Lay Leaders – Page 9

Earth Etude for Elul 5 – Where Are We Going

August 29, 2017 No Comments

by Thea Iberall, Ph.D. A while ago, I started writing a book that contained everything I had learned about love, life, Jewish ethics, and about making peace with the past. And I made up a science fiction world of bad things happening. And one day, my sister Norrie said, “You don’t have to make it up. There’s bad things happening already.” I asked what she meant. She sat me down in front of her computer screen and showed me some charts. How the carbon dioxide is rising and with it the temperature in the air and in the oceans. She showed me how the waters are rising and how droughts are getting worse. I reached my finger up to the screen and traced the rising numbers. And realized, as my teshuvah, I had to rewrite the book. Not only include everything I had learned about love, life, Jewish ethics, and making peace with the past. But to include this story, this story of us. Of our world that we are trashing. In the past, we could afford to be distracted. But no more. I cannot be distracted. In 2080 and beyond, they’ll look back at our generations and judge us by our deeds. Whether we were the heroes that fought to save the environment so that they could live or whether we became part of the problem and marched us down the path to a living hell. The Talmud teaches the principle of bal tashchit – do not destroy. What will be your teshuvah,your turning away from environmental destruction, so that future generations can live? Thea Iberall is on the leadership team of the Jewish Climate Action Network. As head of the JCAN interfaith group, she works with other organizations such as the Green Sanctuary Committee of the First Parish UU Church Medfield, Massachusetts Interfaith Power & Light, and 350MA.org. Dr. Iberall is the author of The Swallow and the Nightingale. In this visionary fiction novel, she uses today’s world of climate change as a backdrop to help awaken people, reminding us that the visions of Gandhi, religious mysticism, and Native Americans are a more sustainable solution than the patriarchal system under which we live. Learn more at www.theaiberall.com.

Earth Etude for Elul 7 – Our Last Elul?

August 29, 2017 No Comments

by Judith Felsen, Ph.D. ~If this were our last Elul might we see a different world? On the verge of our demise would each spark of nature sent by You remind us of Your light we are? In these days of hidden peace do we know we are Your kin together in the field? In darkest times does not the moon and sun still shine on us? Today may elements of earth be manna, all reminders of divine connection and Your care through deserts now. This Elul may we see You within all shadow and not be blinded by our darker nature. May we not only see Your back but perceive that challenges call forth our strengths and vitalize commitment. In days of Elul sparks may be revived as we apply Your lessons of our past, each ancestors’ descent a teaching of divine decree. Each year You met us in the field, we greet You there today with pain and fear and open hearts connected in Your sparks divine and destined ready to go forth in prayer and in our bond with You as nature witnesses and chants O Israel we are One and Yes we can. © Judith Felsen, Ph.D. Judith Felsen holds a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, certificates in hypnotherapy, NLP, Eriksonian Hypnosis, and Sacred Plant Medicine. She is a poetess, consultant, creator of collaborative integrative programs involving nature, Judaism and the arts, daily student of Torah, sacred texts and various teachers particularly the Baal Shem Tov and Chassidus, sacred circle dancer and an avid kitchen worker. She enjoys sharing studies, all of the outdoors, the garden, harvesting, prepping ,walking, hiking, running, meditating and conversing with the earth. She serves on the board of the Bethlehem Hebrew Congregation, Neskaya Center for Movement Arts, and the Mount Washington Valley Chavurah. She lives in the White Mountains with her husband, two large dogs and thenative community of the surrounding forest.

