Shavuot is approaching — the birthday not only of Judaism itself, but of Jewish pluralism as well.  

Shavuot commemorates God’s revelation of the Ten Commandments (and by implication, all of Torah) at Mount Sinai. At that moment, a ragtag nation of newly-free slaves heard the Divine Voice. What started as a people became a people with a purpose: to bring Judaism into the world.  

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Yes, at Sinai we Jews stood together. Today? Not so much. We argue about matters of observance, like which standard of kashrut to use, or even whether to do so at all, and how to observe Shabbat; and, increasingly and painfully, about the role of Israel and Zionism in Jewish communal life. 

 If we all stood together at Sinai, why do we struggle so much to stand together now? 

It takes 49 days to get from the liberation of Pesach to the revelation at Shavuot. That is a transformative journey. We no longer work for Pharaoh; we now work for God. More than that: we are partners with God (Exodus 19-20).  Every Jew past, present and future and everyone who would someday become a Jew was present at Sinai. It was a unifying experience and the beginning of Jewish content. 

And yet, while standing at Sinai was a unifying experience, we must note that unity in this context did not equal homogeneity. Instead, it was an embodiment of pluralism.

A midrash teaches that God appeared differently to each Israelite at Sinai: as a warrior, a teacher, an elder, a youth. God appeared to each person according to their needs, but He was still the same God. In another midrash, Rabbi Yohanan relates that God modulated the Divine Voice according to each person’s capacity.

These teachings impart a powerful idea: the entire Jewish people was present for the same revelation, but we all experienced it in our own personal and diverse ways. We stood together as one people, yet each of us experienced God uniquely. In other words, it was the birth of Jewish pluralism. 

Pluralism in Judaism is a feature, not a bug. Jacob blessed his sons differently, recognizing their unique strengths. Moses, too, acknowledged the distinct characteristics of each tribe. When we crossed the Red Sea, a midrash says that the waters divided into 12 separate paths, one for each tribe. Our differences are an important part of who we are, but those differences did not prevent us from standing together as one when it mattered most: at Sinai, when we received a shared framework, the Torah, which would transcend our individual distinctions.

This leads to a question for Jewish professionals and leaders. The Jewish people face immense challenges, including increasing antisemitism, our relationship with Israel after the Oct. 7 attacks and internal political battles in the United States. These challenges require collaborative solutions and a united front. Why then do our differences overshadow our common purpose? 

Our experience with Wisdom Without Walls, an online salon for Jewish ideas, has only reinforced our commitment to Jewish unity, even and especially within diversity. We bring people together for a few hours each month to discuss the most important topics facing the Jewish people. Our guests enter our virtual space with diverse perspectives. Many of us disagree on fundamental issues about Jewish tradition or the place of Israel in our lives. But we engage with those diverse ideas with respect. We listen, learn and see the divine spark within each person — even and especially when they are someone with whom we disagree. This has a profound intellectual and emotional impact on each person. 

As Shavuot approaches, let it be a call to action to understand not only our place in the covenant but also our relationship with every other member of our diverse Jewish family. 

It is time to consciously work towards rebuilding that sense of collective identity — to once again “stand as one” with our many voices, varied understandings and differing beliefs, but united by actionable respect for one another.

The challenges are too great and the potential of our collective strength is too vast to do otherwise.

Sandra Lilienthal and Rabbi Jeffrey K. Salkin are the co-founders and co-directors of Wisdom Without Walls.