January 2001 Consensus: Reality Or Illusion? By Rabbi Alvin Kass During my years at Columbia, I was privileged to have as my mentor, the Pulitzer Prize-winning historian, Richard Hofstadter, who formulated what has come to be known as the consensus theory of American history. Hofstadter argued that by virtue of the absence of a feudal past, America had been spared the extremes of European conservatism or socialism. Instead, the preponderance of Americans shared a consensus on the most fundamental political and economic questions. Their common principles and ideals found their way into the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. As a result, from a purely ideological perspective, the philosophical differences between Americans that entered the political arena were fairly minor in nature. That does not mean that elections were not passionate and emotional affairs. On the contrary, they were frequently very bitter, but, the conflicts centered on personalities, not substantive issues. It seems to me that Hofstadter's consensus theory can easily account for all that happened during the presidential election of 2000. The campaign was a classic example of "much ado about little." The substantive differences were minor; but the personal antagonisms were monumental. If we could put personal feelings aside, we would realize that we have much for which to be thankful because there is a shared concern among most of us about the fundamentals, regardless of who is elected. While differences in personality and emphasis are not unimportant, our heads can rest easy that it is highly unlikely that our most basic freedoms and institutions will be undermined or damaged during the next four years quite apart from who occupies the oval office. Quite similarly, notwithstanding occasionally caustic and rancorous disputes, there appears to be a consensus among the major faiths in our country, such as Judaism, Catholicism, Protestantism, Greek Orthodox, and Islam on the fundamentals. All promulgate a set of moral principles that reflects their common rootedness in the Hebrew Bible. All acknowledge that adherence to ethical norms supercedes in importance fidelity to rituals and ceremonials. That is so, not only among the different faiths, but also within the various Jewish movements as well. If religious leaders would examine their differences from a cosmic perspective, they would surely realize that there is far more that unites them than divides them. My attraction to Conservative Judaism was always rooted in the conviction that it could hold together the preponderance of the Jewish community beneath a single umbrella more effectively than any other religious option. Rooted in the middle of the religious spectrum, its tolerance of diversity provided a home for a vast variety of viewpoints, all of which were united by a consensus on the fundamentals. Unfortunately, the whole notion of consensus has been attacked in recent years. Indeed, many contemporary historians reject Hofstadter's consensus theory as an explanation for the uniqueness of America. Instead, they insist that conflict rather than consensus constitutes the dominant principle governing the convergence of the different native and settler cultures. In religion too, the great middle has suffered erosion as multitudes have gravitated to the extremes, both left and right. The tragic consequence is an ever-increasing intolerance of those whose thinking and conduct differ from our own. I can't help but believe that after current fads have run their course, reasonable and sensible leaders will once again arise in the realm of religion who recognize the virtue of the "middle way," and who will guide their adherents to develop a new consensus grounded in tolerance and mutual respect. After all, in the last analysis, the function of religion is to unite human beings. Indeed, that is the etymological origin of the word "religion" which comes from the Latin root "religio," meaning "to hold together." In fact, the English word "ligament", the substance that connects muscle to bone, comes from the same root. Religion ought to have as its principal mission to establish a connection between all people and motivate them to get along in harmony and love. What makes America the greatest country on the face of the Earth is that it is host to the most amazingly diverse conglomeration of religions, races, and ethnic communities anywhere, who nonetheless get along extraordinarily well with each other. The nation's secret of success is its shared consensus on the fundamentals!