Adults – Page 3 – Jewcology

Earth Etude for Elul 2: Where Heaven Is Here…

August 8, 2021 No Comments

by Andy Oram What is heaven? How does one earn the right to enter heaven? I speculated on these questions by examining the Hebrew word for heaven, which is “shama’im” (שָׁמַיִם). The word is somewhat odd because it’s plural, as indicated by the “im” (ים) ending. Here is my parsing of the word. If “shama’im” (שָׁמַיִם) is plural, what’s the singular? Take off the plural ending, and the singular appears to be simply “sham” (שָׁמ), which is Hebrew for “there.” Basically, heaven is just multiple “theres.” Each of us has a “there” we would like to reach–an ideal self that we are trying to achieve. And each person has a different “there,” because we each have different aspirations and strengths. I think the Hebrew word is telling us that you can’t get into heaven by achieving just your own goals. You may get “there” yourself, but it stands alone. But by helping other people achieve their goals in life, you can reach multiple “theres.” We all need to reach the ecological “there” of 350 parts per million maximum of carbon to create a “shama’im” (the sky) that can sustain our lives. A Chasidic midrash explains why Moses took a half-shekel from each Israelite (Exodus 30:13) in order to do a census, when a whole shekel would be easier to collect. According to the midrash, the half-shekel indicated that no Israelite could feel whole by themselves; they needed all the other Israelites. If all of us could help each other achieve our “theres,” maybe we’d be in heaven. Fussy grammatical notes: My etymology of “shama’im” (שָׁמַיִם) is spurious, but it’s still a legitimate basis for a commentary. The true origin of the word is obscure, but it is shared by most Middle Eastern languages, as described in a Wiktionary entry in Hebrew. Wiktionary suggests that the true root is שמה, not שם. The singular is never used, whatever it may be. The root might be derived from “height” or “big.” Furthermore, if one were to accept “shama’im” as a normal Hebrew word, the second “a” in the usual vocalization represents a pair, not a normal plural. Still, this kind of plural can be used for any collection of more than one. Andy Oram is a writer and editor in the computer field. His editorial projects have ranged from a legal guide covering intellectual property to a graphic novel about teenage hackers. Print publications where his writings have appeared include The Economist, the Journal of Information Technology & Politics, and Vanguardia Dossier. He has lived in the Boston, Massachusetts area for more than 30 years. He self-published a memoir, “Backtraces: Three Decades of Computing, Communities, and Critiques”, and his poems have been published in Ají, Arlington Literary Journal, Conclave, Genre: Urban Arts, Heron Clan, Offcourse, Panoply, Soul-Lit, and Speckled Trout Review.

Earth Etude for Elul 1: An Etude is…

August 8, 2021 No Comments

by Enid C. Lader To listen to the Etude: An etude is a short musical composition, typically for one instrument, designed as an exercise to improve the technique of the player. Is it finger dexterity? Bowing alacrity? Air control? Rhythmic concentration? ~ Standing beneath a canopy of trees I hear the rhythm of their rustling leaves I feel the heavenly breath of the breeze, A breath so controlled it seems to last forever. The tiny birds fly this way and that, Alighting on one branch and darting off to the next With a grace and alacrity that only practice can bring. The river’s waters easily make their way over jutting rocks and stones, Taking the ascents and descents with ease. ~ Nature takes her etudes in her stride. It doesn’t come so easily for us. ~ Elul reminds us that it is time to turn to our soul’s etudes – As we seek to return to – to improve – our best selves. How can we be better aware of our body’s rhythm as we rustle though our days? What can we do to appreciate each breath, as we wake to each new day? How can we make our way from moment to moment…person to person… with grace and alacrity? What we can do to ease our way through life’s ups and downs? ~ It takes finding the right teacher. It takes making the time. It takes concentration. It takes practice. Enid C. Lader is the rabbi at Beth Israel – The West Temple, in Cleveland, Ohio and received ordination from the Academy for Jewish Religion in 2010. For the past eight years, every three months Enid has led members of her congregation on a Shabbat b’Tevah – a Shabbat morning walk through one of the beautiful Metroparks in the area, celebrating Shabbat and the changing seasons of the year.

Elul Is Coming and So Are the Etudes

August 6, 2021 No Comments

by Rabbi Katy Z. Allen We are rolling around to Elul now on the Jewish calendar. It feels too soon, and yet, it also feels right on time. Too soon, because Elul always comes too soon. I’m never really ready. And right on time, because it’s impossible to be ready. The clock ticks, the calendar days fly by, and IT arrives, whatever IT may be. A wedding, a birth, death, the start of a new school year, Shabbat, a difficult conversation – whatever it is we are awaiting, it always comes too soon – or sometimes not soon enough – and it always comes on time. Too soon, because Elul always comes too soon. I’m never really ready. And right on time, because it’s impossible to be ready. And so, we pull out the shofar to begin blowing — or hearing — it every morning, a reminder to wake up and get ready for the Yamim Noraim, the Days of Awe, and the super-intensity of trying to let go of our defects and come closer to the Mystery. We acknowledge that summer will again draw to a close, always too soon. We watch the sun set earlier each day and light our Shabbat candles earlier each week, but always, always, on time, on their time, on the time of the Universe and of G!d. Welcome to this year’s Earth Etudes for Elul, which will start Sunday evening, written by environmentalists, poets, rabbis, and others, bits of reflection and wisdom on Earth and teshuvah for your journey through this month. Enjoy and b’hatzlachah – good luck with this year’s efforts for personal change! Elul tov – may you have a good and wondrous 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 the founder and President pro-tem of the Jewish Climate Action Network-MA. She is 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.

