Sukkot and Climate Change

In honor of Blog Action Day 2009 on Climate Change, here is a guest post I wrote for the JGooders Blog:

In honor of the Sukkot holiday, here’s a guest post from Carmi Wisemon, Executive Director of Sviva Israel.

A friend in Atlanta recently posted Facebook photos of the dramatic floods behind her home.  This set me thinking about Sukkot…

The Mishna in Tractate Rosh Hashanah states that the world is judged four times a year.  On Rosh Hashanah all the creatures in the world, including us, are judged for the coming year; on Sukkot the amount of rainfall; on Pesach the grains and Shavuot the  fruits.

According to Jewish tradition, the difference between Rosh Hashanah and the other three main holidays, is that on Rosh Hashanah the individual prays for and is judged regarding their personal allotment of the world’s resources (including life).  Whereas during the other three festivals,we need to focus on the general good of the world, how much food will be available to others and how much rainfall there will be for everyone else.

During Sukkot rather than focusing on ourselves, we do tikkun olam, praying for the resources needed by the global community. Not just for ourselves, or even for the Jewish community, but for all of the earth’s inhabitants.

In Biblical times, during Sukkot the People of Israel made offerings and prayers on behalf of the other nations of the world.  In his commentary on Numbers 29; 18, Rashi, one of the foremost rabbinical commentators, explains that the total number of oxen offered during the seven-day Sukkot holiday came to seventy, representing the seventy nations of the world.  The special ceremonies and prayers at this time were intended to bestow on the peace and prosperity.

Sukkot is also about coming together as a Jewish community for the greater good.  About moving out of the insular walls of  our  homes and opening up our Sukkah to welcome whoever wants to come in.    Many of the ceremonies  that are associated with Sukkot, such as the Hakhel gathering, the Simchat Beit Hashoevah and Hoshanas are not only about praying for water, but also about doing so together with other members of the community.  And again, these prayers are not personal requests for ourselves, or for just Israel or the Jewish People, but rather for the general good of the world.

So this Sukkot, as we relax in our Sukkot, and admire the natural splendor of our lulavs and etrogs, think about the deeper meaning of the holiday.  We can all do our bit to prevent climate change, and that includes a 2,000 year-old tradition of praying for rain to fall – neither too little nor too much – in Israel, but also in the Philippines, Indonesia and even Atlanta.

Is environmental activity as important as doing Chessed with people? Kiddushin 40 a

Is kindness to people more important?

Who is considered more righteous, someone who is concerned with the needs of other people or one who is concerned with the creation? Or to put it differently, are social workers and other baalei chessed fulfilling G-d’s will more than environmentalists?

According to the Talmud, it would appear that if a person wants to be righteous he should involve himself with helping people and not solely with preserving and protecting the creation. The Talmud in Kiddushin 40 gives four examples of actions which merit reward in this world and the next: honoring one’s parents, doing kind deeds for other people, making peace between people, and learning/teaching Torah. The Talmud asks why someone who performs the mitzvah of shiluach haken (sending a mother bird away from its nest when taking the eggs) is not included in this list? It says elsewhere that one who performs the mitzvah of shiluach haken is  “For his benefit (in this world) and that he has  long days (in the next world).” So why is he not considered amongst  those righteous who have merit  in this world and in the  world to come?

The Talmud explains that there are two types of good people, those who are purely righteous and those that are just good people.  The purely righteous merit reward in this world and in the world to come because they are tov lashamayim and tov labriyot – they are good to G-d (by following his commandments) and are good to other people. Those who are just good people merit reward only in the world to come because they are tov lashamyim veraa laberiyot. What is the meaning of veraa laberiyot?  The Talmud explains that it is referring to people who are observing G-d’s commandments such as shiluach haken which is a mitzva ben adam lamakom but aren’t necessarily involved in helping others. Therefore, they have reached the level of just good people who will receive merit only  in the world to come, but not pure righteousness.

From this Gemara it would seem that to be a purely righteous person, it is not enough to be only concerned with preservation of the creation, which is considered a mitzvah between man and G-d. If this is indeed correct, should I give up my environmental activism and return to my former profession as a social worker, which would keep me safely on the path to becoming a completely  righteous person B’H ?

Yet perhaps this is where modern environmentalism often differs from the idea behind shiluach haken which is primarily for the sake of heaven, or for the sake of sparing the mother bird from pain. For most modern environmentalism is really about people.   As my friend and colleague Professor Alfred Fischbein says, “I tend to emphasize that the ultimate recipient in society of environmental hazards is man.”  Therefore many of today’s environmentalist, whose focus is just as much on preserving the wellbeing of mankind as of the rest of creation, can definitely be considered tov lashamyim and tov labriyot. I guess there is still some hope for me!

