God's eyes on the Land: Why our ancestors chose a land "of hills and valleys"
by Rabbi David Seidenberg
~In Parashat Eikev, Deut 11:10-12, the Torah compares the land of Egypt to the land of Canaan. Egypt is sustained by a river-fed agriculture, whereas the land of Canaan is "a land of hills and valleys -- she drinks rain from the heavens." And, unlike Egypt, the eyes of God are upon the land of Canaan continually. Each of these distinctions bears close reading; each is needed to explain the other.
Egypt is described as a place where you could water crops from ...
Climate and the Sh'ma
by Leah F. Cassorla Ph.D.
~One of my amazing 7th graders said to me that the second paragraph of the Sh’ma (the V’hayu) says, in his words, “if we follow the commandments, we will have plenty to eat and be safe, but there are people who don’t have enough food.”
He’s right. There are people who don’t have enough food. I explained it’s because we bow down to other gods.
The V’hayu is either completely redacted or read silently in most liberal Jewish communities in North America. It feels a bit icky to us. It describes a ...
I COME HOME
by Lisa M. Miller
~walk my wild rocky woodland—indigo bunting familieskatydids, a woodpecker,the rushing creek timbre.God.
In tones solstice goldmoss thick,
hardwood sentries and baby sapsline my edgesway far out.
I’m bigger here, resilient, and only a speck.Soaring thank yous
with feet.I know myself. I knowhow to find my way—homeanywhere.
Lisa M. Miller is an inclusive, community-building, mind-body health specialist and social justice advocate. Her workshops help women in every life-chapter integrate physical, emotional and ...
Love Psalm from Elohim
by Judith Felsen, Ph.D.
Dear Ones,This Elul we greet and meet in fields of anguish,barely chanting salutations trapped in unrequited prayerswaiting to be mourned…our hearts engorged with grief and rage beat haltingly,our bodies weary cartons holding our debacle, filled withsymptoms screaming for attention and unknown revenge…
Dear Ones,Within this dark abyss, quagmire of all unsafe,do not shut down to holiness presiding on the edge of emptiness;be with the speech of Elohim, the wind, the seas, the sparkle of the stars;let Hashem’s ...
You likely support former President Donald Trump because he has done some positive things for Israel, including recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, moving the US consulate there, recognizing Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights, and helping form the Abraham Accords. This is certainly understandable. However, have you considered the two ways that Trump’s actions have greatly endangered Israel and, indeed, the entire world?
First, he pulled the US out of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, which was working very well, according to professional inspectors ...
Repentant and Grounded: AllyShip in Elul
by Rabbi Mike Moskowitz
~One of the reasons that we are called “Earthlings,”1 b’nei adam in Hebrew, is because our ability to return to a pristine state of purity can be achieved through our connection to the Earth. Our rabbis teach “טומאה מקבל אינו לקרקע המחובר - anything that is attached (m’chubar) to the ground can’t become impure.”2 The Earth reminds us of God’s nature as Creator, who formed us from the Earth, and our role as a partner in co-creating goodness. When we separate ...
Trump is wrong for America, for Israel, for Jews, and for a human future of generosity and safety. We must repudiate him and his selfish, destructive worldview. Given everything above, Harris would be far better for Israel than Trump.
Earth Etude for Elul 5
by Rabbi Ora Nitkin-Kaner
~The Chasidic Rabbi Nachman of Braslav (1772-1810) was a lifelong sufferer of what was likely depression. When, towards the end of his life, he told his followers that “it is forbidden to despair” (Likutei Moharan II 78:7), it was because he understood the siren call of hopelessness.
What is so tempting about hopelessness? It’s the sense of certainty that comes with it. When things feel uncertain, it means we’re holding multiple possible futures that could range from terrible to wonderful. Carrying that ...
Earth Etude for Elul 4
by Rabbi Katy Z. Allen
Arise / לָקוּם
Enough!Too long have youstood still. Arise! Draw nearand walk the verdant woodland trailswith Me.
אָז רַבלָכֶם שֶׁבֶתלְבַד. עַכְשָׁו לָקוּם. בֹּאוּ לְתוֹךְ חֹרֶשׁ קָסוּםאִיתִי.
Inspired by Devarim 1:6
Rabbi Katy Z. Allen is the founder and spiritual leader of Ma'yan Tikvah - A Wellspring of Hope, an outdoor congregation in Metrowest Boston, the co-founder of the Jewish Climate Action ...
Earth Etude for Elul 3
by Rabbi Janet Madden
Midrash Tehilim 65:4: “Teshuvah is like the sea which is never barred, so that whoever desires to bathe in it can do so whenever they desire.”
