1 min read
We all know the joke: two Jews, three opinions. There are almost as many viewpoints within our community as there are Jews - and that has, throughout history, been one of our great strengths.
Which is why the row over Yachad's admission to the Board of Deputies is both ridiculous and worrying. Ridiculous, because of course Yachad should be allowed to join. On no sensible criteria can anyone object to its membership. It represents a perfectly acceptable shade of opinion and has every right to be a member of the Board. And that is where this affair starts to be worrying, too.
For deputies who hold a different view of things from Yachad to attempt to block it from membership because of that difference goes against the very purpose of the Board. It is an umbrella body that reflects the wide range of opinions and outlooks of British Jews. The moment it stops doing that and is captured by one strand of opinion, whether left or right, orthodox or progressive, then it is effectively dead.