Building Jewish Unity through Learning
The Ottawa Jewish Unity Live Torah Study Project
By Rachel Sheffrin

What do Sigmund Freud, my grandmother and Rabbi Shotkin all have in common? You don’t need to have smicha [rabbinical ordination] to figure out the answer: they’re all Jewish! But what is it, beyond a simple label, that unites the lives of such disparate characters and millions of others like, and very much unlike, them? According to our tradition, it is the fact that we all stood together at Sinai three thousand years ago to receive the Torah. Indeed even today, when Jewish affiliation takes so many different guises, most of these “denominations” define themselves in terms of the extent of their Torah observance or how they view the authorship of the Torah.

So, what better vehicle to celebrate Jewish unity than through a community-wide project of Torah study? Such is the purpose of Jewish Unity Live. It sort of all started less than two years ago, but really it began back in 1924, when Polish Parliament member Rabbi Meir Shapira instituted the Daf Yomi program. This is a system of A-Page-a-Day Talmud study, where all participants are literally on the same page, and complete the entire Shas (all the volumes of the Talmud) in 7 years. Step on a subway train from Brooklyn into Manhattan on any weekday morning and you’ll see Daf Yomi carriages where commuters use this precious time in the pursuit of Torah knowledge, and the satisfaction that comes from completing a task and doing it together. A major celebration of the completion of one of these cycles took place on March 1, 2005. Several members of Ottawa’s own community had participated. This was the inspiration behind Jewish Unity Live, an outreach project, which unites Jews across North America in a common Torah-learning project, accessible to everyone regardless of their initial level of Jewish knowledge. The only requirement is a desire to know, and that, according to the Jewish Unity Live organizers, is innate in every Jew.

Last year, Ottawa participated in the event along with 11 other cities in Canada and the United States. There were over 500 Ottawa residents involved. Together they completed all 5 books of the Torah. The completion of the learning project culminated in a celebration at the Canadian Museum of Nature earlier this year. Not only did Ottawa’s Jewish community feel united by the fact that together they had completed a considerable feat of Torah learning, but attendees could also feel connected to the tens of thousands of Jews across North America who were also participating in the event. This year 15 cities are involved, and hopefully even more Ottawa residents will participate.

This year’s study project is the first chapter of Pirkei Avot, the Sayings of the Fathers. These are the great ethical teachings of the rabbis. Chapter 1 includes Rabbi Hillel’s famous dictum “If I am not for myself, who will be for me? And if I am only for myself, what am I? And if not now, when?” (1:14) as well as Rabban Shimon Ben Gamliel’s view of the world as enduring on three things: “justice, truth and peace” (1:18). No one could argue with that. More contentious, perhaps: “Do not become overly familiar with the government” (1:10), a particularly provocative one for Ottawa! I am of course unashamedly quoting out of context and with no commentary in the hope that you will be sufficiently curious to go and find out for yourself what our great Sages could have had in mind.

JET will be offering two classes at the SJCC. Rabbi Shotkin will be holding a class on Tuesday mornings from 10:00 til 11:00 a.m. entitled Pirkei Avot: The History of Jewish Ethics. Lauren Shaps will be holding a women’s study class Pirkei Avot: Jewish Ethics on Thursday mornings from 9:00 til 10:00 a.m. Both classes run from the first week in November until late February but you can feel free to join in whenever you can. There is no charge for attendance or participation, but you will be rewarded in both this world and the world to come! Even the younger members of our community can get involved, from pre-school children to high school students, as they discuss and debate the message of Pirkei Avot. In addition to the daytime sessions, private groups are forming across the city. You can even host one in your own home at a time and location more convenient to you. If you can’t make it to one of the groups, you can still participate in this community project by learning the first chapter of Pirkei Avot on your own. Whichever option you prefer, just contact the JET office at the SJCC and they will help you get involved. Know that as you delve into the depths of this very short (just a couple of pages) but intriguing text, you will be thus united with many thousands of Jews in many cities across our continent.

The climax of the study project will be another great celebratory event this time at the National Library and Archives of Canada, on Monday night, March 26th 2007. The guest speaker will be Rabbi Jonathan Rietti, an extremely brilliant and witty Rabbi, who is a world-renowned lecturer from the Jewish outreach organization Gateways, followed by a musical performance to enhance the celebration. It promises to be an enlightening and entertaining evening. Mark the date in your calendar now as this is an event not to be missed. Even if you do not participate in the study you can attend this event and experience the joy and excitement of linking up with Jews across your own city and the whole of North America in a grand celebration of Jewish Unity.