As the moon draws the tides,so this month pulls our souls to the way of our ancestors,to teshuvah.Return is always possible. But in Elul, resistance dissolves,Desire engulfs us like a swelling wave,and we, made mostly of water,carried on currents of time and memory,sea-change, returning to ourselves.Rabbi Janet Madden, PhD, is a ritualist, poet, herbalist, grief specia...
Earth Etude for Elul 2
by Enid C. Lader
~I walked on the pier above the Saint Lawrence River
It happened to be across the street from a grand cathedral built in honor of Saint Anne…
To become a saint, people must attest to miracles performed…
As you walk into the cathedral’s sanctuary, crutches and walking sticks and canes are gathered into two displays—
We can walk! It’s a miracle!
Walking back from the river, the wind was quite strong- everyone held on to their hats…
The undulations of the river were then carried forward to the ...
Waves
by Louis Polisson
Written after a visit to Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, native lands of the Waccamaw Siouan, Lumbee, and Catawba (Iswa) peoples
The sound of waves Breaking on the seashore Heralding The coming of the time for return
The sound of a wheel That rolls Like our fools in prophecy[1] said Open and closed The voice of the Shekhinah Over the waters [2] In the midst the sea [3] Within the heart The voice of my heart Saying: “Seek My face” Your face, Eternal, I will seek [4]
גלים
מאת הרב לואיס פוליסון
נ...
Turning Earthward
by Rabbi Asher Chaim Sofman
~ I sit in my backyard on a cool and beautiful August day. Cicadas and crickets buzz. It’s a workday, but if my laptop’s on, even hours I spend lounging outside can be productive.
I’m working, of course. I have multiple programs open and I’m typing away.
What I’m not sure I’m doing is “producing.”
Our scraggly food garden lies to my left. Mostly what’s growing there are weeds, but not everything. The plot also hosts two melon vines that sprouted from my compost pile. They have flowers now; ...
Climate Change: An Issue That Should Defeat Donald Trump
In what could be the most consequential election in US history, former President Trump must be defeated. Among the many reasons is his longtime denial of climate change, which is increasingly seen as an existential threat to Israel, the US, and, indeed, the entire world.
There is a very strong consensus, composed of 97% of climate experts, all the major science academies that have taken a position on the issue, and most importantly, over a thousand peer-reviewed articles in respected scientific journals, that ...
Connecting the Meaning of our Lives to the Spirit of Judaism: Tikkun Olam - Repairing our World
Elul is almost here--by Rabbi Katy Allen: The moon is waning once again, this time telling us that we are approaching the Jewish month of Elul. READ MORE...
~Earth Etude for Rosh Hodesh by Rabbi Asher Chaim Sofman : Turning Earthward...I sit in my backyard on a cool and beautiful August day...READ MORE...
~ Earth Etude for Elul 1 by Rabbi Louis Polisson: Waves: The sound of waves…Breaking on the seashore…Heralding…The coming of the time for return… Read ...
by Rabbi Katy Z. Allen
Elul is almost here!
The moon is waning once again, this time telling us that we are approaching the Jewish month of Elul, and this year, the American holiday of Labor Day. It’s tough to let the summer go, but the sun keeps rising and setting, and the days go by, sunset arriving earlier earlier, Shabbat evenings getting longer and Shabbat days shorter, the nights may be cool, and we know in our minds, even if not our hearts, that summer cannot go on forever.
We may think about the heat waves that have marked the summer. What do they ...
The Seder will be divided into four parts. Each part will end with the drinking of a cup of grape juice or wine and the eating of a vegan food. If conducted via Zoom, drinking and eating would be optional and up to each participant. Since the entire Seder should be about 90 minutes, each of the four parts should be about 20 minutes, leaving some time for opening and closing statements by the moderator. Thus, the moderator should decide which quotations should be read and discussed.
The Seder will start with a brief introduction by the moderator.
Part 1 consists of ...
Longtime Vegan To Be Honored For 50 Years of Activism
Richard H. Schwartz, PhD, is to be honored for his 50 years of activism promoting vegetarianism and veganism, animal rights, and environmental sustainability by Jewish Veg and Jewish Initiative for Animals, two organizations dedicated to helping make Jewish institutions and individuals more plant-based . He taught at the College of Staten Island from 1970 until 1999. While there he created a unique course, Mathematics and the Environment, in order to motivate liberal arts/non-science students in their study of ...
Relating Tisha B’Av To Today’s Environmental Crises
2. A Tisha B’Av Message: Will We Fail To Heed the Warnings Again?
3. Tisha B’Av and Veganism and Vegetarianism
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1. Relating Tisha B'Av to Today’s Environmental Crises
Tisha B'Av (the 9th day of the Hebrew month of Av), which we commemorate this year on August 12 -13, reminds us that over 2,600 years ago Jews failed to heed the warnings of the prophet Jeremiah, with the result that the ...
