It’s good to be together

My friend L loves to greet everyone with the words, “It’s good to be together.” Whether we are sharing a meal at a simcha, bumping into one another at a supermarket or restaurant, or finding ourselves in the same shul for a service, he always elevates the meeting with this trademark phrase. 

Every interaction between two individuals creates a synergy. Neither walks away the same. Sometimes the change is significant; sometimes it is subtle and imperceptible. But it takes place at some level or another. It can bring out the best in both or, sadly, the converse. So, it is powerful to acknowledge that a meeting is good. 

This Shabbat, it is going to be good to be together with the Jews of Israel. We will still be in the diaspora and they will still be in the Holy Land, so it is not a meeting in a physical sense. Please G-d, if Moshiach arrives by then, we will literally be one nation in one place! 

For the past few weeks, we have been reading different weekly portions in shul. You will recall that Shavuot fell on a Friday and Shabbat. When a chag occurs on Shabbat, the regular cycle of Torah reading is paused and a section related to the festival is inserted instead. This is exactly what happened in the diaspora. In Israel, however, Shavuot was only one day, Friday, so the cycle of Torah readings was not disrupted. Since then, in effect, Israel has been ahead of the rest of the world by one portion. 

That is disconcerting. The pulse of the Jewish people is the weekly Torah reading. We study it, discuss it, debate it, and expect our rabbis to deliver sermons and shiurim related to it. There is definitely a sense of disconnect when all of world Jewry is not on the same page. 

At this difficult time for the Jewish people, being and remaining united is of the utmost importance. When our friends in high places let us down to best serve their own political and diplomatic agendas, we, diaspora and Israeli Jews alike, must stand proud, tall, and united. 

The last few weeks were indeed disconcerting. The pulse of our nation was displaying signs of arrhythmia. Yet, that realisation in itself made us feel that we were one. 

In Israel this Shabbat, the portion will be Balak. In the diaspora, we will read a double portion, combining Chukat and Balak. Henceforth, we will be in sync. One again. My friend L will certainly exclaim, “It’s good to be together.” 

For it truly is. 

• Rabbi Yossi Chaikin, Rabbi Oxford Shul and SA Rabbinical Association chairperson