Earth Etude for Elul 6 – Looking to the Sky, Remembering Our Ideals

August 27, 2017 No Comments

by Rabbi Natan Margalit, Ph.D. ~Recently, I read an article in the New York Times Magazine that talked about the way that people do or say things, say, supporting a good cause or political opinion, not because they really believe in it, but because they want to signal to their social network that they are virtuous. Apparently, there is a popular new label for this behavior: “virtue signaling.” The author reports that this term is most often used by people on the right against people on the left (“Virtue Signaling Isn’t the Problem. Not Believing One Another Is,” August 8, by Jane Coaston). My reaction to this accusation is that it reminds me of the way that the classic Torah commentator Rashi describes the evil tribe of Amalek suddenly coming upon the Israelites in the desert (Deuteronomy 25:18): the Hebrew word used to mean “suddenly coming upon you” is karkha. Rashi plays on the fact that this word can also mean “cold” to say that the tribe of Amalek, by attacking the Israelites right after they had come out of Egypt, when the whole surrounding world was in awe of the miraculous workings of God on their behalf, “threw cold water” as it were, on the Israelites and caused that sense of awe and wonder to dissipate and seem naive. ”See, these Israelites are nothing special after all. Don’t believe that New Age woo-woo fluff about ten plagues and a sea splitting! They’re just regular people like the rest of us.” Now, I’m not accusing the political right of being Amalek, but in this case, they seem to be following their example. Of course people have mixed motivations whenever they do any action! Jewish law recognizes, for example, that people might be motivated to give tzedakkah (charity) by seeing their names prominently displayed on plaques in the synagogue. It’s not the highest motivation, but it is absolutely allowed to give out those honors because we understand that it will result in more giving. The problem with the accusation of “virtue signaling” is that it attempts to enshrine a cynical “realism” as the only truth. It pours cold water on any idealism by pointing out the imperfections in that idealism. Since we’re human, those imperfections are probably there, to one degree or another, but so what? If we get more idealistic actions in the world that is good, even if someone is getting some social points out of it along the way. As Rashi’s comment indicates, this problem of cynicism goes way back. I think it goes back to the very nature of who we are as humans. The environmental philosopher David Abrams, in his classic book The Spell of the Sensuous emphasizes that all of human concepts, language, and especially our religious language and concepts originally come from our experience of living on the earth. We experience solidity and the promise of practical sustenance in the form of food from the earth. We experience expansiveness and openness from the sky, and dynamic movement and the power of the invisible from the wind, which also enters us and becomes breath. As Genesis makes clear, we are both: adam from the adamah (humans from the earth) but not fully alive until God breathes the spirit/wind/breath into our nostrils. One of the ancient Jewish rituals that I find myself using to counter the downward pull of cynicism is the mitzvah of tzitzit. I happen to have a tallit that has the blue thread, the techelet, which I love to look at when I come to that paragraph in the Sh’ma which talks about the tzitzit: “. . . and they shall put a cord of blue on the tzitzit of each corner, and they will be tzitzit; and you will see it and you will remember all the commandments of God and do them.” The sages say that the blue of the techelet will remind you of the ocean, which itself reflects the blue of the sky, which reminds you of heaven, and of the commandments. The medieval sages Rashi and Maimonides disagree on the exact shade of blue, but they both consider it to be like the sky in one form or another. When I look at my tzitzit and hold the blue thread in my hand, I think of the sky and I’m reminded of the possibilities of expansive, idealistic action. We need to be earthly (Latin: mundane): practical and realistic. But we also need to breathe the air, and look at the sky and feel the expansive possibilities of life. We need to remember that we are nourished by the unlimited and upward reaching sky and its message of ideals and aspirations. Especially now, as we approach the High Holidays, the time when we return to our highest selves, let us not let cynicism and a soul denying “realism” destroy ability to soar with the wind and strive to make our ideals reality. Natan Margalit was raised in Honolulu, Hawaii. He received rabbinic ordination at The Jerusalem Seminary in 1990 and earned a Ph.D. in Talmud from U.C. Berkeley in 2001. He has taught at Bard College, the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College, and the Rabbinical School of Hebrew College. Natan is Rabbi of The Greater Washington Coalition for Jewish Life, in Connecticut. He is Founder and President of Organic Torah Institute, a non-profit organization which fosters holistic thinking about Judaism, environment and society (www.organictorah.org). He is a member of the Va’ad (steering committee and core faculty) of the Aleph Ordination Program. He lives in Newton, MA with his wife Ilana and their two sons.

Earth Etude for Elul 5 – Where Are We Going?

August 26, 2017 No Comments

by Thea Iberall, Ph.D. ~A while ago, I started writing a book that contained everything I had learned about love, life, Jewish ethics, and about making peace with the past. And I made up a science fiction world of bad things happening. And one day, my sister Norrie said, “You don’t have to make it up. There’s bad things happening already.” I asked what she meant. She sat me down in front of her computer screen and showed me some charts. How the carbon dioxide is rising and with it the temperature in the air and in the oceans. She showed me how the waters are rising and how droughts are getting worse. I reached my finger up to the screen and traced the rising numbers. And realized, as my teshuvah, I had to rewrite the book. Not only include everything I had learned about love, life, Jewish ethics, and making peace with the past. But to include this story, this story of us. Of our world that we are trashing. In the past, we could afford to be distracted. But no more. I cannot be distracted. In 2080 and beyond, they’ll look back at our generations and judge us by our deeds. Whether we were the heroes that fought to save the environment so that they could live or whether we became part of the problem and marched us down the path to a living hell. The Talmud teaches the principle of bal tashchit – do not destroy. What will be your teshuvah,your turning away from environmental destruction, so that future generations can live? Xanax bars http://xanaxbars.net/ Thea Iberall is on the leadership team of the Jewish Climate Action Network. As head of the JCAN interfaith group, she works with other organizations such as the Green Sanctuary Committee of the First Parish UU Church Medfield, Massachusetts Interfaith Power & Light, and 350MA.org. Dr. Iberall is the author of The Swallow and the Nightingale. In this visionary fiction novel, she uses today’s world of climate change as a backdrop to help awaken people, reminding us that the visions of Gandhi, religious mysticism, and Native Americans are a more sustainable solution than the patriarchal system under which we live. Learn more at www.theaiberall.com. Modafinil http://www.buymodafinilonlinefast.com/guide-to-buy-modafinil-online/

Earth Etude for Elul 4 – Saying Farewell with Each Breath, Starting Anew

August 25, 2017 No Comments

by Rabbi Judy Kummer~ Towards end of the day, towards summer’s end, body and soul prepare for farewells. Through piney woods I run, gauntleted by trees whose dark limbs reach up to breathe in fresh blue sky. Dim path; the light can’t reach down here. Ahead, the river winks at me. I thread my way out the wooded tunnel’s end and can feel the sky lift — and my mind lifts too. Before me lies still water meandering between wooded banks. Turning, I race the river. Feet pound on hard sand paths, Pulse quickens in my ears, breath pushes blood through my veins. Crickets chirp their pulses in the long grass. Feeling especially fleet of foot, I dart between notes of birdsong. My worries lag behind, can’t run as fast. And then, pleasure-filled, I pause at river’s bend to glimpse reflected glory. At golden hour there’s stillness in the air almost a hush, a waiting for day to end night to come. Time feels burnished, and the light — oh, the light is still golden, glowing. Gild the clouds, light, gild them colors of half the rainbow. Mirror the light, river, mirror the awe-tinged clouds. What a vision of beauty — glory reflected in thinly silvered water. I am filled up, full. Brimming over I turn back towards the start, saying farewell with each breath, ready to start anew. Rabbi Judith Kummer is the Executive Director of the Jewish Chaplaincy Council of Massachusetts. A Boston native, she earned a BA from Barnard College in Environmental Studies and Urban Planning and was ordained at the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College in Philadelphia. Rabbi Kummer is an avid organic gardener, potter, hiker and social activist.

