Elections May Come and Go, but the Jewish People Must Endure.

Momentum once had a tour guide who peppered his commentary with his personal politics. I told him to dial down his politics to….zero. Why? Because politics divide.

From the very founding of our movement, we chose to focus on what unites us and not what divides us. This eventually became one of Momentum’s four goals: Achdut v’lo Achiydut, Unity Without Uniformity. (Just to remind you of the other 3: Connect to Jewish Values; Engage with Israel; Take Action)

I grew up in Toronto with parents who voted differently. Every time there was an election, we had two signs on our front lawn, one for the Liberal party’s candidate (for my father), and one for the NDP – New Democratic Party (for my mother). My father was more center, my mother more to the “left.”

We grew up with the message that voting is a privilege and responsibility, and the fact that you may choose to vote differently is just fine. No one got voted “off the island,” and our family always remained intact. No one fought over politics; fighting was for important things, like challenging someone on a word in Scrabble.
As America gears up for the November election, please remember that the Jewish people are a family, and although we may disagree politically, let’s make a decision that it will not divide us, that we can still come together for the things we agree on.

On June 18, 1858, Abraham Lincoln, in his speech accepting his party’s nomination for Senator, said: “A house divided against itself cannot stand.”
Just a few short years later, over 618,000 Americans lost their lives in the Civil War.

Elections may come and go, but the Jewish people must endure.