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Disagreeing for A Higher Purpose
June 27, 2009 / 5 Tammuz 5769
Rabbi Mark S. Diamond
Executive Vice President
The Board of Rabbis of Southern California
Torah Portion: Korah ("Korah"), Numbers 16:1-18:32
Haftarah Portion: I Samuel 11:14-12:22
"A controversy for Heaven's sake will have lasting value, but a controversy not for Heaven's sake will not endure. What is an example of a controversy for Heaven's sake? The debates of Hillel and Shammai. What is an example of a controversy not for Heaven's sake? The rebellion of Korah and his associates." (Pirkay Avot 5:19) Controversy is an inherent feature of communal life. Discord and disagreement are inevitable given the unique character of each individual and community. The familiar refrain "two Jews, three opinions" has morphed of late into the corollary "two Jews, only three opinions?" As a society, our goal ought not to be to stifle or quash controversy. Rather, as the rabbinic sages recognized, the challenge we face on a daily basis is to ensure that our disagreements are l'shem shamayim, for a higher purpose.
What was so disagreeable about Korah and his band of rebels? Some Midrashic commentators suggest that Korah was intensely jealous of Moses and angry that he had not been chosen for a senior leadership position--"He has passed me by in the appointment of all the high offices; therefore, I will stir up rebellion against him!" Others posit that Korah disputed Moses' religious authority and judgment by making his legal decisions seem ridiculous before the people of Israel. Still others comment that Korah and his followers fanned the flames of discontent by pitting social classes against one other.
Ultimately, the Korahite rebellion failed because it was rooted in demagoguery. It served no purpose other than to further the self-serving ambitions of Korah and his associates. In stark contrast, the controversy of the followers of Hillel and Shammai was a mahloket (disagreement) that served a sacred cause:For three years the School of Shammai argued with the School of Hillel. The former said, "The law agrees with our views." And the latter said: "The law agrees with our views." Then a heavenly voice announced: "These and these are each the words of the living God, but the law agrees with the rulings of the School of Hillel." Since both schools' rulings "are the words of the living God," why was the law fixed according to the rulings of the School of Hillel? Because the followers of Hillel were kindly and modest. They not only studied the rulings of the School of Shammai, they even mentioned these rulings before their own. (Talmud Eruvin 13b) The disciples of Hillel and Shammai argued passionately and vociferously over matters of Jewish law and life. Each believed that theirs was the correct interpretation of Jewish tradition. One side alone could win the disputes, and ultimately the School of Hillel prevailed not on the strength of their arguments, but on the quality of their temperament. In the process, both sides earned Divine approbation for ensuring that their controversy was truly for the sake of Heaven.
In recent days I have participated in several conferences and meetings that I believe were l'shem shamayim. They include a groundbreaking Jewish-evangelical Christian leadership conversation in our nation's capital and an Abrahamic reconciliation seminar for Jewish and Muslim clergy and community leaders. At these gatherings we engaged in dialogue and debate over difficult issues that divide people of faith and their respective communities of faith--proselytism, evangelism, Israel's security and survival, the rights of Israeli Arabs and Palestinians, anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, and a host of other topics.
Our discussions were heartfelt, intense and sometimes painful. Above all else, they were marked by trust, respect and a shared commitment to "see the other" in the hearts and minds of our fellow participants. I hope and pray that by acting in this manner, our disagreements were for the sake of Heaven and will remain so in the future. May all our controversies have lasting value by serving a higher purpose.
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