Earth Etude for Elul 3 – One Natural World

August 24, 2017 No Comments

by Rabbi Robin Damsky~ While I do a great deal of writing for In the Gardens – our nonprofit that brings organic edible gardens to greater Chicagoland, donates 80% of our produce to the hungry and teaches mindfulness practice – when thinking about Elul, I had to dig in, no pun intended, for what to say. Modafinil pill http://www.modafinilpill.net/buy-modafinil/ Because it’s not just about sharing the love of gardening or teaching about sustainable and healthy food. It’s about creation and our future. It’s about living on the earth as an interconnected whole. For me, this is the main message of the High Holy Days. In the last two years I have put extensive energy into separating my growing food from the local critters. An 8’ high deer fence last year. Coyote urine this year. Chicken wire inside the chicken wire. Deer, rabbits, skunks, and others have found their way to our permaculture garden site. I think they are handing out flyers. Sure, I expect some sharing with the birds and squirrels, and more than half my property is open to the critters. Only a small area is fenced. But if it weren’t, there’d be no food for the hungry in the food pantry. Viagra online http://healthguidesdaily.com/buy-viagra-online.html In a conversation with a friend, we spoke about the increasing problem of deer and other wildlife in our backyards. It’s a paradox. Driving through the forest preserve I see a fawn cross the street on wobbly legs. I am honored. I look through the rear view mirror as I pass, and see a sibling crossing behind. Wow, I think, two of them! Where’s mama? I wonder. The same deer that delight me on my travels plague me in the garden. Then there are all those natives we planted, the pollinators for the bees and butterflies. I have so many varieties of bees, wasps, moths and butterflies, birds previously unseen here. I seek them out. I plant for them. Their future is my future. Again, that paradox. So I think: something is amiss.I don’t mind an occasional peach gobbled or some blackberries munched, but I want to have our farm’s goodies picked by our own hands. Yet I also have to acknowledge that my neighborhood, my home and the homes around me, encroach more and more fully on the homes of our wildlife neighbors. Their space and food sources dwindle, so they come after ours. What’s the answer? I have written before on Thoreau’s planting an extra row of beans for the deer. They need more than one row, however. Do we invest in expanding and replanting our wild spaces so the critters have more of their natural diet available? As we plant more prairies and native gardens, are we recreating habitat for our wild friends? And if so, is it enough? How about how we live? Do we redesign our towns and cities so that nature and homes are more fluid? There are many who set their homes in or bordering on wild places. They know that they are the outsiders, expecting all kinds of wildlife. But cities and suburbs don’t plan for this, at least as of yet. What would a town look like that has been designed for wildlife and humanity to live together? Do we plant hedges, or whole gardens, for the deer and skunks, raccoons and opossums? What about the coyotes, bears and snakes? It could get complicated. But I think that if we are serious about a healthy, balanced planet helping the brilliant, diverse ecosystem that God created to flourish, we have to start thinking about ways to live with our wild friends that sustain them and allow us to sustain us. We must remember that we are one natural world. This is the question I pose this Elul. How can we make sure the deer and their buddies (and predators) are taken care of while we take care of ourselves? There are many ecological organizations devoted to preserving species and natural lands, thank God. Yet it is more basic than that. It is right here in our own backyards, literally. I don’t know the answer. But it is a question of tikkun I am choosing to engage. I invite you to engage it with me. © Rabbi Robin Damsky Robin Damsky is the founder and executive director of In the Gardens, http://inthegardens.org. She is also the rabbi of Temple Israel Miller in Gary Indiana, http://templeisraelmiller.org.

Earth Etude for Elul 2 – From the Perspective of the 9th of Av, 5777

August 24, 2017 No Comments

by Hazzan Shoshana Brown~ Writing on the mourning day of Tisha b’Av, I am inclined to think of this “etude” as rather more of a kinah (lament) for the magnificent temple of our Earth, third planet in our solar system. Not to say that Earth is a churban, a ruin like our ancient Temple in Jerusalem, but to say that like that once beating spiritual heart and ritual nerve-center of the nation of Israel, our planet is both magnificent and utterly vulnerable to the predations of human greed, violence, and recklessness. And yet I have got the analogy turned inside-out – for it was the Temple that was built to mirror the grandeur of Creation, with its seven-branched menorah symbolizing creation’s seven days and shaped like almond branches, its cedar wall-carvings of palm trees and flowers, its two great bronze pillars ornamented with pomegranate patterns (perhaps symbolizing the Tree of Knowledge and the Tree of Life), its bronze basin in the courtyard called Yam (“Sea”), and bronze altar for burnt offerings, which may have been experienced as a kind of micro-“sun.” Humans could not be perfect stewards of Eden and its surroundings, and so a system of rituals in a “micro-Eden” was established, a place where humans could come and seek atonement, ask forgiveness for their failings, and experience the immanence of God that the first man and woman experienced in Eden where they could hear “the sound of God” walking amongst them in the cool of the day. Apparently the Kohanim (priests), the Levi’im (Levites), and the monarchy (Solomon oversaw the building of the First Temple) imagined that they would be better guardians of this micro-Eden than they were of the macrocosm, but greed, lust for power, political intrigue – all the usual suspects – led to the end of the United Monarchy, and the dispersion of many of their priests, prophets, Levites, and members of the royal house to the North…events that would culminate in the destruction of both kingdoms and the burning of Solomon’s Temple by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. So much for trying to perfect the world by theurgy! Meanwhile, Planet Earth continues her life, though battered by human exploitation and pollution of her air, soil and waters, which nevertheless in some places are healing, and in others becoming devastated beyond repair. We recite every morning in the blessing before the Shema: “You illumine the Earth and its inhabitants with compassion; in Your goodness You renew, day after day and continually, the works of creation. How varied are Your works, Adonai! With wisdom You created them all – the earth abounds with Your creations!” God renews, day after day and continually; every day is a re-creation. And every day we must strive to attune ourselves to both Creator and Creation so that we do not become destroyers of Eden/the Temple/Creation again. Teshuvah requires an acknowledgement of our sins, a feeling of remorse, and some concrete plans to do better going forward. How might we do that? Let us turn to attune ourselves to the holiness of creation, let us re-turn to “Eden,” immersing ourselves regularly in nature where we can experience God more immanently than in our worlds of bricks and mortar, or of cyberspace, and let us seek out ways to become both guardians of creation and partners with God, renewing creation day after day. Hazzan Shoshana Brown serves as cantor and co-spiritual leader (along with her husband, Rabbi Mark Elber) at Temple Beth El, in Fall River, MA. Shoshana grew up in Virginia, and once wanted to be a writer – but also a forest ranger! Now in Fall River, Shoshana combines her love of singing and spiritual leadership by serving as cantor, and her love of nature and writing by writing monthly hiking articles for the Fall River Herald News. Shoshana loves that her assignments for the newspaper have made her get out in nature through all the months of the year, and also led her to learn a great deal about the unique ecosystems of Southeastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Recently, Shoshana has added nature photography to her satchel, and that has increased her desire to get out even more!