Our Temple is Being Destroyed

July 15, 2021 No Comments

~by Lynn Nadeau * Destruction of the Temple of Jerusalem by Francesco Hayez On Tisha B’Av, we sit on the floor, a candle barely lighting the page, and we read the words which sear the heart. We lament the destruction of the First Temple by the Babylonians. And we lament the destruction of the Second Temple by the Romans. And today, we mourn the destruction caused by ourselves. Our private profligacy. Our passivity and our lack of participation in public policy letting selfish interests predominate. For these things I weep; my eye, yea my eye, sheds tears, for the comforter to restore my soul is removed from me; my children are desolate, for the enemy has prevailed. (Lamentations 1:16)The deluge is here in Massachusetts. The drought is there in 3/4 of California. The cold is here in my home. The heat is there in the Western states. Climate chaos/weirding has settled in and everyone must notice. I did hear the weather person stating, “Mother Nature has brought us some unusual weather.” Blame it on mother. O how has the city that was once so populous remained lonely! …Jerusalem sinned grievously, therefore she became a wanderer; All her people are sighing [as] they search for bread; they gave away their treasures for food to revive the soul; (Eicha 8-11) This is not here in Boston. But it is so in South Asia, where increasing temperatures, sea level rise, more frequent cyclones, flooding of river systems fed by melting glaciers, and other extreme weather events are bringing chaos and disaster. Rapid economic growth and urbanization are accelerating and magnifying the impact and drivers of climate change—the demand for energy is expected to grow 66 percent by 2040. Climate refugees have set out for survival. And it is so in Afghanistan, where war refugees prepare to move to Pakistan from the oncoming cruelty of the Taliban. Your prophets have seen false and senseless visions for you, and they have not exposed your iniquity to straighten out your backsliding, but have prophesied for you false and misleading oracles. (Eicha 2:14)Jeff Bezos will use $10B of his $212.4B to fight climate change over a ten-year period while he uses $30b to travel into space using unearthed fossil fuel to propel his vehicle. The Tokyo Olympics will use $15.4B to pump up competitive patriots “USA! USA!” And there is more: we crush underfoot all prisoners in the land, we deny people their rights before the Courts to deprive them of justice—(Eicha 3:34) Let us examine our ways and test them (Eicha 3:40) and work together for the good of all. Lynn Nadeau was Jewish for 20 years, married a non-Jew became a democrat for 20 years, a Buddhist for 20 years and is deeply Jewish again.

Dr. Alon Tal Joins Knesset! Aytzim Co-founder Brings Green Agenda to Israeli Government

June 17, 2021 No Comments

JERUSALEM (June 16) — This morning Aytzim co-founder Dr. Alon Tal joined the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, becoming only the second Knesset member with roots in Israel’s Green Party to be appointed to the legislative body (following Yael Cohen Paran). Tal, who serves on Aytzim’s board of directors, led the founding of Aytzim in 2001 along with Rabbi Michael Cohen, Dr. Eilon Schwartz and about 30 other volunteers. For almost two decades, Tal has served as one of Aytzim’s Green Zionist Alliance representatives on the board of directors of Keren Kayemet L’Yisrael / Jewish National Fund in Israel (KKL-JNF), where he has been a KKL-JNF deputy chair. Widely considered Israel’s leading environmentalist, Tal has a long record of environmental activism and education in Israel. Please join us in wishing Tal mazel tov — we look forward to great green change ahead!

3rd Jewish Climate Action Conference:

June 6, 2021 No Comments

“Everything is Connected” by Rabbi Katy Z. Allen The JCAN-MA for the 3rd Jewish Climate Action Conference: Everything is Connected occurred April 25, 2021. Over 550 people attended. The 40 sessions focused on carbon reduction, advocacy, spiritual resilience, soil and agriculture, raised up the voices of youth, and addressed environmental justice. The day-long event was geared toward action solutions and strengthening the national Jewish climate action network. Opportunities are still available for connecting with other climate activists in your geographic region or with similar interests. AT THE CONFERENCE ATTENDEES: Learned key actions for decarbonizing your home and synagogue. They heard about the latest in technology and learned what others are doing to reduce their carbon footprint Integrated Jewish values with gardening and soil. They heard about cooperatives, regenerative change, native habits, carbon sequestration, and building a resilient food system Joined in conversations about the climate justice movement. They learned about a collaboration with Jewish climate organization and a BIPOC community development corporation, and they learned about the legacy of redlining. They heard about climate advocacy in Jewish communities and learned how to build an organizing toolbox. Listened to stories from youth advocates fighting against climate change from a Jewish perspective. They learned what one can do to help! Delved into sessions that enhanced their spiritual resilience through meditating, journaling, storytelling, music, mindfulness, and yoga and movement. You can watch all or part of the conference above!

Rainbow Day is May 8-9 in 2021, the week following Shabbat Behar-Bechukotai!

April 9, 2021 No Comments

Celebrate Rainbow Day and the Rainbow Covenant with all Life! The first covenant in the Torah, when Noah leaves the ark, is a covenant with all creatures, and a covenant with the Earth itself, not just with humanity. There are so many ways you can teach about this covenant, the rainbow covenant, on the day it was established! What is Rainbow Day? On the 27th day of the second month, Noah, his family, and all the animals that were with them left the ark (Genesis 8). Exactly one lunar year and ten days before—one complete solar year—the flood began on the 17th of the second month, the day before Lag B’Omer. When Noah, the animals and his family went out from the ark, God made a covenant, with all the animals and the people, that there would never be again be a flood of water to destroy life on Earth. Rainbow Day is always the 42nd day of the Omer, the day before Yom Yerushalayim. In 2019 year the 27th of the month of Iyyar falls on Shabbat, May 31-June 1, the same day we read about the blessings of the Shmita covenant and the consequences of not following the covenant. The Shmita covenant, like the Rainbow covenant, is a covenant with the Earth and the animals. Get the extraordinary Rainbow Day curriculum here and make use of one of the 38 resources and ideas for teaching about the rainbow covenant with all creatures.

