In many spiritual traditions, holiness is achieved in solitude, through separation from the day-to-day world. Climb a mountain, sit in silence, commune with God.

In this week’s double Torah portion, Acharei Mot-Kedoshim, the Book of Leviticus takes a beautiful turn from its focus on purity, impurity, sacrifices, and ritual forms of holiness to the interpersonal ethics that are the foundations of a life inspired by and infused with the Divine. “Keoshim tihyu — You shall be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy,” the Torah commands us.

I love that the Torah’s “You shall be holy” is written in the plural. The Israelites stood at Mount Sinai as a community. God commands the Israelites to build a mishkan (tabernacle) so God will dwell within them. This happens not only through our rituals and holidays; holiness means elevating ourselves and the world around us through our actions, relationships, and how we treat one another. Everyday holiness happens when we create connected communities where each of us is a unique and integral part of a greater whole.

Last week marked 130 years since the very first board meeting of the founders of Combined Jewish Philanthropies. I have so much gratitude to those leaders who had the foresight to recognize that this community would be stronger, and their generosity would go further if they joined (“combined”) together. Thus began the first Jewish federation in the United States. 

It is humbling to know that we are the inheritors of their vision and leadership, that we are standing on the shoulders of the giants who have come before us. In every generation there have been leaders, philanthropists, builders of Jewish life who were willing to innovate and reimagine, while remaining deeply rooted in their past. It’s what keeps the Jewish People thriving and strong. And it’s what enables us to respond to the most urgent needs of the moment while we boldly envision our future. 

This felt particularly meaningful to me last Sunday when I had the privilege of celebrating the retirement of Professor Jonathan Sarna from Brandeis University. Professor Sarna is the foremost historian of American Judaism in the world, and a cherished member of our Greater Boston Jewish community. Among his many academic contributions, Professor Sarna has played an outsized role in telling the story of American Judaism in ways that are accessible to everyone.  

The history of the Jewish People, of American Judaism, of the Jews of Boston and CJP, are stories of communities like ours — across the globe and across time — striving to understand and live out what certainly could be our mission statement: You shall be holy. 

I could feel our story unfolding this week when I attended the JPro conference for Jewish communal professionals with 1,300 passionate and purposeful individuals dedicated to strengthening the Jewish People. And even though we were no longer gathered in the mishkan, but in a ballroom, it felt holy. We were connected to one another by a sense of purpose, a commitment to something larger than ourselves: a shared story, and a shared responsibility to build a vibrant Jewish future and a better world. 

As we continue this work of remembering, preserving, strengthening, and creating, may we embrace the sacred responsibility of building holiness together — not in isolation, but through the shared values and the collective commitments that have sustained our people for generations and will illuminate our path forward for the next 130 years and beyond.