Have you ever been looking for the laundry machines in the basement of the Shapiro Residence Hall only to wander into a grungy room with a lot of old shelves, Hebrew books and Jews? If you have and are still wondering what that room is, it's the Brandeis Beit Midrash, the Jewish study hall where people come to engage in religious study. Why, you might ask, is the Jewish study hall located in the basement of a first-year residence hall? After all, this is not the case at any other college, at least not one that I've heard of. Simply put, the Jewish study hall is in Shapiro because there is nowhere else to put it. As stereotypically Jewish as Brandeis may be, we are not the only school with a Jewish study hall. However, in other universities around the country, these study halls, along with Jewish prayer spaces, are usually found in a Hillel building. Here at Brandeis, we only have a Hillel lounge-we have no building. But we should.

Brandeis ought to have a Hillel building for three main reasons: unity, community and sanctity.

One of the greatest problems that the Brandeis Jewish community suffers from is sharp denominational division. As a consequence of having such a large Jewish community on campus, larger, pluralistic umbrella organizations like Hillel are unable to lead the wider Jewish community with ease.

Instead, the smaller, denominational organizations play a much larger role in Jewish programming and social life on campus. Involved Jewish students are much more likely to identify strongly with the Brandeis University Conservative Organization or with the Brandeis Orthodox Organization than with Brandeis Hillel. While smaller and more intimate social groups certainly have their benefits, this splintering allows many practicing Jews to remain in highly impenetrable religious bubbles during their time at Brandeis.

A Hillel building could help reverse this trend. Having a large and functional building would give the pluralistic Brandeis Hillel far more visibility on campus. Furthermore, it would give each of Brandeis' Jewish organizations a single gathering place in which to meet. Instead of having three or four weekly Shabbat services in three or four separate locations, all of Brandeis' Jewish organizations could pray in a single building every week. This would provide a wonderful forum for interdenominational socializing and programming both before and after religious services.

The presence of a Hillel building would also foster a sense of community. Currently, Jewish programming on campus takes place in a wide variety of locations. Prayers take place in the Usdan Student Center, cultural events in South Campus Commons and social events in residential lounges and suites. This constant shifting of locations for Jewish religious and cultural gathering harms the sense of community among Brandeis' involved Jewish population. Often, after a Hillel Shabbat dinner, students will wander around, confused, attempting to find the venue for the night's Jewish social events. Unable to locate friends, students often give up on finding the other members of the community and fragment into smaller groups for the remainder of the night.

Having a Hillel building could give Jewish students on campus a common and regular place to gather. The majority of events that Jewish organizations on campus hold would be in the Hillel building. Students would know where to find Jewish programming on campus, and the Brandeis Jewish population would have a sense of regularity and community.

Finally, we need a Hillel building in order foster a sense of sanctity about the Jewish community's religious functions. Admittedly, this concern is highly parochial and may not have as much wide-reaching appeal as my other arguments, but I feel it is important nonetheless. As a Jew with religious sensibilities, I am bothered by the fact that on the Sabbath I pray in the International Lounge, which is not a sacred space. I am bothered by the fact that the Jewish study hall on campus is in a pipe-filled basement. It harms the sense of sanctity that ought to be attached to religious study to have a study hall across from a laundry room in a residence hall.

For those members of the Brandeis Jewish community who have an acute religious sensibility, a Hillel building would provide them with a regular and sacred space to pray, learn and engage in those activities they consider sacred in a place that they can truly call sacred.

I'm not the first concerned Jewish student here at Brandeis to argue for the importance of a Hillel building, nor am I the first to do so in the pages of the Justice. But I hope that this column can serve to reinvigorate the discussion among students and leaders of the Brandeis Jewish community about the pressing need for a Hillel building on this campus. Perhaps, should the pressure mount and donors step forward, future Brandesians, both Jewish and Gentile, will be able to attend a university with a beautiful and welcoming Hillel building.