Earth Etude for Elul 1 Alarm Clock for the Soul

August 23, 2017 No Comments

by Rabbi Katy Z. Allen~ Today marks the beginning of the month of Elul, a period of self-reflection and the search for forgiveness. Each day during this month, you will find here an Earth Etude for Elul, a short reflection on teshuvah and Earth by a member or friend of Ma’yan Tikvah. We hope these Etudes will help you along the way on your journey. It’s Elul. Once again. We’ll hear the shofar in the mornings, trying to wake us up. An alarm clock for our souls. For every morning, the Sun rises. Sometimes I’d like to hit snooze, but Ruach HaKodesh – the Holy Spirit – won’t let me, or, if S/He/It does, the interval isn’t long until the alarm clock rings once more. I have no choice. I must keep moving forward. For every evening, the Sun sets. But there is, at times, joy in that, too, in the moving forward– unimaginable, overwhelming, excruciating joy. For forward means letting go of pain, hurt, tenderness– sometimes slowly, and sometimes in huge glorious leaps that leave me feeling so peaceful I wonder if life is real. And it is. For every morning, the Sun rises. Yes, hurt comes again, and with it anger. But growth keeps happening. And when I do hit snooze, the interval until the next shofar blast is shorter and wakes me up more than before, to rediscover the joy and the peace. For every evening, the Sun sets. 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 Boston-based Jewish Climate Action Network. She is a board certified chaplain and serves as an Eco-Chaplain and the Facilitator of One Earth Collaborative, a program of Open Spirit, and is 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.

Aytzim (Ecological Judaism) is Back—Let’s reconnect!

July 30, 2017 1 Comment

It’s a mystery — we lost our Aytzim facebook page and all our facebook friends. So we will be sending out new invites to like our page. In case you have forgotten, we are all about the environment — saving our world. And these days, it has become more important than ever. Aytzim is the umbrella organization of: Green Zionist Alliance, Jewcology.org, EcoJews, and Shomrei Breishit: Rabbis and Cantors for the Earth. Aytzim means “trees” and here’s a little about the other organizations in our product grove: Green Zionist Alliance—Since its founding in 2001, the Green Zionist Alliance has successfully worked for the declaration of new nature preserves, the planting of millions of trees, and the construction of hundreds of miles of bike trails. It is also the first and only organization on the environment to ever participate in the World Zionist Congress. Jewcology.org incorporates collaboration from a wide range of Jewish environmental leaders and organizations worldwide. This project was funded by the ROI Innovation Fund. The long-term goal is to build a multi-denominational, multi-generational, regionally diverse community of Jewish environmental activists, who are learning from one another and from an expanding set of Jewish-environmental resources, how to educate their communities about our Jewish responsibility to protect the environment. EcoJews works in the San Francisco Bay Area to empower Jewish organizations to go green(er). EcoJews addresses sustainability issues from a Jewish ethical standpoint and through environmental consulting. They also highlight environmental work in Israel, celebrate holidays such as Tu B`shvat and enjoy outdoor activities such as nature walks and native plant restoration. In a partnership with Green Faith, Shomrei Breshit is an international, multi-denominational network of rabbis and cantors providing a Jewish voice on climate change and environmental justice. So please be our friends and keep up with everything our organizations are doing to help our world and all its people. And remember that Jewcology.org is the place to post information about your organization. You can also share information about your events. Thank you, Susan

EcoPeace Middle East new publication; new brief

July 11, 2017 No Comments

EcoPeace Middle East, a unique environmental organization that brings together Jordanian, Palestinian, and Israelis, with the primary objective of promoting cooperative efforts to protect the region’s shared environmental heritage, recently published a new report entitled “Decoupling National Water Needs for National Water Supplies: Insights and Potential for Countries in the Jordan Basin“. This report analyses and compares the water allocation and management experience of Jordan, Palestine and Israel using the lens of economic and resource decoupling to highlight past trends and future potential for jurisdictions in the region to circumvent limits on natural water resources. Also for distribution is a new brief on Water Security that was presented at a roundtable event on “Water Security – Challenges and Opportunities for Cooperation in the Middle East” as part of the prestigious Interdisciplinary Center (IDC) Herzliya Conference, in Israel. Our presentations and much of the discussions focused on the need to promote a broader water security understanding between Israelis and Palestinians, and the need to develop a water security dialogue between Israel, her neighbors, and the international community.

