BackContinuing the Tradition
By: Rabbi Dr. Abraham Unger
The central question facing modern Jewry is how to balance integration with maintenance of our unique Jewish identity. Even within Orthodoxy, Modern Orthodox theologians such as Rabbi Dr. Joseph B. Soloveitchik argue that observant Jews should be engaged with the broader society, while the Charedi community suggests separation. Joseph and his brothers provide a Biblical paradigm that may help us to resolve this dilemma.
After their reunification, Joseph tells his brothers that they and their families will settle in Goshen, an area of Egypt he has reserved for the nascent Jewish nation. Joseph mentions that in Goshen, his family will be geographically close to him. He came to Egypt earlier, alone, and, though remaining publicly true to his faith, clearly resides among Egyptians. The Torah simply reports both of these realities of the time; Joseph lived and participated more fully in the secular milieu of his era.
Notwithstanding Joseph’s unique historical mission, the Torah seems to allow for both possibilities – that of separation and integration. There is no one answer that overrides the other. The key then is to make sure the family unit, the home itself, sustains the continuity of the Jewish tradition. This is made explicit in Jewish tradition. The kitchen table is the “altar” representing the Temple of old. The home is the sacrosanct temple of Jewish learning and practice. It ultimately does not matter where one lives. It matters what one does wherever one lives.