A word of Torah:

        In a few weeks, on the 9th of Av we will mark the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. What sin caused the destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D.? Rabbi Yoḥanan says: Jerusalem was destroyed only for the fact that they adjudicated cases on the basis of the law (Bava Metzia 30b). The Gemara asks: “Rather, what else should they have done? Should they rather have adjudicated cases on the basis of arbitrary decisions? Rather, say: That they established their rulings on the basis of Torah law and did not go beyond the letter of the law.”
      This striking text suggests that following the law is not enough. It could be that the law had been twisted to benefit one group of people at the expense of another. Or the courts in Jerusalem ignored extenuating circumstances and other principles that suggest that real justice is not just served by slavishly following the law.
      Legal scholars wrestle with the tension between law and equity or more simply law and justice. They recognize the challenge of laws that need to apply generally to everyone and to every situation. Yet, they also know that this can lead to an outcome that in specific circumstances is one of injustice. This challenges us to consider that law doesn’t necessarily equate to justice.  Despite the Civil Rights movement and the laws that were changed as a result, racism persists. Hence we understand that law is necessary but not sufficient. At times, enforcing the strict letter of the law without concern for its impact on the lives of others is not justice but injustice. Nor does it mean that having the legal right allows us to ignore the legacy of our societies’ past inequalities.
      The most repeated commandment in the Torah is to not oppress the stranger. No one thinks that this suggests that it is okay to oppress people who are not strangers. The Torah singles out those who are vulnerable or on the margins of society. Racism is about those we think are “different” from us—those we have turned into strangers. “Black Lives Matter,” no less than “don’t oppress the stranger” is a bedrock statement that all of us are created in God’s image. Not to be willing to say Black Lives Matter is to deny that every life matters.
      The Bible commentator Nachmanides regarded the verse “Do what is right and good” (Dt. 6:18) as an overarching commandment about how to act in the world. In his commentary, he suggests that the commandment also teaches us to go beyond the letter of the law (lifnim me-shurat ha-din). Judaism was never intended to be only a system of commandments and law. The law was the minimum standard—going beyond the letter of the law was meant to be the practice. The purpose of Judaism is to encourage us to act justly and compassionately. The law isn’t the ultimate goal—being a mensch is.