenges of underserved populations. We have also been invited to each other’s places of worship for celebrations. We study text and scripture and learn about interpreted processes from each of our own traditions.
I feel rewarded by the knowledge I gain and the relationships I have built. I have always believed that should there be difficult times in our community, these relationships are helpful. I also find my relationships with other clergy and religious leaders, who are dedicated to God and community, contain a unique dimension of holiness. There is something that people of faith share which can be transcendent.
From my own tradition, I have learned the value of every human life. I also have learned that no one can, or should, live in isolation. A generation ago, my own family escaped Nazi Germany. My family history taught me what was later emphasized in Torah readings, that in order to be a fully committed Jewish person, one needs to see the suffering of others and be involved in helping to alleviate that.
To do this, we all need a bit more humility and empathy. The years of my life have taught me that no single person or group has all the understanding. It makes me think about the words of a great Jewish spiritual master Reb Zalman Schachter Shalomi, who once said, “To get it together, be together.”
Rabbi David Steinhardt is the Senior Rabbi at B’nai Torah Congregation in Boca Raton.