Watch Richard Schwartz’s interview on how plant-based diets can help save our world…

October 18, 2020 No Comments

Richard Schwartz will be interviewed on Monday, October 19 at 8:30 PM Israeli time, 1:30 PM US eastern time, by the Israeli organization “Root and Branch.” He will be discussing his unprecedented, potentially transformative campaign, in conjunction with his recently published book, VEGAN REVOLUTION: SAVING the WORLD, REVITALIZING JUDAISM, to promote veganism and to try to shift our imperiled planet onto a sustainable path… The link to register is: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0ld–trzkvE9U3pQB8jT8zFne3W7iQDSK8 Some of what will be discussed: 1. Animal-based diets and agriculture seriously violate fundamental Jewish teachings on preserving human health, treating animals with compassion, protecting the environment, conserving natural resources, helping hungry people, and pursuing peace. 2. There is no way a climate catastrophe can be prevented without a major shift toward plant-based diets. 3. Animal-based diets are contributing to an epidemic of diseases in the Jewish and other communities. 4. Shifts to plant-based diets are essential for reducing the potential for future pandemics,

Yom Kippur and Veganism/Vegetarianism

September 23, 2020 1 Comment

by Richard Schwartz There are many connections that can be made between the sacred Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur and plant-based diets which may be interpreted as “vegan,” or at least “vegetarian.” Vegetarians eat no animal flesh, while vegans also avoid dairy products and eggs, and many do not wear leather, fur, or silk. Many vegans and vegetarians avoid involvement in any activity that involves the mistreatment of an animal. Some people may prefer to start as vegetarians before progressing to veganism. The connection to the vegan and vegetarian ways of eating to the meaning of Yom Kippur are as follows: 1. On Yom Kippur, Jews pray to the “Living God,” the “King Who delights in life,” that they should be remembered for life, and inscribed in the “Book of Life” for the New Year. Yet, typical animal-based diets have been linked to heart disease, stroke, several types of cancer, and other life-threatening diseases, that shorten the lives of millions of people annually. 2. On Yom Kippur, Jews pray to a “compassionate God,” who compassionately remembers His creatures for life. Yet, there is little compassion related to modern intensive livestock agriculture (factory farming), which involves the cruel treatment and slaughter of about 9 billion farmed animals annually in the United States and about 60 billion worldwide. 3. On Yom Kippur, Jews pray to God, “Who makes peace,” to be inscribed into the “Book of Life, Blessing, and Peace.” Yet, animal-centered diets, by requiring vast amounts of land, water, energy, and other resources, help to perpetuate the widespread hunger and poverty that often lead to instability, violence, and war. 4. On Yom Kippur, Jews are told through the words of Isaiah in the morning prophetic reading that the true purpose of fasting on that day is to sensitize us to the needs of the hungry and the oppressed, so that we will work to end oppression and “share thy bread with the hungry.”(Isaiah 58:6,7) Yet, about 70 percent of the grain produced in the United States is used to fatten up farm animals, while an estimated nine million of the world’s people die annually from lack of adequate food. 5. One of the most important messages of Yom Kippur and the preceding days is the importance of teshuvah, of turning away from sinful ways, from apathy and a lack of compassion and sensitivity, and returning to Jewish values, ideals, and mitzvot. Veganism involves a significant turn, away from a diet that has many harmful effects to one that is consistent with Jewish mandates to take care of our health, treat animals compassionately, protect the environment, conserve natural resources, help the hungry, and seek and pursue peace. 6. The Yom Kippur liturgy has a prayer that includes the statement that “we are God’s flock, and God is our shepherd.” Since Judaism teaches that people are to imitate God in His acts of compassion and caring, we should be treating God’s defenseless creatures in the ways that we want God to treat us. 7. On Yom Kippur, Jews ask for forgiveness for the sin of “casting off responsibility.” Vegetarianism, and even more so veganism, is a way to assume responsibility for our health, for animals, for the environment, and for the world’s hungry people. 8. Yom Kippur is a time for reflection and soul searching, a time to consider changes in one’s way of life, a time to make decisions for improvement. Hence, it is an excellent time to switch to a diet that has so many personal and societal benefits. 9. According to the Jewish tradition, our fate is sealed on Yom Kippur for the coming year. But repentance, charity, and prayer can avert a negative decree. However, people have determined the fate of animals before they are born, and there is virtually no possibility of a change in the cruel treatment and early slaughter that awaits them. 10. Yom Kippur is the Day of Atonement, a day of being, in effect, at-one with God. One way to be more at-one with God is by adopting a plant-based diet, and thereby not harming animals, since “God’s compassion is over all of His works.” (Psalm 145:9) 11. Yom Kippur reminds us that, while it is often difficult, old habits can be broken. Thus, the days surrounding Yom Kippur provide a good period to break habits related to the consumption of animal products. 12. The afternoon service for Yom Kippur includes the reading from the book of Jonah, which tells how Jonah was sent to warn the people of Nineveh that they must do teshuvah, change their sinful ways in order to avoid destruction. Today, the whole world is like Nineveh, in need of redemption, and threatened as never before from a variety of environmental threats. In a sense, vegetarians are now playing the role of Jonah, pointing out that a shift away from an intensive animal agriculture that has significant negative effects on the environment and a shift toward vegan diets have become global imperatives, necessary to shift humanity from its current perilous path. 13. An important message of the book of Jonah is that God is concerned about the fate of all of the world’s people. Veganism is a way to show such concern and hence to imitate God’s attributes of caring and compassion, since this diet requires far less land, grain, water, fuel, and other resources, and hence can contribute to a reduction of the widespread hunger that afflicts so much of humanity. 14. The book of Jonah also shows God’s concern for animals. It ends with God’s statement, “Should I not then spare the great city of Nineveh with more than one hundred and twenty thousand human beings. . . and much cattle?” 15. On Yom Kippur, one of the many sins that we ask forgiveness for is “the sin we committed before Thee in eating and drinking.” This can be interpreted in terms of the harm that animal-based diets do with regard to human health, animals, the environment, and hungry people. 16. On Yom Kippur,

Earth Etude for Elul 2: Reflections on The Challenges of Living with Fear and Hope

