I recently had a conversation with a friend of mine about Jewish Environmentalism. His response may be close to yours as you read this. J e w i s h Environmentalism??? , he wondered out loud.
He has a point. Not many of us really know what Judaism has to say about the sources of climate change and the Kyoto Protocol. How could a tradition as old as Judaism weigh in about such tsuris as Riverdale’s garbage going to a Michigan landfill, or a car idling on the Danforth?
Well, lots, it turns out. Judaism is very relevant to ecological concerns. As someone said recently: to be Jewish, is to be green.
All religions have the sanctity of the environment at their core. All faiths share a central concern for the connection between humankind and planet Earth. A oneness, a unity with everything and everyone. In the Jewish tradition, an environmental ethic grows out of the Torah, the Jewish calendar and festivals, and the teachings of Jewish thinkers throughout history.
Jewish environmentalism emerges from Bereishit (Genesis) through the creation stories, which obligate us to tend and to protect the world. That is why we selected Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year, as the time for a launch for our year-long green campaign. The campaign is called Green Bayit/House and focuses on the home, in the most expansive sense of the word.
Throughout the year, we will continue to plan a Jewish calendar of green events connecting the DJC membership to the environment and to each other, to the larger Jewish community, and to communities of faith in our neighbourhood of Riverdale. We would love to see you participate!
The material on this page is offered as a community service. In providing it, the DJC does not necessarily imply its own endorsement of the issues.
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