Every member a learner, every learner a teacher

Learning is not just for kids at Agudas Achim, and it doesn't end when one becomes B'nai Mitzvah. With programs for children, teens, and adults, we actively model the principle of "every member a learner, every learner, a teacher." Our goal is to provide an integrated and engaging learning experience for the entire family and to weave this learning through all generations of our community.

Each year, the entire school and the congregation studies a common theme. The theme for 2017-2018 is “makhloket l’shem shamayim,” an idea that originated in a 3rd century Jewish legal text, the Mishnah, and means “conflict for the sake of heaven.” Sometimes it is understood to mean “constructive conflict,” modeled after two groups of famous ancient scholars, the House of Hillel and the House of Shammai. Even though they disagreed strongly with one another, about really important topics, they lived peacefully and respectfully in community with one another. So we continue to study makhloket l’shem shamayim to learn how to live in community with people we disagree with.  We also study it to learn how to engage in conflict in constructive, respectful ways.
 
Makhloket l’shem shamayim is also understood as an enduring conflict. There are many issues facing our community and our society today that do not have easy answers, but are challenges we have to come back to again and again. Studying makhloket l’shem shamayim gives us a chance to explore some of these difficult questions.
 
Jewish traditions around makhloket l’shem shamayim teach us that having differences of opinion is a value in Jewish community. It makes our community stronger when not everyone agrees about everything. We make our communal decisions through a process in which many conflicting viewpoints are taken into account. Rather than being afraid of this conflict, we celebrate it!