August 21, 2020 No Comments

by Maxine Lyons I find new signs of hope and gratitude for the changes that I feel are beginning to surface despite the anxieties and sadness I feel for the families who have lost loved ones to COVID-19, and for the heightened consciousness of racism. We are living through a time when many forces are coming together with the potential to change our daily lives, setting in motion systemic reforms to our institutions that could dismantle systemic racism. I feel fearful that social upheaval or outright rebellion could de-stabilize us as a country or alternatively, could re-set the direction for substantive, positive changes. Here are a few themes describing how I am experiencing living through these challenging times of fear and possible hopeful change. Change agents: I am heartened by the gatherings of protesters and social justice advocates who fill the streets, people of all races and ages who are “living into” the signs they carry, but are they going to carry on the messages of those signs in meaningful ways? How can we share the communal responsibilities that our practices teach — that we all are of equal worth and importance? I ponder how the tragic consequences and deaths from the virus and undoing of racist practices might serve as tipping points to move us so we can begin to enter a real paradigm shift. Heroic health professionals: I gain strength and hope from this inspired doctor, (Katherine Gergen Barnett from the Department of Family Medicine at Boston Medical Center) who, in an exquisitely sensitive voice, says: “In practicing medicine through the pandemic, I can no longer place my hands on the shoulder of a patient or give them a hug for comfort. But I can help guide their storytelling with some gentle questions, and I can listen. This telling and receiving of stories help my patients start to make sense of what is happening in their lives and what is born becomes a kind of control to regain their agency and begin to heal their traumas.” Naturalist perspective: At Walden Pond in Concord, Thoreau “sheltered in place” not because of a dangerous virus but believing that his cabin in the Concord woods was a place to pursue his total immersion into and appreciation of the natural world. As Cody O’Loughlin says (in Lessons in Constructive Solitude), (For Thoreau) “nature was a communicating consciousness and he wanted to make himself available to it.” Many of us have known in these past months the pleasures and relief in outdoor activities in natural places for their regenerative influences and healing. Perennial questions to answer: What do I value most, where will I set new priorities, what really matters, after all? How can I meaningfully keep tikvah (hope) alive? My personal response is to love my close family and friends more fully with an open heart and mind. In this past year, I embrace my grandchildren and cherish their laughs and continual changes, as they crawl, begin to walk, and gain the confidence to stand bravely. Adults too have to stand up bravely against injustice, to stand in support as allies and anti-racists, and to be in good standing with the best intentions for the right transformative values. My teshuvah, my personal turning: In these uncertain times, I am using my Jewish and Buddhist practices to find meaning in crisis, living the unknowns with no road map to show where this journey ends. I am focusing on enabling myself to become a more peaceful “warrior.” We need to elect more courageous and humane leaders in our government as we also become the most holy versions of ourselves. My teshuvah means acquiring an ometz lev (a courageous heart) to work with ongoing dedication to integrate my thinking, studying and feeling so I am able to contribute my part to the radical changes that are needed. Maxine Lyons enjoys sharing her annual submission to Etudes that starts her preparing for Rosh Hashanah. She continues to participate in multi-racial interfaith gatherings, and finds involvement in Zoom classes and joyful times with friends and family. She loves summer gardening and enjoys her indoor gardens and succulents throughout the seasons.

Earth Etude for Elul 1: Elul is here

August 20, 2020 No Comments

by Rabbi Katy Z. Allen I turned inward with the lockdown. I didn’t want to go anywhere. My garden saved me. I worked outside almost every day. In early summer, I started again to lead outdoor services with small groups. But no walks on my own, in nature. After the depths of despair of Tisha B’Av, as the weeks of consolation began, knowing Elul was approaching, I started to turn outward. I spent a week of early mornings in a little-traveled conservation area, before the heat settled in. Reveling in the blooming flowers Wandering Staying in the moment Picking blackberries Setting in beside a deer resting spot Praying Lying back, looking up Letting the more-than-human world heal me And strengthen me And prepare me To go out into the world To do what must be done To try to make the world a better place Join me in journeying through Elul Note: This is the first in a series of Earth Etudes for Elul that will appear here most days of Elul. The etudes are reflections on teshuvah and Earth during a pandemic when we are acknowledging more deeply that Black Lives Matter. Rabbi Katy Allen is the founder and rabbi of Ma’yan Tikvah – A Wellspring of Hope, which holds services outdoors all year long, and the co-founder and President pro-tem of the Jewish Climate Action Network-MA. She is a board certified chaplain and a former hospital and hospice chaplain and now considers herself an eco-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

New Year for Animals Zoom Discussion in Israel

August 17, 2020 No Comments

New Year for Animals Zoom Discussion in USA

August 17, 2020 No Comments

You are cordially invited to attend a Zoom discussion of the historic, potentially transformative initiative to restore the ancient New Year for Animals and to transform it into a day devoted to increasing awareness of Jewish teachings about compassion to animals and how far current realities are from these teachings. It will also consider how animal-based diets and agriculture seriously violate basic Jewish teachings about preserving human health, treating animals with compassion, protecting the environment, conserving natural resources, helping hungry people, and pursuing peace. The event will take place on August 20, Rosh Chodesh Elul, when the ancient holiday was observed, at 9 PM Eastern time, 6 PM Pacific time. To join the meeting click on ZOOM link at the bottom of this page. List of speakers: Dan Brook, professor of sociology at San Jose State University; author of An Alef-Bet Kabalah and Eating the Earth; maintainer of The Vegetarian Mitzvah. Lewis Regenstein, author of Commandments of Compassion: Jewish Teachings on Protecting the Planet and Its Creatures, Replenish the Earth, and other writings on Judaism and animals; Richard Schwartz, PhD, president emeritus of Jewish Veg and author of Judaism and Vegetarianism; Jeffrey Tucker, director of Florida Earth Save Will Tuttle, Ph.D, visionary author of the international best-seller, The World Peace Diet; worldwide lecturer on veganism; recipient of the Courage of Conscience Award and Empty Cages Prize. (He will discuss how non-Jews will react to efforts to restore and transform the holiday.) Aharon Varady, community planner & Jewish educator; founding director, The Open Siddur Project; a pioneer in efforts to restore and transform the ancient holiday. Jonathan Wolf, founder of Jewish Vegetarians of North America; co-founder of L’Olam: The Jewish Environmental Network; executive director of Yashar: The Institute for Jewish Activism.

