The concept of a quorum is recognized in many organizational settings. Without a minimum number of members or participants of a group, the group cannot engage in certain meaningful actions in the name of the collective. For example, a vote cannot be taken or a binding decision adopted without the quorum being present. The quorum embodies the power and legitimacy of the community or group. It is not necessary for the quorum to comprise the majority of the members of this group. Rather, they are viewed as a symbolic representation of the group. As such, they keep the group alive and able to act.
The Jewish version of a quorum is called a minyan, which means “a counting.” We count to 10 people to see whether we can do certain things that “count.” Of course we are conscious of the debate about “who counts” toward a minyan. The Orthodox world still does not count women as eligible to embody the community. Long ago we dissented from that view and embraced the clear value that every responsible Jew should count toward representing the Jewish people.
What is the need for a minyan in Jewish tradition? It is not a requirement for voting or adopting new resolutions. Rather, without a minyan we are bereft of the spiritual power that inheres in community, a power that transcends the spiritual power of the individual. Without a minyan we cannot spread the sanctity of God’s Name in the same way. We are diminished and God’s Manifest Presence in this world is diminished. So, when Jews around the world gather for prayers, it is with some anxiety and anticipation that they hope for a minyan. The feeling becomes especially palpable when the group reaches nine. That is when the power of the individual and the power of the community converge. The one individual who comes in next will make the tenth, make the minyan, and, thus, make the people of Israel live anew.
How did we arrive at the number 10 for our minyan quorum? Would it not have been more logical to require 12? That number would represent the entire people of Israel in corresponding to the 12 tribes. But 10 is the chosen number. Why?
As we proceed in this regular Kol Emunah column through consideration of our order of prayers, we have arrived at the recitation of the Sh’ma. Although it is not explicitly stated in so many words, the last paragraph of the Sh’ma is directly concerned with the problem of making a minyan. The paragraph is written in the Torah as the aftermath to the disastrous story of the failure of “the scouts.” These scouts were sent to prepare the way for the Israelites right before they were to enter the Promised Land. There were twelve of them, one from each tribe. But only two of the scouts had faith in their mission and in God’s promise. The other ten experienced a complete failure of nerve and then persuaded the rest of the Israelites to lost faith, as well. This story faces us with the terrible power of ten people to affect the spirit and destiny of an entire nation. From then on we adopted the number 10 as a quorum to repair the failure of those ten representatives of the people. It is convened in resistance to the damage done by those ten. Instead, every minyan that is convened is a declaration of undying faith in our relationship to our Creator and to our future.
The last paragraph of the Sh’ma calls on each one of us not to make the mistake of the scouts. We are not to let ourselves be led astray and forget what is important by looking at things superficially. And, if we strive not to be led astray, then we can hope to fulfill God’s dream to “become an Almighty Source of Strength for you.” We are thus reminded that it is within the power of each of us to make the tenth and, thereby, to make the difference.
Nine people. Nine innocent people were cruelly murdered in Charleston as they were studying the Bible. They were murdered by the tenth person, a stranger who entered their circle, not to join with them in seeking God’s Word, but in order to destroy them and the holiness of God’s Presence that they represented. He was led astray because he could not get past looking at the color of their skin, superficially different from his own. People of good will were shaken to the core by this atrocity. Issues that have stagnated in the consciousness of our nation for too long have been stirred up and there is real hope that positive changes may be made, changes that will help all people feel safer and feel recognized as worthy human beings without being looked at superficially and prejudicially. Here at Shomrei we shared our feelings, studied, prayed and delved into the meaning of this event for us. We asked of ourselves that we join in community prayer, consolation and remembrance. We made the minyan. The shattering crime of that murderer brought home the fearsome power of the tenth. In order to redeem the memory of the nine martyrs he murdered, each of us must see ourselves as called to make a new tenth. So that a quorum can be met that can establish God’s holiness on this earth.
Nine people. Nine learned and powerful people gathered to ponder whether the right to lead a life with the potential for stability, dignity and love would be extended to millions of people who have been denied that right for millennia simply because of their sexual orientation. Those nine did not gather to study the Bible. In fact, the Bible has been held by many to clearly stigmatize homosexuality. (You see, apparently looking at the verses of the Bible in a superficial way can also lead one astray.) The vote was split narrowly, but a majority of five Justices ultimately affirmed marriage equality, affirming that no one can deny another their basic freedoms in the name of any particular religious conviction. That is to say: the public sphere created by the establishment of this democracy is an arena that must support freedom, including the freedom to be different. It is not an arena for the imposition of any one group’s religious convictions upon the rest. One may believe how one wishes, but one may not take freedom away from another member of our society.
Although this decision should be seen as definitive for our country, it is still opposed and resented by many. The Justices are only nine. To make sure that this guarantee of freedom and human dignity will stand it is necessary for each of us to make up the requisite quorum. Each of us needs to make the tenth. This is an ongoing challenge to our courage and to our determination.
The realization of this momentous affirmation of human dignity depends on small acts of human dignity as well as on historic proclamations. I am grateful that Shomrei was able to host and produce a beautiful gathering to celebrate Gay Pride Month in June. But one-time events are not sufficient. Our tradition has created a regular rhythm that does not rely on crises to engage us. Increasing God’s Presence in the world depends on how we act out – on a daily basis – our individual power to create community. That power can be wasted and deflected – led astray – without the strengthening that comes from regular practice. We can practice and strengthen our ability to respond to this challenge by engaging in regular exercise, the regular exercise of making a minyan at our services at Shomrei.
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Bravo, Rabbi Greenstein, for your incisive and comprehensive analysis of the power of a minyan, and especially the power for good or evil of “der tsenter,” the tenth person. You could have been a political scientist!