–God commanded us (Bamidbar 26:52-56) to ” …apportion the Land among these (that is, the above 12 tribes, only semi-counted previously).” If we are all supposed to be the same, why live in specific inheritances, based on your tribe? Why should the leader of each tribe come forth (ibid 34:18)? Why not rather just divide up the land based on family units and needs, amongst all the Jews? Moreover, if they were already “divided” then why categorize them yet again, in the era of our future redemption (Yechezkel 47:13) into tribes?
–Why have the Jews (at least, according the description of the Midrash, quoted in the interpretation of the Rambam to Mishna,Tractate Avot 5/3 and others) walk through the Sea of Reeds in 12 different columns – corresponding the 12 different tribes – if we can “all be the same” and thus walk through it together as one?
–Why would there be a positive commandment (Tractate Sanhedrin 16b, and see it being practiced in Tractate Pesachim 4a) for “each tribe to judge it’s members” rather than have courts based on locale and convenience?
–Why would the Magen-Avraham, one of the primary interpretations of the Code of Jewish Law (O.C, “Forward” to Chapter 68), state that the various customs that we have in prayer (i.e. Ashkenaz, Sefard, Sefaradi, Temani, and permutations of each) are so vital that one is forbidden to change one’s custom, as “…there are 12 gates in heaven corresponding to the 12 tribes, and each tribe has a gate and a custom of it’s own?!”
–And finally, why would the Psalmist state (Tehillim, Chapter 122:3-4) that: “…Jerusalem is like a city that was joined together within itself. There ascended the tribes, the tribes of God, testimony to Israel, to give thanks to the name of the Lord.” Wouldn’t Jerusalem be more “joined together” – unified – if “the entire Jewish people without division” went there, rather than state their appearance on it divided and looking differently as “tribes”?
It seems clear that God never wanted us all to be in the same “tribe”; rather diversity for the Jewish people – after accepting the fulfillment of Mitzvot – is the ideal way God intended us to live. Based on the above, I believe that it’s incumbent upon us all to look out the window frequently, together with our kids, point out the (legitimate) differences between the people walking the streets, and then say, “this is the way God wanted it to be, a diverse Jewish world!” I don’t believe statements, like the ones uttered in the park, would be repeated if the above exercise was a constant re-occurrence in our homes.
Perceptions…not based solely on the media – First impressions are very powerful. It is very hard to change a first impression, even when there is logical proof that it was wrong. However, beyond subjective first-impressions, there is one more kind of impression –that of the media. The media will usually speak about this or that community because of some “juicy” story that occurred there, be it very good or very bad. Thus, the first impression one would have, if his/her knowledge of a community is based solely on the media, is that the communities members are either the greatest Tzadikim alive, or the most repulsive, degraded people living. After all, these are the nature of the stories that the media usually report about a community. It’s seldom, almost non-existent, to have a news report stating: “Minyan was on time today, the Chazzan davened at a normal pace, and nobody complained.” Therefore, while the media is a vital tool in our day and age, and while I wouldn’t want to live in a country without free media, let’s be careful not to formulate opinions about communities based solely on their reports and descriptions.
Mind you, living in the same vicinity doesn’t mean that you will become intimate friends. It’s even safe to assume that your closest friends will still be those that share the same world-view as yourself, share the same dress-code, and even send their children to the same stream of schools. But, at the very least, a basic relationship may exist. Can it be safe to assume that in such a scenario, “agreeing to disagree” will be much more natural and easier than mutual name-calling? In a generation of so-many “connections,” yet ones that are not “tight” enough, I end with the following challenge: perhaps the time has come for us to live in mixed communities?!
As a frequent traveler abroad, I rarely see a community where everyone is alike. Though the comfort of “living with your own” is understandable, there is much to be said for a Jewish community in which Streimlach walk on the same sidewalk with Kippot Serugot, and girls wearing heavy stockings walk to shul on Shabbat together with those wearing sandals without any socks. While davening in different shuls, attending different schools, having different leaders, and living in different homes, they frequently see one another on the street, and wish a mutual Good Shabbos and other such salutations.