EILU V’EILU: YOUR WHOLE SELF BELONGS HERE

JQY is guided by the fundamental belief that all people deserve to live fully as their whole selves without checking part of their identity at the door. Within our shared Jewish tradition, that value is Eilu v’Eilu, which when literally translated means “both these and those.” The phrase is symbolic of a core Jewish value: the notion that seemingly conflicting ideas can simultaneously be true. 

The phrase originates from a traditional Jewish story about Hillel and Shamai – two of the most notorious debaters in the history of the Talmud. The two fiercely argued over a legal statute they held different opinions about. Each deeply believed their view and understanding was true. Just then, they heard a booming voice proclaim “both these and those are the living words of God.” (Eruvin 13b) 

Both ideas, though seemingly in conflict, were true at the same time. 

Similarly, identities live in dialectics, not binaries. We can feel joy and sadness, masculine and feminine, belief and doubt, allegiance and resistance all at once, and still claim authenticity. Each identity can exist within a person and be true, even when that feels contradictory to another part of the self. 

Similarly, many people with different backgrounds, opinions, beliefs, and identities can be in a space together – and while there might seem to be a clash in the room, each person and all that they carry belongs in that space and is valid. 

Our whole selves are the sum of our identities – not an individual part. Nobody should have to check part of themself at the door to belong. Doing so can have devastating effects on mental, emotional and physical health. 

JQY believes even in times when you feel you are at battle with your own self, and even in times when you feel you don’t belong in a space with the other people there – your whole self belongs.