Shavuot and the Connection to Vegetarianism

May 25, 2017 No Comments

A compilation of articles by Richard Schwartz A Dialogue on Shavuot Night For many years Danny Shapiro looked forward to staying up all night at his synagogue with his friends on the first night of Shavuot, hearing talks about and discussing Torah teachings. This year he especially anticipated this annual commemoration of the giving of the Torah on Mount Sinai, because Rabbi Greenberg would be meeting with Danny and other college students for an hour at 3 AM to answer any questions on Judaism that they brought up. Danny had recently become a vegetarian and had done a lot of background reading on Jewish connections to vegetarianism and he wanted to find out what the rabbi thought about the issue. More… A Shavuot Message: Since Shavuot is z’man matan Torateinu (the commemoration of the giving of the Torah to the Israelites on Mount Sinai), many dedicated religious Jews admirably stay up the entire first night of Shavuot to hear talks about and discuss Torah teachings. Among these Torah teachings are that Jews should preserve human health, treat animals with compassion, protect the environment, conserve natural resources, help hungry people, and pursue peace. By becoming vegetarians, and preferably vegans, Jews would be partaking in a diet that is most consistent with these basic teachings. More… Shavuot and Vegetarianism There are many connections between vegetarianism and the important Jewish festival of Shavuot: 1. Shavuot is described as “z’man matan Toratenu” (the season of the giving of our law (the Torah). It is this Torah that has in its very first chapter God’s original, strictly vegetarian, dietary regimen: “And God said: ‘Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree, in which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed – to you it shall be for food’” (Genesis 1:29). More… Vegetarianism and the Jewish Dietary Laws Since Judaism is a religion that speaks to all aspects of life, it has much to say about one of life’s most commonplace activities, eating. The Jewish dietary laws, also known as the laws of kashrut or kosher laws are extremely important in Judaism. They regulate virtually every aspect of eating for members of the Jewish community (the only dietary law given to non-Jews is to not eat a limb from a living animal). More…

Passover: How to improve your health and our world

March 28, 2017 No Comments

Richard Schwartz makes the connection between a vegetarian (vegan) diet and how it fits with the meaning of Passover in these 3 essays. 1. Freeing Ourselves at Passover From Diets That Hurt Us and the Planet Jews commendably go to extraordinary lengths before and during Passover to avoid certain foods, in keeping with Torah mitzvot. But at the same time, many continue eating other foods that, by Torah standards, are hardly ideal. Read more… 2. Applying Passover Messages Can Help Heal Our Imperiled Planet There are many Passover-related messages that can be applied to help shift our imperiled planet onto a sustainable path. Today’s environmental threats can be compared in many ways to the Biblical ten plagues. Here’s how… 3. Passover and Vegetarianism or Veganism Passover and vegetarianism or veganism? Can they be related? After all, what is a seder without gefilte fish, chicken soup, chopped liver, chicken, and other meats? Yes, you can do it!

Environmental Issues in Israel

March 19, 2017 No Comments

The Third Annual Barbara Siegel Memorial Israel Program will be on Sunday, April 2 at 11:00 am at Congregation Or Hadash in Fort Washington, PA. Our speaker, David Krantz, is a National Science Foundation IGERT Fellow and a Wrigley Fellow researching solar-energy policy and faith-based environmentalism. He also runs the environmental nonprofit, Aytzim: Ecological Judaism, parent organization of Jewcology.org, the Green Zionist Alliance, EcoJews, and Shomrei Breishit: Rabbis and Cantors for the Earth. He serves on the board of directors of Interfaith Moral Action on Climate; on the board of directors of Arizona Interfaith Power & Light; on the founding team of Interfaith Oceans; and on the cabinet of the American Zionist Movement. He previously served as a leadership fellow at the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life and as a global-justice fellow at American Jewish World Service. Free and open to the public. A dairy lunch will be included. RSVP to Nadine Carter:

Shmita Revival: The Reconsideration and Expansion of Sacred Land

March 19, 2017 No Comments

David Krantz will be speaking at the Mountain and Sacred Landscape Conference at The New School in New York City on Friday, April 21 from 8:30 to 10:00 am. David is a National Science Foundation IGERT Fellow and a Wrigley Fellow researching solar-energy policy and faith-based environmentalism. He also runs the environmental nonprofit, Aytzim: Ecological Judaism, parent organization of Jewcology.org, the Green Zionist Alliance, EcoJews, and Shomrei Breishit: Rabbis and Cantors for the Earth. He serves on the board of directors of Interfaith Moral Action on Climate; on the board of directors of Arizona Interfaith Power & Light; on the founding team of Interfaith Oceans; and on the cabinet of the American Zionist Movement. He previously served as a leadership fellow at the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life and as a global-justice fellow at American Jewish World Service. David’s presentation is part of a 3-day conference sponsored by the International Society for the Study of Religion, Nature & Culture from Thursday, April 20th to Sunday, April 23rd. The conference will include the latest research on the intersections of religion, nature and culture. For more information about the conference and to register: http://conferences.indiachinainstitute.org/schedule/