Proper Nutrition Can Reduce the Severity of Coronavirus Infections

August 4, 2020 No Comments

There are currently daily reports of record-breaking incidents of coronavirus worldwide. As the Coronavirus epidemic escalates, it is important to recognize a generally overlooked possibility of taking steps now to reduce the severity of symptoms, should one have the misfortune of getting the disease. According to T. Colin Campbell, PhD, director of the China-Cornell-Oxford study, deemed the Grand Prix of epidemiology by the NY Times, shifting to a nutritious, well-balanced, plant-based diet can greatly reduce the effects of COVID-19. Based on his extensive research, he stated, “antibody prevalence was highly correlated with vegetable consumption, dietary fiber, and plant protein. In short, more plant food consumption was associated with more antibodies . . . In our research, we also found that people consuming more animal protein had fewer antibodies, even in those consuming a very low amount of animal protein.” Therefore, he concluded, “switching to a whole-food, plant-based diet should lessen the severity of disease symptoms [if you become a victim of coronavirus] while simultaneously increasing COVID-19 antibodies.” An extremely important factor during the deadly growth of coronavirus infections is that, according to Dr. Campbell, the positive effects could “begin within days,” possibly providing “enough time for people not yet infected by COVID-19 to strengthen their immunity,” yielding, “a faster, safer, more comprehensive long-term solution.” At a time when many hospitals and medical professionals are severely stressed, reducing the number of people whose symptoms require hospitalization is essential. Other medical experts agree that whole food plant-based diets can reduce the severity of coronavirus infections. Michael Greger, MD, author of How Not To Die, How to Survive a Pandemic, and Bird Flu: A Virus of Our Own Hatching also believes that well-balanced plant-based diets can play a preventive role. In an exclusive interview with the magazine Plant Based. News, he asserted, “A plant-based diet offers protection against COVID-19 because we have so much lower rates of the pre-existing conditions that increase your risk: hypertension, high blood pressure, obesity, heart disease, type 2 diabetes. These are the diseases that are dramatically lower among those who eat a healthy, whole food, plant-based diet.” Dr. Kim Williams, Chief of the Cardiology Division at Rush University, who treats coronavirus patients, said, “there is actually good medical evidence that viral illnesses are less severe if you have lower levels of inflammation and higher levels of interferon, which is typically what happens when you have a good, vitamin and mineral plant-based diet.” Professor K Srinath Reddy. President of the Public Health Foundation of India, said, “people who are taking a lot of fruits and vegetables as part of their natural diet have better innate immunity, and they may be able to fight the infection much better,” Nutrition experts recommend fiber-rich foods to reduce respiratory infection symptoms, including fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds, flaxseed and seaweed. Also recommended are green tea, white mushrooms, garlic, and fresh ginger. These foods are loaded with nutrients that can improve immune function, another factor that can reduce the impact of viral diseases. In addition to reducing the severity of COVID-19 impacts and the risks for heart disease, several types of cancer, diabetes, and other life threatening diseases, shifting to healthy plant-food diets has many additional advantages: It reduces the risks of future pandemics. The widespread mistreatment and consumption of animals caused many past pandemics, including SARS, MERS, bird flu, swine flu, and Ebola. The ability of plant-based diets to lower risks for future pandemics is stressed in a recent UN report, “Preventing the next pandemic–Zoonotic diseases and how to break the chain of transmission.” It reduces climate change and other environmental threats. A 2006 UN Food and Agriculture Organization report, “Livestock’s Long Shadow,” showed that animal-based agriculture emits more greenhouse gases, in CO2 equivalents, than all the cars, planes, ships, and other means of transportation combined worldwide. A 2009 cover article, “Livestock and Climate Change,” by two World Bank environmentalists, stated that the livestock sector is responsible for at least 51% of all human-induced greenhouse gas emissions. This is especially significant regarding coronavirus, because climate change increases the frequency and severity of wildfires, and smoke inhalation worsens the symptoms of viral infections. It reduces the current widespread, severe mistreatment of farmed animals. It reduces the current very wasteful use of land, energy, water, and other increasingly scarce resources. It is most consistent with basic Jewish teachings on preserving our health, treating animals with compassion, protecting the environment, conserving natural resources, reducing hunger, and pursuing peace and justice, It reduces chances for violations of the kosher laws due to scandals involving inadequate supervision or accidental mixing of meat and dairy products in kitchens. So, if you want to protect yourself against a Covid catastrophe, help improve your general health and save the planet at the same time–please evolve your diet to a plant-based one. The sooner the better.

Get Used to Wearing Masks.

August 2, 2020 No Comments

by Rabbi Dr. Eric Lankin I am afraid that we will be wearing masks for a long time to come. And it won’t be solely because of a viral pandemic. Soon it may be because of the air quality of our planet. There is a clear scientific consensus on a human-driven warming of the earth, with carbon-based pollution released in the environment as the major contributor. As shown by data from NASA and NOAA, the last few decades have seen a sharp spike in global average temperature, and the increase of carbon-based pollutants caused by human activity is destroying our environment. According to David Wallace-Wells, Deputy Editor of New York Magazine and the author of The Uninhabitable Earth: The Story of our Future (2019, Penguin Random House), the dramatic increase of carbon dioxide in the air that we breathe, especially in the last ten years and, if we continue on this path, will eventually cause dying oceans, unbreathable air, wildfires, physical disasters, and food insecurity. On the global scale, carbon-based pollutants and other greenhouse gases cause the heat of the sun to be retained within the atmosphere, raising global temperatures. This activity leads to both warming of the seas and melting the Earth’s ice caps that raise ocean levels and cause frequent flooding of lower-lying areas, threatening some of the world’s largest coastal cities and population centers. In addition to the warming temperatures, Wallace-Wells shares that the U.S. National Center for Atmospheric Research projects that the air circulating the Earth will also be “dirtier, more oppressive, and more sickening…the hotter the planet gets, the more ozone forms, and by the middle of this century Americans should suffer a 70% increase in days with unhealthy ozone smog…Already 10,000 people die from air pollution daily.” The author continues that “more than half of the carbon exhaled into the atmosphere by the burning of fossil fuels have been emitted in just the past three decades…the industrial world’s kamikaze mission is the story of a single lifetime.” With this trajectory, it is becoming more of a possible reality each year that we may be wearing masks after the pandemic subsides; not only to protect ourselves from the SARS-CoV-2 virus, but also to filter out toxic pollutants that are quickly becoming part of our daily inhalation. A concomitant issue about our air quality and global warming is related to methane. The US Environmental Protection Agency notes that methane is an additional greenhouse gas produced from ruminant livestock, other agricultural practices and by the decay of organic waste in municipal solid waste landfills. Methane is a significant contributor to the greenhouse gas effect. These emerging issues in global environmental science remind us of a more personal responsibility, one that Judaism is constantly calling out to us: how can the actions of one person affect the world? Deuteronomy 20:19 shares a powerful vignette of the importance of considering the environment around us. It describes how even during war, we are called to ensure we do not cut down fruit trees, a prohibition called Bal Tashchit, to teach sensitivity to our surroundings even when threatened by enemies. Rabbi Shneor Zalman of Liadi in his Shulchan Arukh HaRav extends this law, commenting that this prohibition includes the spoiling of any object, not just fruit trees, from which humankind may benefit. Eichah Rabba, a midrash written 1,200 years ago, sums up the ultimate human challenge of living in the environment and protecting it: “In the hour when the Holy One, Blessed be He, created the first man, He took him and let him pass before all of the trees of the Garden of Eden, and said to him: See My works, how fine and excellent they are! All that I am going to create for you I have already created. Think about this and do not corrupt and desolate My world; for if you corrupt it, there will be no one to set it right after you.” Considering the perspectives of the individual versus the community brings a paradoxical tension. As individuals, we each have personal and familial needs that are a part of our daily lives, many of which may not be beneficial to the health of the earth but are a part of living in the developed world. On the other hand, we also live in a global community where we need to consider the effect of our decisions affecting the world around us. With this in mind, what are our responsibilities as individuals in a global community? The rapid warming of our planet raises challenging questions. Should we seriously consider becoming vegetarians or consciously eat less beef to lessen the damaging methane emissions from the cows raised for beef production? Should we demand from our governments the institution of a carbon tax to make air polluters pay the full and true cost of the pollution they create? Or is our role as an individual futile in terms of the damage being done collectively as a global community to the environment, putting all of humankind in danger? The message from the Bible and Rabbinic literature is clear. Genesis 2:15 implores us that our human obligation is to both till the land and watch over it. We can’t stand idly by. Humans are doing serious damage to the Earth. The pandemic of our time has taught us that we have the ability to individually and collectively adapt our lives to address environmental challenges. Therefore, on the matter of human-induced global climate change damaging our environment, we cannot claim the futility of an individual’s action and we have no escape from direct responsibility. The Torah’s words are speaking directly to us. NOW. TODAY. This blog was originally published on Times of Israel, July 23, 2020 ABOUT THE AUTHOR Rabbi Dr. Eric Lankin is Vice President-Development of StandWithUs and an Adjunct Professor at Hebrew University. Before his family made aliya 3 years ago from the United States, he served for 14 years as a congregational Rabbi and most recently, for eighteen years as Jewish communal professional leader.

