There are many topics that are the subject of debate - even intense debate. But when people talk about unity, or "achudus" in our parts, there is no argument. People generally want unity, ideally. So no Presidential candidate will run on the platform of "I will divide this country even further" - even if that is exactly what he will do [see especially the last three Presidents]. While the "I will unite this country" card, is a popular one. It make people feel GOOD AND FUZZY to connect. We are wired that way. People who are connected to others are happier people.
That explains A LOT! Like for example - 80,000 people going nuts on a Saturday afternoon [called by us "Shabbos"] over the exploits of a oddly shaped brown object filled with hot air. I refer to college football. Many of these people are intelligent!! They had to study a lot in order to get to college and continue studying, writing papers, reading books, taking tests etc. etc. So how can people trained to use their brain do something as brainless as go absolutely berserk b/c that the funny shaped thing was kicked through the "uprights" or passed over a contrived line the Goyim call the "end zone"?? One answer is that it feels good to connect to something bigger - the "team". As the Michiginer Rebbe, I cry with all of my heart and soul "Go Wolverines". Their Hatzlacha is the Hatzlacha of the Chasidus. Another is that we are connecting to each other through the team. We ALL root TOGETHER for the team. And when they win - we hug and slap hands with each other in utter ecstasy. To this day when someone tells me that they are a Mets fan, I feel a sense of kinship even though I literally don't know the name of one Mets player nor do I care and think the whole enterprise frivolous and generally a waste of time.
In Israel, people will talk about the fact that we are one people and should not let ourselves come apart. Is that possible?
Here is the problem [as I see it]. Are we really one people? What makes us one people? We have different beliefs and ideologies, different lifestyles, different so many things. So what makes us one - that we live in the same country? The fact that we live within the same artificial borders is not going to bring us together - history has shown that on many occasions. Many Arabs also live within our borders and we don't want achdus with them [at least many of us don't]. The real glue that binds us together is an overarching Divine unity. Hashem is One and thus so are his people [and more broadly - everything in creation].
I didn't make this up [unlike all of the other stuff I DO make up...]. We say it every Shabbos mincha: "אתה אחד ושמך אחד ומי כעמך ישראל גוי אחד בארץ" - "You are One, Your Name is One and who is like Your people, one nation on earth." What binds us together is Hashem. But if that is disputed then it is very hard to connect us together.
Beis Shammai and Beis Hillel could intermarry because despite their differences b/c they agreed upon the basic facts. Hashem is One and we are His people. A Sefardi and Ashkenazi can marry each other and have common ground because they agree on the basics. They will work out the rice on Pesach thing and other differences.
At Har Sinai we had achdus. We were כאיש אחד בלב אחד. But we were all bound by the Torah. That is the achdus we want. We have a common past, a common destiny and the same task to fulfill - to increase Kavod Shomayim in the world. The warm, fuzzy feeling we get when we feel connected to other people is not going to sustain achdus. This isn't theory - we see that it isn't working. The only time we are able to have some semblance of unity is when attacked by an outside enemy. When that passes - we are back at each others throats. I like to say that our enemies are foolish. If they would just leave us alone - we would eventually kill each other [ח"ו!!!]. What keep us together is that we have to defend ourselves against them.
So what is the prognosis, Doc?
Please call me the "Michiginer".
The prognosis is that we should work on having unity with our brothers and sisters who are Shomrei Torah and mitzvos. That is a good place to start. We should also care very much that our brothers and sisters who are far from Torah and mitzvos come back. The fact that our children go to yeshivos is not enough. What about the millions of Jewish children who don't? What about the approximately 70 percent intermarriage rate in the U.S. and even higher in other places? We should be genuinely concerned b/c these are our brothers and sisters and the children of Hashem our Father. The objective reality is that we ARE one people - like it or not. We can't always choose our family members but family is family.
And we should daven hard for the only true and lasting solution - משיח צדקינו!!!