Seasons in the Era of Climate Change

February 24, 2017 1 Comment

by Stephen Jurovics, Ph.D. Each of the seasons of the year can evoke, for many of us, an image of what we most enjoy about that period. It may be the sequence of warm spring days with clear blue skies during which the outside world exerts a strong pull and diminishes our commitment to work or study, that period we call “spring fever.” For others, it’s the summer days of sunshine and high temperatures when many leave work to vacation at the beach and enjoy the water, sand, and sunshine. The familiar images and anticipated enjoyment are inexorably moving towards the remembered and unpredictable. Climate change is transforming everything, including our experiences of the seasons, and those changes will challenge our physical, visual, and emotional lives. The extended period of spring fever may shrink to a series of brief periods of ideal weather followed by drenching rains or intense storms. Summers at the beach may become less enjoyable with temperatures consistently above 100 degrees, or far higher in the southwest. The spring return of the birds, with their repeated, characteristic calls, their newly visible nests, and frequent trips to a feeder will become less noticeable, for 314 species of birds are at risk from the effects of climate change, according to the Audubon Society. Each week that the willful denial of climate change by corporate executives or government officials impedes actions to mitigate these effects, we condemn ourselves and future generations to a far tougher life on this planet than experienced by our ancestors. We have seen such willful denial and accompanying obstruction before: Lead was introduced into gasoline around 1926. For many years, low doses (3 cc per gallon) were considered safe. The first warnings were raised in 1959 about the adverse health effects of lead at very low levels—one effect of lead in a child’s blood stream is mental retardation. It took about 25 years, multiple studies, and repeated challenges and lawsuits by the manufacturer of the lead additive and the lead industry, before lead was phased out from gasoline use. In 1988, the government estimated that 3-4 million children had lead in their blood at a level considered toxic, and that the phase out had spared about 3.4 million children from growing up with a hazardous concentration of the metal in their bodies. A similar pattern of corporate behavior manifested after theoretical predictions and experimental verification showed that a chemical in spray cans was widening the hole in the ozone layer. That opening would admit more ultraviolet radiation and put the world’s population at risk of elevated levels of skin cancer and eye damage. It took over a decade of battling corporate denial and repeated calls for more studies before the Montreal Protocol was signed, phasing out the use of the offending chemical. A third instance occurred with cigarettes. Medical findings showed how smoking could damage the lungs and epidemiological studies demonstrated that smoking was correlated with several illnesses, such as lung cancer and emphysema. The denials, for decades, by the tobacco industry impeded progress by the government in asserting an unambiguous connection between smoking and health. This time the denial and obstruction are jeopardizing the future habitability of this planet—placing at risk the hospitable environment humans have known for millennia. We know how to mitigate climate change and its multiple effects, but are trapped in the familiar pattern that values short-term financial gain over all other considerations. Consider what we love, consider the endearing characteristics of each season, and consider biblical teachings that instruct us on how to live in the natural world created by God. Join with others who seek to bring about a transition from fossil fuels to non-fossil fuels for our energy needs. We still have time to limit the damage, but time is not on our side. Respond like Abraham: Hineni (Here I am). Stephen Jurovics is the author of the book Hospitable Planet: Faith, Action, and Climate Change. Learn more about the spirituality and meaning of Seasons in Jewish Tradition and our lives at Wellsprings of Wisdom: Gateway of Seasons.

Tall Trees in Bidwell Park, Chico, California

Tu Bishvat: All About the New Year of the Tree(s)

February 9, 2017 No Comments

My youngest daughters’ friends were impressed that Judaism celebrates a New Year of Trees, marked by planting and honoring trees. Here’s a round-up of how to observe this special day.

Powering the Promised Land: Fracking and Energy Use in Israel

February 8, 2017 No Comments

Limmud AZ presents speaker David Krantz at 11:30 am – 12:30 pm on Sunday, February 12, 2016. What’s the source of the electricity that powers the lights when you flick the switch in Israel? Hint: It may not be what you think. Israel is on the verge of becoming an energy superpower, but at what cost? Learn what most Israelis don’t know about Israel’s energy situation. David Krantz runs Aytzim: Ecological Judaism, parent organization of Jewcology.org, the Green Zionist Alliance, and Shomrei Breishit: Rabbis and Cantors for the Earth. He also serves on the board of directors of Interfaith Moral Action on Climate and Arizona Interfaith Power & Light, and on the cabinet of the American Zionist Movement. He is a National Science Foundation IGERT Fellow and a Wrigley Fellow researching solar-energy policy and faith-based environmentalism at Arizona State University. He previously served as a leadership fellow at the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life and as a global-justice fellow at American Jewish World Service. Other speakers: You can enjoy the whole day program at Limmud AZ from 9-5. There are individual sessions on multiple topics that will appeal and bring together Jews from all backgrounds and learning experiences. To learn more and to register: http://limmudaz.org/limmud-az-event/presenters-topics/