Especially this Mother’s Day, remember Mother Earth.

May 5, 2020 No Comments

~Mother’s Day will be different this year for many of us because of the impact of the coronavirus, being in quarantine and social distancing; however, we can still be mindful of how our actions can help prevent climate change even if we are having virtual Mother’s Day dinners and celebrations. Reduce: Reduce your energy needs. Winter is finally over and it’s warmer inside and out. Open your windows and let the fresh air in. If it is really hot, set your thermostat no higher than 78°F (26°C) when you are home and higher when you are away (information from the U.S. Department of Energy). A programmable thermostat can make this easier to do. Reuse: If restaurants are allowed to open and you go out to eat, bring your own containers to take home the leftovers. Styrofoam can take hundreds of years to decompose and is one of the most frequent pollutants found in our oceans. Even more scary is that fish and birds often mistake styrofoam for food and eating too much can be a death sentence. Is Mom a coffee drinker? A great present would be reusable coffee pods for her coffee maker. According to a 2019 article in USA Today, the plastic coffee pods usually cannot be recycled. John Hocevar, the campaign director of Greenpeace USA is quoted in the article: “Coffee pods are one of the best examples of unnecessary single-use plastics that are polluting our planet…Many end up getting incinerated, dumping poison into our air, water and our soil.” Recycle: Many communities have single-stream recycling, which does make it easier as the paper, glass and plastic all go into the same containers. However, when glass and plastic are recycled, they should not have food residue and I admit sometimes I fall short in this respect –we all need to try harder to put out cleaner items. Cooking for Mom? Try a vegetarian meal. A recent position paper on vegetarian diets from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics states: “Plant-based diets are more environmentally sustainable than diets rich in animal products because they use fewer natural resources and are associated with much less environmental damage. Vegetarians and vegans are at reduced risk of certain health conditions, including ischemic heart disease, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, certain types of cancer, and obesity.” Vegetarian meals can be economical, easy to make and delicious. Still nervous about what to cook and how—try these healthy and tasty vegetarian and vegan recipes. Going forward, it may be easier to think about “Meatless Mondays” as a minimum. Resources: The Jewish Energy Guide. You can download the free guide and find articles about the sources and cost of energy; its impacts on climate change; and how we can change the inheritance we are leaving to the future inhabitants of our world. Susan Levine is the volunteer and social media coordinator for Aytzim: Ecological Judaism, parent organization of Jewcology.

Growing Torah for Adults and Children in the Orthodox Community: Two Orthodox Environmental Organizations Merge to Maximize Impact

