There are two parallel ideas going on in my world right now. First, the news is full of “us” vs. “other.” We don’t believe “them.” They don’t trust “us.” Second, tonight is the start of Yom Kippur, where we pray as a community to make our lives—and the world—a better place. (The specifics are repentance, prayer, and doing good deeds.) We pray to create a greater good.
That community part is critical. The opening prayer on Yom Kippur says that we come together as a community to repent together. It doesn’t matter that I have not committed any crimes, such as theft or murder, or any of the other crimes. Instead, as a community, we pray together to forgive us for these crimes. (There are plenty of other smaller crimes I have committed.)
Prayer itself is not the point. Community is the point.
Purposeful community encourages us to see the “other” perspective. What would have to be true for other people to have this perspective?
I cannot imagine ever being in the same frame of mind as someone who murders other people. Yet, to save my family? You bet I would do anything. Yes, that includes theft to feed them. That’s the ability to see the “other” perspective.
Do we want to live in a rule-abiding society? I assume that we do. That’s where purposeful community starts. Because once we agree on the purpose, we can learn to work toward the specifics.
How do we agree on that purpose?
Purpose Matters to Create the Greater Good
I see a lot of selfishness right now, in both our politics and our professional lives. Selfish politicians and managers might enjoy some short-term gains. However, in the long term, selfish actions always lose. That’s because selfishness breaks the trust of the people who elected them or work for them.
People work and live to achieve some purpose. That purpose allows them to master skills and live the life they want to live. (See the Modern Management Made Easy books for the details.)
That purpose often helps these people create their local, professional, and national communities. That’s why people who vehemently disagree on politics can both volunteer for the Girl Scouts or Boy Scouts. Or that “other” people all give blood as often as they can. Or, that “us” and “others” might agree on the need for free speech, even as we might hate the content of that speech.
Communities do two things: they humanize “other” people. Since we learn to see people as human, we start to trust them—just a little. That trust allows us to create a better society for all of us—that greater good.
Purpose Can Help Us Build a Greater Good
The purpose of the Yom Kippur community is simple: to build a greater good. All those other communities help us create a greater good because they increase trust between “us” and them.”
We will never agree on everything. But the more we see the “other” perspective, the more possibilities we have to create that greater good.
If you celebrate the Jewish holidays, I hope you have a meaningful Yom Kippur. G’mar chatima tova—may all of us be sealed for good.