Tu B’Shvat: Celebrating the New Year for Trees

February 2, 2017 No Comments

by Richard Schwartz Richard Schwartz has written this anthology about Tu B’Shvat (also written as Tu Bishvat), the holiday that is on the 15th of Shvat (this year starting on Monday evening, February 10 through Tuesday, February 11). The celebration in some ways can be similar to a Passover seder (not as long), and the foods served (many fruits and nuts) have special significance. In addition there are many reasons that Tu B’Shvat is especially important today with our concerns about the environment and climate change. Take a look at the articles below to learn more about Tu B’Shvat and to plan your celebration. Why Is This Night Different?: Thoughts on Tu B’Shvat While Passover is a holiday of springtime, Tu B’Shvat considers the changing seasons from winter to autumn, as symbolized by the changing colors of the wine or grape juice, to remind us of God’s promise of renewal and rebirth. (read more…) Tu B’ Shvat and Vegetarianism The Tu B’Shvat Seder in which fruits and nuts are eaten, along with the singing of songs and the recitation of biblical verses related to trees and fruits, is the only sacred meal where only vegetarian, actually vegan, foods, are eaten. (read more…) Preserving the Sacred Environment: A Religious Imperative – A Tu B’Shvat Message Many contemporary Jews look upon Tu B’Shvat (February 10-11 in 2017) as a Jewish Earth Day, a day for contemplating our ecological heritage – and the multitude of threats it currently faces. (read more…) Lessons from Jewish Statements about Trees: A Tu B’Shvat Message Richard Schwartz shares some of the most important lessons in life he learned from Jewish verses about trees. He learned that he should be an environmental activist, working to help preserve the world. (read more…) Celebrating Tu B’Shvat as if Environmental Sustainability Matters Since Tu B’Shvat, the “New Year for Trees,” has increasingly become a “Jewish Earth Day,” why not use Tu B’Shvat Seders as, among other things, a time to consider how we can effectively respond to current environmental crises that threaten all life on the planet? (read more…) For Tu B’Shvat: 36 Jewish Quotations About Trees Since Tu B’Shvat is considered the “birthday for trees,” a time when trees are to be judged regarding their fate for the coming year, the following Jewish quotations about trees and fruits will be helpful for celebrations of this increasingly popular holiday… (read more…) Questions and Answers about Tu B’Shvat Thinking about having a Tu B’Shvat Seder? Here’s the answers to all your questions about the holiday and planning your celebration. (read more…) Richard H. Schwartz, Ph.D., is the author of Judaism and Vegetarianism, Judaism and Global Survival, Who Stole My Religion? Revitalizing Judaism and Applying Jewish Values to Help Heal our Imperiled Planet, and Mathematics and Global Survival, and over 250 articles and 25 podcasts at JewishVeg.com/schwartz. He is President Emeritus of Jewish Vegetarians of North America (JVNA) and the Society of Ethical and Religious Vegetarians (SERV).. He is associate producer of the 2007 documentary “A Sacred Duty: Applying Jewish Values to Help Heal the World.” His latest project involves working to restore the ancient Jewish holiday “New Year for Animals” to increase awareness of Jewish teachings on compassion to animals.

“Noah, Superman, and Global Warming,” a Brilliant Article by a Rosh Yeshiva That Can Help Heal Our Imperiled Planet

November 4, 2016 No Comments

A Message from the Rosh HaYeshiva Rabbi Dov Linzer Norman and Tova Bulow Rosh HaYeshiva Chair Yeshivat Chovevei Torah Rabbinical School A Thought on the Parasha Feel free to download and print the Parashat Noach sheet and share it with your friends and family. Noah, Superman and Global Warming God creates a perfect, self-sustaining planet, teaming with life. God places human beings in it and gives them seemingly divine powers: rule over all living things, and the ability to build, create, transform, and take mastery over the entire planet (Breishit 1:28-29). God demands from them only that they accept some limits and understand that their mastery and control cannot be complete; with every six days of creating comes one day of surrendering control; with the mandate to work the land comes the obligation to protect it as its custodians (2:15). But human beings are not able to live by these restrictions. Appetite and greed drive their actions (3:6). They become mighty and powerful; they believe everything is theirs for the taking: the property of others (6:11), women whom they covet (6:2), and even human life itself (4:8). Even those who do not perpetrate these evils are complicit (Rashi, 6;13). Their own shortsightedness and self-centeredness-or simply their cowardice or apathy-allow them to ignore what is happening, to convince themselves that it is not their business and that trying to do something about it would be pointless. They become passive enablers, the evil continues to flourish, and the entire land becomes morally corrupt. God realizes that there is no choice but to start again, to bring a flood, recreate the world, and hope that this time, with more guidance, humanity will get it right. Noah works on the ark for 120 years. Maybe he could have done a better job trying to warn people, but his tireless efforts make it clear to anyone listening that he is announcing the end of the world. But this is a message no one is interested in hearing. Even when the rains begin, when the evidence is before their eyes and the water is up to their ankles and knees, they refuse to believe that God will allow the world to be destroyed (Rashi, 7:12). When the flooding starts, when the storms are out of control and their fate is sealed, they finally want to repent; they will do anything to be saved. But by then it is too late. We tend to react with an air of superiority and incredulity when we hear this story: How wicked must these people have been to act as they did! How stupid to be so willingly blind to their fate! I remember having a similar reaction as a kid, many years ago when I was an avid reader of Superman comics. In the origin story, Jor-El, Superman’s father, investigates the frequent volcanic explosions on Krypton, his home planet. Realizing that its core will soon explode and destroy the entire planet, he urges the leaders to build spaceships to save their civilization, but the council refuses to believe him. Who is willing to seriously face the possibility that their planet is on a path to destruction? As he tells his wife, “Because of their stupidity, a world will die!” In the end, he is only able to build one small spaceship. He puts his baby son, Kal-El, on it and sends him to Earth, where the boy will grow up to become Superman. This is a Noah story, even if I didn’t recognize it at the time. What I do remember thinking was how incredibly stupid and short-sighted the planet’s leaders were. How could anyone not take such warnings seriously? With the fate of their planet hanging in the balance, even if they did not care about anyone else, wouldn’t their concern for their own safety and that of their families compel them to heed the warnings? But now, sadly, the lack of response and willing blindness fail to shock me, for I see them every day in how we, particularly we Americans, are responding to our own flooding and impending planetary disaster. I am referring, of course, to global warming and climate change. These things are incontrovertible facts, and it does not require trust in scientists to accept them as such. The evidence is before our eyes: It can be seen in pictures of polar bears on tiny ice floes. It can be seen in thinning, receding glaciers, like those I saw in the Canadian Rockies last year. It can be seen in the weather, the unprecedented heat waves and hottest years on record, in the droughts, hurricanes, blizzards, and tornadoes. And it can be seen in flooding, which has caused hundreds of deaths, billions of dollars of damage, and impacted millions of lives. Every day the ice caps are melting, rain is falling, storms and floods are increasing, and the water is rising ever higher, and we, like the generation of Noah, go about as if nothing is happening. Some carry more blame than others. The energy companies have devoted tremendous resources to disputing the evidence and spreading misinformation and to quashing U.S. efforts to reduce carbon emissions. Politicians support and further these efforts by publicly denying climate change, even while many of them acknowledge the reality in private. They are driven by power, greed, or simply cowardice, knowing that they would be attacked or even ousted by their own party if they were to act differently. But we are all complicit: every one of us who uses goods produced by industries that emit high levels of carbon dioxide; every one of us who eats beef on a regular basis; every one of us who decides that there is nothing to be done and throws up our hands in resignation to the fact that our planet is on a path of self-destruction. One deeply depressing fact-among so many others-from this election season is that climate change was barely addressed in the debates. What does it mean

Who Stole My Religion?