December 20, 2019 No Comments

[Proud and excited to share this new development for Orthodox Jews who care about the environment! – Evonne] GrowTorah and Canfei Nesharim, two Torah-based environmental non-profit organizations, have merged into one entity, effective Dec. 10, to strengthen their combined efforts and maximize their impact within the Orthodox Jewish community. Canfei Nesharim (founded in 2003) is dedicated to sustainable living inspired by Torah. Its groundbreaking work over the last sixteen years has educated Orthodox Jews regarding the Torah imperative to lead a sustainable life and empowered the community to take action on a personal, communal, and global level. Canfei Nesharim is known for exceptional Torah education related to the environment, including curricula for each Torah portion of the year, every Jewish holiday, and a set of eighteen “core teachings” on Torah and the environment, which were later collated into a book called Uplifting People and Planet. Inspired by the work of Canfei Nesharim, and to complement its rigorous environmental Torah publications with immersive experiential education, GrowTorah was started in 2016. Its mission is to cultivate a more passionate, compassionate, and sustainable future driven by Torah values. The four core values taught in every program are incubating emunah (faith), environmental stewardship, compassion for all creatures, and tzedakah (charity). Currently, GrowTorah develops and manages educational Torah garden programs at 13 Jewish schools in the tri-state area, in addition to running its own weeklong summer camp on an organic farm in New City, NY. GrowTorah and Canfei Nesharim have been collaborating to develop curriculum projects for two-and-a-half years, cultivating a healthy partnership. After six months of thoughtful conversations and consultations with advisors, the teams are delighted to announce the completion of this merger, ensuring a broader reach and deeper impact. The merged entity will now be known as GrowTorah, Inc., and the combined venture will galvanize the Orthodox community towards environmental stewardship. The four primary program areas will be: Experiential garden programs at schools Camp GrowTorah Development and publication of Torah-based environmental articles and science-based, action-oriented environmental resources for adults Environmental sustainability action plans for our partner institutions. “After so many years educating the Orthodox community about our environmental obligations, it’s thrilling to see Canfei Nesharim take root in new soil through this merger with GrowTorah,” said Evonne Marzouk, co-Founder and the first executive director of Canfei Nesharim. “I have been using Canfei Nesharim’s resources since January 2007, when I organized my first Tu B’shvat seder in college. Ora Sheinson and Evonne Marzouk — the co-founders of Canfei Nesharim — are two personal heroes, and I am excited to have them on our board, guiding this new venture” said Yosef Gillers, Founder and Executive Director of GrowTorah. Schools, synagogues, and community centers across the Orthodox community are invited to become involved in the new joint venture. Schools may join the growing network of institutions with educational garden programs. Synagogues and community centers are invited to host classes and workshops. For ongoing updates and green living tips from GrowTorah, sign up here. Support for the new organization is welcome and much appreciated! For press inquiries and additional information, contact Sara Just-Michael, GrowTorah Program Manager.

My Strategy For Getting Climate Change, Veganism, and Related Issues Onto the Jewish Agenda

November 25, 2019 No Comments

=== I urge the strongest, most widespread effort that can possibly be made to get climate threats and the need for shifts toward veganism onto the Jewish agenda. Why? Please consider the following facts (they are backed up by supporting material at the end of this article). There is a very strong scientific consensus, based on overwhelming evidence, that the world is rapidly heading toward an irreversible climate tipping point when climate change will spin out of control, with catastrophic results. Several scientific studies have shown that animal-based agriculture is a major contributor to climate change, largely due to methane, a very potent greenhouse gas, emitted by cattle and other farmed animals. The production and consumption of meat and other animal products seriously violate basic Jewish teachings on preserving human health, treating animals with compassion, protecting the environment, conserving natural resources, and helping hungry people. There have been several recent scandals in the kosher certification field, and reports about how animals are treated have make kosher eating of meat and other animals problematic today. While rabbis are very dedicated people, doing all they can to meaningfully involve other Jews in Jewish life, many are generally completely ignoring the above facts or acting apathetically toward these critical issues. While I have been thinking about and promoting this idea for some time, reading the cover story, ‘Thou shalt not be indifferent,’ in the November 1, 2019 Jerusalem Post magazine inspired me to write this statement and to dedicate myself to making this a critically important and urgent cause now. The article very skilfully and comprehensively describes how horribly farmed animals are treated, completely contrary to basic Jewish teachings, and gives examples of why the kashrut of meat and other animal products is highly questionable today. The article can be read here: https://www.jpost.com/HEALTH-SCIENCE/Thou-shalt-not-remain-indifferent-606443?fbclid=IwAR3eshebCNOU-u4vG0oO2iaHThUKPvcVLqAaHzDUcRd1CG-TjBg73kOu02g. My eagerness to promote this initiative was reinforced by an email message to me about the article by noted Israeli Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo, dean of the Jerusalem-based David Cardozo Academy and author of several Judaica books, including: Jewish Law as Rebellion: A Plea for Religious Authenticity and Halachic Courage. This is a most important article. In fact totally shocking and the situation is much worse than I imagined. I thought that the chickens were at least a little better off. But that is clearly not true. It seems that any meat eating person seems to run the risk to eat trefa [non-kosher] and helps an industry which is violating the most basic Jewish religious values, and the rabbinate does not say a word. How can we stop this tragedy? What am I suggesting? Below are a few ideas. I am sure others can add additional ones and reinforce mine. There are a good number of rabbis who are vegetarians or vegans and/or are concerned about health, animal rights, climate change, environmental sustainability, and other veg-related issues. We should contact them and urge them to speak out on the issues. Some already are, but perhaps they might eleven more. The members of Jewish Veg, Shamayim v’Aretz, the UK-based Jewish Vegetarian Society, the Jerusalem-based Jewish Vegetarian Society (Ginger), Concern for Helping Animals in Israel, and other Jewish veg and animal rights groups should be encouraged to contact their local rabbis, Jewish educators, JCC directors, and other influential Jews and urge them to put veganism and climate change and related issues on their agendas. A model for such discussions with rabbis is in my article, ‘A Dialogue Between a Jewish Vegetarian Activist and a Rabbi.’ It can be read at https://www.jewishveg.org/schwartz/dialogue.html. We should start an immediate letter writing campaign. We should form a a group of people who would be willing to send letters out to publications from time to time Daily newspapers and other publications often have articles on health, animals, ecology, nutrition, and other veg-related topics that could be responded to. I could provide many sample letters that could be built on. Since moving to Israel a little over 3 years ago, I have had 40 – 50 letters published in the Jerusalem Post. We should try, through our supporting rabbis, to get resolutions on climate change, veganism, and related issues considered at rabbinic, congregational, and other Jewish-related conferences. We should increase our use of social media to spread our messages as widely as possible Two examples are to raise questions to online ‘Ask the Rabbi’ websites and to get our messages to blogs that discuss veg-treated issues. We should try to get our key veg and animal rights activists interviewed on radio and TV programs. There are many such programs in the US, Israel, and throughout the world, and they are looking for people willing to address current controversial issues. We should try to get vegetarian/vegan articles linked to many websites with connections to Judaism, health, animals, climate change, the environment, and other veg-related topics. Perhaps activists could build on my over 250 articles at JewishVeg.org/schwartz. We should establish connections with other organizations concerned with vegetarianism, veganism, and related issues. I recognize that this is very ambitious and some of these things are already being done to some extent. But the threats are so great and the time to respond before it is too late is increasingly short, so applying at least some of my suggestions is essential as soon as possible. As an additional way to get the issues on the Jewish agenda and possibly later other agendas, I am currently completing a manuscript tentatively titled, “How Veganism Can Help Heal the World and Revitalize Judaism.” I hope to send it to a publisher that is interested in a few weeks. If you would like to review a chapter or two and possibly make suggestions, please let me know. I would then send you a Table of Contents, so you could decide what you would be interested in reviewing. Kol tuv, Richard ============== It is hoped that the material below will be helpful in spreading our messages. Also, the complete text of the third edition of

