Seinfeld, Israel, and Jewish Unity
"My great grandparents would have been astonished to see parts of the Jewish community and Jewish families crumbling over politics — as if either political party would be our salvation."
By Amy Stoken
About 15 years ago, I was managing an event where Rabbi Jonathan Sacks was speaking. Someone standing near me, also a rabbi, I believe, turned to me and said, ‘You know we are living in the “Seinfeld Era.”’ I didn’t understand, and I’m sure I looked at him in confusion. He explained that in the history of the Jewish people, how bizarre it was that we were living in a time when a Jewish actor and “Jewish” humor could be so mainstream that a show like Seinfeld could exist and be so immensely popular. That this era was an anomaly. The rabbi’s words didn’t resonate with me that much at the time. But they stuck with me, enough so that I’m retelling them here.
I’ve been thinking about that remark a lot since October 7 — how accurate it was at the time — and how quickly it all seems to be changing. A few years later I gave a speech at a dinner for Shomrim, the fraternal organization of Jewish law enforcement. This was in 2017, the year after Trump was elected. After decades of Israel being a consistently bipartisan issue — it was now becoming a political football. I had already heard countless stories of friends who were no longer speaking to each other because of political differences, even extended family members no longer having Shabbat dinner together. For example, the grandparents had voted for Trump, and as a result, a millennial wouldn’t speak to them.
The gist of my speech was that my great grandparents, who never left Russia, who weren’t survivors, who to the best of our knowledge never went to a concentration camp either — but were shot where they stood for the crime of being Jewish — would have looked at the Jews in America and been astonished. Astonished to see us thriving as lawyers and law enforcement, as movie stars and elected officials at almost every level. But how they would have been further astonished to see parts of the Jewish community and Jewish families crumbling over politics — as if either political party would be our salvation. As if any political party could be more important than each other.
Now, in the wake of October 7, we have experienced a resurgence of unity. As far as I can tell, it’s the only silver lining at all. But with a very contentious election approaching, I fear that unity is already cracking. And once again, my hope is to inspire others to help prevent that crack, at least in our own families and communities.
The sad reality is that now, more than ever, we face three different — albeit sometimes overlapping — ideologies of antisemitism and anti-Israel hate. It’s on the far right, it’s on the far left (and creeping inward), and in extremist elements in the name of Islam. We need to be advocating against all of it, not be fighting over which is worse or poses the most danger.
The sadder reality is that proponents of these different ideologies are bonding over their hatred of Jews and Israel. I know you have seen it — marches and encampments with signs like “Transgenders for Palestine” and other absurdities. If they are bonding over antisemitism and hatred of Israel, it is even more important that we cannot allow our community to be divided. Again, no political party or politician will be our salvation.
To be clear, this is not to say politics doesn’t matter or that there aren’t candidates that would be better than others on supporting Israel or combating antisemitism. Actually, politics could not be more important right now and I am often encouraging people to get more politically involved and support certain candidates over others. But I also know it’s important for those of us who care about Israel and the Jewish future to be at tables other than where I sit, debunking lies and making our case.
Despite what our conspiratorial haters have to say, we do not control political outcomes in America; we are only 2 percent of its population. Our system is also, unfortunately, a mess, and as it stands, at least for presidential elections, voters in most states don’t affect the outcome either. My point is, even if you are in a mixed marriage or family or you cannot for the life of you understand how or why your neighbor or friend is voting Republican or Democrat or for Biden or Trump, maybe you are right — but it’s not worth torching relationships over it.
You might ask: what about groups like Jewish Voices for Peace, or the Jews who care about every other issue on the planet except for Israel and our own safety and security? I strongly disagree with them and think some are actively doing harm. In my book, they are outside the tent. But they are not worth our negative energy, and what’s more, they have always been there, and we have always survived despite them. If you don’t believe me, I urge you to look up a man named Max Naumann and the League of National German Jews. My point is to ignore them, focus on what you CAN DO — and double it in their place.
There was no more rewarding place for me to carry this message on Shavuot than my local Chabad. I love Chabad because it is more about Jewish unity than any other organization I know of. Chabad is a bridge that Jewish organizations rarely cross — a bridge that spans from the Hasidic Jews to a practically secular Zionist like me. And Shavuot is a Jewish holiday that focuses specifically on Jewish unity, where we are “one person with one heart.”
In closing, I found it ironic that in the wake of October 7, the first major celebrity to go to Israel to show Jewish solidarity was none other than Seinfeld himself. It may very well be the end of the Seinfeld Era, when we are once again, as Rabbi Sacks often explained, the “other.” But Jewish history is the story of our survival, and now is a time to be resilient, to engage, to advocate — and above all else and despite our political differences — to stick together.
**The above is a slightly adapted speech given by Amy Stoken during a Shavuot service at Chabad Wilmette.
AMY STOKEN is an attorney actively involved in matters pertaining to Israel.
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