Thousands of members of the Jerusalem Movement together fulfill the mitzvah of appointing judges, as commanded in the Torah, “Shoftim v’Shotrim Titen Lecha.”

Why is it so vital that we all join the Movement? “For this mitzvah is a firm pillar in the preservation of the faith,” as taught in Sefer HaChinuch. This may be understood through a parable:

A king assembled his ministers and instructed them in the governance of the realm. When the ministers went forth to the people, each portrayed the royal directive in a completely different manner, accusing the others of distortion. The populace came to trust none of them. Either one was truthful and all the rest false, and there was no way to discern who that might be, or else they were all deceitful and no royal assembly had taken place at all.

The application is clear. When the nation encamped at Mount Sinai as one person with one heart, the Holy One, blessed be He, gave them the Torah. When the first great dispute fractured the Sanhedrin, Hellenistic influence took hold. And when division arose between the Chassidim and their opponents, separating the paths of divine service into opposing camps, the movements of enlightenment and heresy followed.

Therefore, the mitzvah of appointing judges stands as a firm pillar in the endurance of the faith. Establish shared leadership. For if you fragment into rival factions that excommunicate one another, the people will believe none of you, and will come to deny even the Giver of the Torah. Indeed, throughout the generations the Jewish community has always striven to rise above division, appointing Rabbanim of differing approaches to lead together the foundational institutions of the community, the Beit Din and the Beit Hora’ah.

The Jerusalem Movement operates a Beit Hora’ah and a Torah judicial system through the partnership of Rabbanim from diverse backgrounds in a framework of shared leadership. In this way, it fulfills the mitzvah of appointing judges and strengthens faith in the Giver of the Torah.