Earth Etudes are Coming Soon

by Katy Z. Allen

Soon the shofar will be heard each weekday morning, attempting to awaken us to engage in heshbon hanefesh, soul accounting, deep reflection as a pathway to teshuvah, return to G!d, to our best selves, to all that we really can be.

• What is the connection between teshuvah and climate change?
• What do woodchucks, or butterflies, or sprained ankles have to do with teshuvah?
• How does being connected to the more-than-human world enhance our ability to engage in meaningful teshuvah?

These are just a few of the questions you’ll find addressed by the diverse array of authors during the upcoming days of Elul.

Enjoy, reflect, comment, consider. We invite you to engage with the Earth Etudes for Elul beginning this Saturday evening, August 27, the first of Elul, as they begin to be posted.

May you have a meaningful and thoughtful Elul.

Rabbi Katy Allen is the founder and rabbi of Ma’yan Tikvah – A Wellspring of Hope, which holds services outdoors all year long and has a growing children’s outdoor learning program, Y’ladim BaTeva, and the organizer of the Earth Etudes for Elul. She is the founder of the Jewish Climate Action Network-MA, a board certified chaplain, and a former hospital and hospice chaplain. She received her ordination from the Academy for Jewish Religion in  Yonkers, NY, in 2005, and lives in Wayland, MA, with her spouse, Gabi Mezger, who leads the.singing at Ma’yan Tikvah.

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