What did we learn this weekend?
That we are Republicans and Democrats. We're Orthodox, Reform, Conservative, Reconstructionist, Renewing, Sephardic, Ashkenazi, Chabad, Haredi, Secular. We're Straight, LGBTQ+, and much more.
And we may not agree on things. And that's ok. It's ok to argue. It's ok to disagree.
But it's not ok to attack, to call people in the community traitors, or Israel-haters, or fools.
It doesn't matter where you live in Greater MetroWest, or what denomination you claim to be, or your political affiliation in the US or in Israel.

If you can't do the following things today, we won't have a tolerant community tomorrow:

(1) Share your perspectives while listening respectfully to those of others.
(2) Respect the differences from others and seek to understand them.
(3) Acknowledge the perspectives of others.
(4) Inquire about and seek to understand the assumptions of others.
(5) Suspend debate and the need to prove the other person wrong. Especially on social media platforms.
(6) Only then, understand and share your assumptions.
We can do this. We're a big community and if you're an Orthodox Republican in Elizabeth or a Reconstructionist Democrat in Montclair, you're part of the same community. It may not always feel that way. But if it doesn't feel that way for you, maybe you should ask why. And what can you do about it. Tomorrow another Rashida Tlaib or Ilhan Omar will challenge us, force us to learn more about ourselves, and require us to speak respectfully once again. Let's be ready. Because this is also about us.


Well, sadly, it did happen again.
Earlier this week, President Trump suggested that Jewish citizens who vote for Democrats are either ignorant or disloyal. “Where has the Democratic Party gone? Where have they gone where they are defending these two peopleover the State of Israel? I think any Jewish people that vote for a Democrat, I think it shows either a total lack of knowledge or great disloyalty.”

President Trump later clarified he was referring to Israel and the Jewish people. As JNS columnist Melanie Phillips wrote, “Trump is sticking up for Israel against the enemies of the Jews within the Democratic Party, whilethat party, along with its Jewish supporters, is sticking up for the enemies of the Jews within its ranks.” - Dov Ben-Shimon, CEO of the Metrowest (New Jersey) Jewish Federation