October 31, 2016 No Comments

For many years I have believed that my religion, Judaism, has been stolen. Why? Because Judaism is a radical religion, with powerful messages on peace, justice, compassion, sharing, and environmental sustainability that can help shift our imperiled planet onto a sustainable path. Yet, most Orthodox Jews are in denial about climate change and other environmental threats and are increasingly supporting politicians who promote benefits for the wealthiest Americans and highly profitable corporations, at the expense of average Americans. I have been a member of a modern Orthodox synagogue for 48 years, prior to moving to Israel on August 3, 2016. I have found that members of the synagogue excel in acts of kindness, charity, and learning. Their dedication to Judaism is outstanding. However, while a strong majority of Jews support progressive policies, a similar majority of Orthodox Jews is conservative and hawkish. In the 2008 presidential election, while Barack Obama received 78% of the Jewish vote, about the same percent of Orthodox Jews voted for Senator John McCain. A poll of Florida Jews during late August 2016 found that while overall, Jews support Hillary Clinton by a margin of three to one, Orthodox Jews favor Donald Trump by the same margin. While Orthodox Jews generally know far more about Judaism than less religious and secular Jews, they are far less involved in applying Jewish values to today’s critical threats, at a time when this involvement is very much needed. Also, Orthodox Jews, like most Jews, are ignoring or downplaying Jewish teachings on veganism, the proper treatment of animals, and environmental stewardship. For these reasons and others, I think my religion has been stolen and primarily by the Orthodox Jewish community. I make this criticism reluctantly because so many Orthodox Jews are doing wonderful things in their communities, but feel that I must do so because the future of Judaism and humanity is at stake. Because I think it is urgent to get this message out, I wrote, “Who Stole My Religion? Revitalizing Judaism and Applying Jewish Values to Help Heal Our Imperiled Planet, (written with Rabbi Yonassan Gershom and Rabbi Dr. Shmuly Yanklowitz), and it was published in August 2016 by Ktav/Urim Publications. In the book, I argue that Judaism is a radical religion, in the best sense of the word, and that Judaism’s progressive teachings should be applied to help shift our imperiled planet onto a sustainable path. Among the Jewish teachings that I discuss are the following: Justice, justice shall you pursue (Deuteronomy 16:20); Seek peace and pursue it (Psalms 34:14); Be kind to the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt (this verse in various forms occurs 36 times in the Jewish scriptures, more than any other teaching; because of this, Rabbi Emanuel Rackman, former chancellor at Bar Ilan University argued that Judaism teaches a special kind of justice – empathic justice, which considers the conditions and needs of others); Love thy neighbor as yourself (Leviticus 19:18); You shall be holy, for I, the Lord your God am holy (Leviticus 19:2); Jews are to be a “light unto the nations (Isaiah 49:6). My book is meant to be a wake-up call, the strongest that I could make, to the need for Jews to apply Judaism’s splendid teachings in response to current threats. However, “denial is not just a river in Egypt,” and, like most others, many Jews are in denial, in effect, ‘rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic while the world heads toward a giant iceberg.” I want my book to ring out like a shofer, to awaken people to the urgency of applying Judaism’s wonderful values in response to current crises. Among the key points in the book are: 1. Jews should be vegetarians, and preferably vegans, to be most consistent with Jewish teachings on compassion, health, environmental sustainability, resource conservation, justice, reducing poverty, and other issues, and to help reduce the current epidemic of diseases in the Jewish and other communities and to reduce climate change and other environmental threats to humanity; 2. Jews should be advocates for an end to current widespread abuses of animals; 3. Jews should be environmental activists, leading efforts to avert a climate catastrophe and other environmental disasters; 4. There should be a global Marshall-type plan, in which the U.S. and other developed nations devote a small percent of their income to efforts to significantly reduce poverty, hunger, Illiteracy, illness, pollution, and other societal ills. This would help improve the image of the U.S. and other countries that joined the effort, including Israel, and thereby help reduce the potential for terrorism and other violence. 5. Israel needs a comprehensive, sustainable, just resolution of her conflict with the Palestinians, in order to avert continued and possibly increased violence and increased diplomatic criticism and isolation, respond effectively to her economic, environmental, and other domestic problems, and remain both a Jewish and a democratic state. This is also the view of many Israeli strategic and military experts. 6. The economic system most consistent with Judaism is democratic socialism. 7. While most people look at the world in terms of good versus evil and us versus them, demonize opponents, and listen almost exclusively to arguments that reinforce their views, it is essential to find common ground and solutions to current problems. 8. It is essential that Jews actively apply Jewish values to current critical problems. Jews must be God’s loyal opposition to injustice, greed, and immorality, rousing the conscience of humanity. We must shout “no” when others are whispering “yes” to injustice. We must involve Judaism in the universal task of “comforting the afflicted and afflicting the comfortable.” We must act as befits “descendants of the prophets,” reminding the world that there exists a God of justice, compassion, and kindness. Nothing less than global survival is at stake. The afternoon service for Yom Kippur includes the prophetic reading of the book of Jonah, who was sent by God to the city of Nineveh to urge the people to repent

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