L’Shanah Tova and a thank you to our Earth Etudes for Elul Contributors

September 27, 2019 No Comments

Elul is the month before Rosh Hashanah, a time when we review our lives and think about how we will live the coming year. Many of these earth etudes actually connect our earth with the spirit of Judaism–Tikkun Olam, repairing the world. We would like to thank Rabbi Katy Z. Allen for bringing together these awe-inspiring contributors, whose essays, poems and thoughts help us understand the meaning of our lives and how we can repair our world. And our Earth Etudes can be helpful throughout the year. So you can read them here: Earth Etude for Elul 1: Rabbi Katy Allen– Of Happenstance and Wondering …READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 2: Judith Black — A plan…READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 3: Thea Iberall –200 Jewels…READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 4: Rabbi Greg Hersh –Experiencing G!D in the Wilderness…READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 5: Karen Schragg –True Tikkun Olam…READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 6: Nakhie Faynshteyn — God I am Your Sapling…READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 7: Maxine Lyons –To Everything There is a Season…READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 8: Susan J. Davidson –A Year of Travel, A Year of Wonder…READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 9: Richard Schwartz — A Time to Start Shifting Our Imperiled Planet onto a Sustainable Path…READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 10: Carol C. Reiman–Earth Mother…READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 11: Deborah Nam-Krane–Return to Our Values…READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 12: Judith Felsen–Two Poems…READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 13: Spiritual Lessons from God’s Art Museum…READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 14: Rabbi Robin Damsky–Inner and Outer Climate Change…READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 15: Andy Oram–T’Shuvah is an An Answer… READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 16: Daniel Kieval–Prayer for the Two-Leggeds…READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 17: Nyanna S. Tobin–Slow Down…READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 18: Joan Rachin — What I Hope to Be…READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 19: Rabbi Mike Comins–Teshuvah in the Desert…READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 20: Rabbi Katy Allen– Past and Present Pain… READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 21: Rabbi Margaret Frisch Klein –A Little Omer on the Prairie…READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 22: Rabbi Suri Levow Krieger–Lessons from Alaska…READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 23: Rabbi Louis Polisson–Prayer for Rain… READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 24: Maggid David Arfa–If Not Here, Where?… READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 25: Sarah Chandler-For the Silent Stones… READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 26: Rabbi David Seidenberg–What do animals feel and think? Who are they? …READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 27: Susan Levine–A Vegetarian Journey… READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 28: Rabbi Judy Kummer–Swimming in the Circles of Life…READ MORE Earth Etude for Elul 29: Rabbi David Jaffe–Waking up to the Climate Crisis…READ MORE

Earth Etude for Elul 29 –Waking up to the Climate Crisis

September 25, 2019 No Comments

by Rabbi David Jaffe ~ My guess is that many readers of the Elul Etudes are fully awakened to the climate crisis and read these blogs with the hope of gaining perspective and spiritual resilience to keep facing the crisis without panicking and burning out. This blog post is for a difference audience – those, like me, who intellectually understand the crisis but don’t feel the urgency. Despite reading articles and watching videos about the famines, flooding and other impacts of rising temperatures on people in the Global South and here in parts of the United States, including the predictions about war and migration, something doesn’t break through to my heart. For me, and others like me, it is not an issue of more information, but, in the words of the prophet Ezekiel, it is more about turning the heart of stone into a heart of flesh. וַיֹּ֖אמֶר אַל־תִּקְרַ֣ב הֲלֹ֑ם שַׁל־נְעָלֶ֙יךָ֙ מֵעַ֣ל רַגְלֶ֔יךָ כִּ֣י הַמָּק֗וֹם אֲשֶׁ֤ר אַתָּה֙ עוֹמֵ֣ד עָלָ֔יו אַדְמַת־קֹ֖דֶשׁ הֽוּא׃ And God said, “Do not come closer. Remove your sandals from your feet, for the place on which you stand is holy ground.” (Exodus 3:5) My colleague, Elder Will Dickerson II, understands God’s words to Moses at the burning bush to mean that Moses needed to take something off to have this full encounter with God. The ground was holy and shoes block the nerve endings at the bottom of the feet from feeling this holy ground. They are a buffer between ourselves and real experience of the world. The shoes are symbolic of what keeps us numb to the beauty and holiness of the world as well as to feeling how the world is burning. What do you need to “take off” or remove to really feel that our common home is burning? For me, I need to remove a certain buffer I wear as a middle class person in the United States. There is a way I’ve been acculturated to not notice the ways capitalism and our consumption-oriented society does not work for many people, but rather, to be thankful for any comfort I’ve been privileged to receive as part of this society. If I am really honest with myself I need to admit how addicted I am to this physical and emotional comfort and how many of my beliefs and behaviors are directed towards maintaining this comfort for myself and my family, despite the cost to the larger world. I need to take off middle class comfort to feel the house burning and move to action. Maimonides understands the Shofar blasts on Rosh Hashana to be symbolically saying to us, “You that sleep, bestir yourselves from your sleep, and you slumbering, emerge from your slumber, examine your conduct, turn in repentance, and remember your Creator!” (Hilchot Teshuva 3:4) Middle class comfort is a form of spiritual sleep. Powerful dynamics in our economic system urge us to remain asleep. As long as I can have my living place, my car, my little life, I shouldn’t complain! Can the Shofar blast pierce this addiction to material comfort and create enough of a crack in the buffer so that the reality of the climate crisis can get in? For me and others like me, this is the spiritual work of Elul and Rosh Hashana. Rabbi David Jaffe is the author of “Changing the World from the Inside Out,” winner of the National Jewish Book Award. He directs the “Inside Out Wisdom and Action Project,” which integrates Jewish spiritual wisdom and practice with social change. David lives with his family in Sharon, MA.

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Tag: Adults