We Talk About Achdus Non-Stop, But We Can’t Get Along with Each Other

“We will enter prison happily, since by doing so we will be sanctifying the name of God publicly,” Rabbi Avraham Luria, a Slonim hassid facing prison time, told The Jerusalem Post in a hoarse whisper Wednesday night. “These are historic moments that will be studied by future generations.”

Oh they will be. Just not the way he thinks. More like the way we study the historic moment of Kamtza vs Bar Kamtza, a metaphor for Israel being destroyed last time around because no one could get along with anyone else for 5 minutes at a time.

This great HISTORIC MOMENT is brought to you by the Emmanuel case, one of those cases where everyone manages to be wrong and horrible at the same time. Behind the cries of WACISM (Sefardim aren’t another race) and GOYISCHE COURTS (Israeli courts aren’t Goyish) and all the rest of the crap, are activists from different communities fighting over education money and policy. And pushing the fight into the Israeli court system which is only too happy to exercise its authority. And by exercise its authority, I mean overstep its authority and then scream bloody murder when they’re defied.

What is the Emmanuel case really about? It’s about 2000 years after the Beit Hamikdash was destroyed because we trusted Romans more than we trusted other Jews, we’re still fighting. We’re fighting to different customs and traditions. We’re fighting because not only can’t a secular and religious legal system co-exist, but even different religious traditions can’t co-exist together. And because it all comes down to money. Shekels. Gelt. They fund communities. And communities survived by controlling the education of their children. And they survive by being different. Which means finding differences, expanding them and sticking to them, INSIDE THE SAME DAMN ONE NATION.

No it’s not racism. That’s because we all have nasty names for each other. Because not only can’t Ashkenazim and Sefardim get along, but Chassidim can’t get along with each other. Sefardim can’t get along with each other either. There’s a thousand different groups fighting with each other non-stop. We talk about Achdus non-stop, but none of us can get along with each other.

And now while our killers are bearing down on us, we’re busy punching each other in the face and sending each other to prison over a girls school. Sure makes Kamza and Bar Kamtza look good, don’t it?