I have often thought about the idea of Jewish unity. In a mystical sense, this is already clear. Rabbi Shneur Zalman of Liadi explains in the Tanya that all Jewish souls are intrinsically one, rooted in a single divine source. As he writes in Chapter 32, “all Israel are called actual brothers by virtue of the source of their souls in the One G-d.” That unity is metaphysical, absolute, and unbreakable.

But I am speaking about something else: societal unity.

There are too few Jews in the world for us to keep dividing further. At the same time, I am a Jew, and a core part of our theological understanding is that there is one correct way to live a Jewish life, through the laws of the Torah as understood and transmitted by the Rabbis across the generations.

That’s not about excluding others or questioning anyone’s identity. It’s simply about recognising that Judaism, like any serious belief system, has a defined structure and direction.

This is not a minor point. It is fundamental. And it is precisely on this point, on who defines Judaism and how Jewish identity itself is determined, that the Reform and Conservative movements diverge so sharply from the traditional path.

Within the traditional world itself there are different approaches to balancing Torah observance with modern life. Here I want to be very clear: there is a fundamental and non-negotiable difference between Modern Orthodoxy and the Reform and Conservative movements. Modern Orthodoxy........

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