Shavuot: Can We Stand Together Again?

Shavuot is a holiday with many names: Chag HaBikkurim, Chag HaKatzir, Zman Matan Torateinu. It marks the offering of first fruits, the harvest of wheat, and the story of a people coming together around shared purpose.

But most of all, Shavuot is about becoming a people — not a loose collection of tribes or individuals, but a community with a shared identity, a common language, and a sense of direction.

That’s why one of the most quoted lines about Shavuot comes from an ancient comment on Exodus 19:2: “And Israel camped there opposite the mountain.” The Hebrew word for “camped” is in the singular — unusual for describing a group.

The classical explanation? “Like one person with one heart.”

Before we could move forward with a shared story, we had to become a community rooted in connection.

And today — 605 days since October 7 — connection feels like the hardest thing to hold onto.

We’re in the midst of a war, and we still have 58 hostages in Gaza. But beyond the unbearable pain, we’re also living through something deeper: a sense of fragmentation.

Some feel we’re not doing enough to eliminate Hamas. Others feel we’re not doing enough to bring the hostages home. Some blame the government. Others blame each other. The fear and grief are real — but so is the mistrust. The shouting. The polarization.

We’re so used to reacting that we’ve forgotten how to listen. We’ve forgotten what it means to build a future together — not by winning arguments, but by choosing kindness, curiosity, and a shared moral compass.

At McKinsey, we used to say that a healthy culture depends on three things: alignment, execution, and renewal.

Israel is extraordinary at execution. In the army, in the hospitals, in the startup world, in civil society — we act fast, we mobilize, we deliver.

But without alignment, execution can become a frantic race in different directions. And without renewal, even the strongest systems begin to fray.

Renewal doesn’t just mean innovation. It means remembering what made us strong in the first place — and evolving from that place, without losing ourselves. That takes leadership. It takes conversation. And it takes shared values.

Right now, we’re struggling with both alignment and renewal. We’re exhausted. And we don’t know what story we’re in.

That’s where Shavuot comes in. Not just as a memory of something that happened at Sinai — but as an invitation to reflect on what it means to build a society around shared meaning.

Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik described Shavuot as a time of active engagement with tradition. He said our sources should be treated like a conversation partner — something we return to, question, wrestle with, and grow alongside.

It’s not about blind acceptance. It’s about the willingness to stay in the conversation, especially when it’s hard.

And maybe that’s the model we need right now — not just for how we engage with tradition, but for how we engage with each other.

On Shavuot, we also read Megillat Ruth — a simple, quiet story about kindness, loss, and loyalty. The Talmud asks: why was this book written at all? It doesn’t contain laws or theology.

The answer: “To teach us the greatness of acts of lovingkindness.” (Rut Rabbah 2:14)

Ruth is not about politics or ideology. It’s about the relationships that sustain a society. One woman refuses to abandon her mother-in-law. One man makes space for a stranger. And through these choices, history is shaped.

The Book of Ruth is the bridge from tribal confusion to national identity. But it teaches that the building blocks of a nation are not manifestos or speeches — they are small human moments of care and dignity.

We need that reminder. Especially now.

When institutions feel shaky, and leaders don’t inspire confidence, the path forward begins with how we treat one another. With the courage to stay human. To see the person across from us as more than a vote, a headline, or an opponent. To rebuild trust, one encounter at a time.

There is still one core value that unites many of us in Israel — across religious and secular lines: the belief that this is a state based on Jewish values of memory, morality, mutual responsibility, and respect for human dignity and freedom of religion. That we are more than just a democracy, more than just a place on the map.

Shavuot gives us a chance to return to that idea — not with slogans, but with substance. Not through uniformity, but through commitment. Not because we all agree, but because we still care enough to try.

So this Shavuot, I’m not praying for perfection. I’m praying for progress.

For the ability to disagree without disconnecting. 

For the strength to reach across divides. 

For the humility to listen. 

For the clarity to align — not on every issue, but on the idea that we are still part of something bigger than ourselves.

We once found a way to stand together around shared values. We can do it again.