PR: wait… I: wait… L: wait… LD: wait… I: wait… wait… Rank: wait… Traffic: wait… Price: wait… C: wait…

The Cost of Healthy Eating: Shabbat 140 B

Should we pay more to eat healthy?

Do we have the right to purchase more nutritious foods that cost us more?

The Talmud answers this question in Shabbat 140B, when relating to Rave Papa’s proposal that a person who could be satisfied drinking beer, and instead decides to drinks the costlier wine, commits the sin of Bal Taschit (wasting objects) by spending excessive money on his beverage.

The editor of the Talmud comments that Rav Pappa’s opinion should be dismissed because Bal Taschit of one’s own body is much worse than Bal Taaschit of one’s money. He recommends that we spend the extra money necessary to eat or drink healthier food for the sake of maintaining our health.

Walk into a health food store today, and you may be perturbed at the cost of the products. Free range eggs, organic vegetables and whole wheat breads cost far more than their less healthy counterparts. But are the added costs legitimate? According to the Talmud, some may be worthwhile.

Healthier foods are often much more labor intensive and produce a smaller yield with a shorter shelf life then their less nutritious counterparts. The smaller volume of goods sold also require a bigger profit margin, to enable the store owner to maintain his business.

As well , many of the less healthy food found in our supermarkets contain large quantities of corn and sugar, products that are unfortunately still heavily subsidized by the U.S, government.

The Talmud takes the long-term sustainable view that it pays to eat properly. The physical, emotional and, yes, financial, cost of heart disease, diabetes etc… caused by an unhealthy diet is not to be taken lightly. In addition to our own health, many of the more nutritious options have a much lower impact on our environment by not using pesticides and excessive amounts of fertilizers while producing more manageable animal waste.

The truth is that not all healthy foods are more expensive and one can eat a perfectly reasonable diet from relatively inexpensive foods purchased at local supermarkets. Fruits and vegetables pastas and other basics are usually much cheaper than most of their processed counterparts and even healthier than the organic chocolate wafer sitting temptingly in the health food store.

And of course the best way to maintain our health and our budget is simply to eat less.

PR: wait… I: wait… L: wait… LD: wait… I: wait… wait… Rank: wait… Traffic: wait… Price: wait… C: wait…

Hungry? Who Should You Feed First – Yourself or Your Pet?: Gittin 62a

Imagine coming home from work and you are starving. Just as you unlock the door you hear your pet calling out for something to eat.

This happens to me almost every day when I come back from shul. As I open the gate of the house our Guinea Pigs start to whistle telling me that they would like some cucumbers for breakfast.  

Who should we be feeding first ourselves or our pets and animals?

According to the gemara we need to feed our animals before we feed ourselves. The gemara tells us that a person is not even allowed to taste anything before he feeds his animals or pets. The gemara learns this from the verse in Deutoronomy 11:15 “And I will give grass in your fields for your animals, and you will eat and be satiated.”

The same way G-D is concerned first of all  with the food of the animals we should follow in his ways and feed them first. This law has the potential to remind us on a daily basis that we must restrain our own physical\animal  needs in order to first take care of the needs of those whose welfare is depenedent on us. I think this is truly beautiful Torah and is in itself a great reason for children to own pets knowing that on a daily basis even they need to be concerned with the welfare of their animal before taking care of their own needs.

It is interesting to note that this law only applies to food and not drink. When it comes to drinking, people come first. This is learned from the story of Rebbbeca and Elazar where Rebbeca said to Elazar “drink and I will also give your camels to drink.”

Water Rights: Gittin 60b

Causes of Economic Depression and Inflation : Gittin 57a

What are the causes of economic crisis? Why have the  prices of basic commodities increased  by 100% followed by a world economic meltdown? 

The Talmud tells us that economic crises are a wake up call to change our ways.

It is told in the Gemara that before the destruction of the holy temple in Jerusalem the price of grain was 40 Modiut (measures) per Dinar.  The price of grain went up slightly and its new price was set at  39 Modiut per Dinar.  The sages wondered what was the cause of this increase. They searched and found that there was a case where a father and his son had relations with a betrothed woman. The father and son were  brought to court, were subsequently found guilty and stoned.  After the verdict was carried out the price of grain returned to the original price of 40 Modiut per Dinar.

According to this Gemara the moral level of society can influence the costs of basic commodities and effect the local and world economy. Society’s moral level influences the amount of “Shefa” in the world and the harmony of interaction between people effect the economy.

The Chofetz Chaim, European Jewry’s greatest sage of the 20th century, wrote that the Great Depression of 1929 was brought about because of that generation’s lack of trust in Hashem which led to a lack of trust between people.  Though the period leading up to the Great Depression was one of great prosperity, the  lack of confidence and trust between people ultimately caused the sources of credit to shrivel up. This in his words, “Caused the central artery for the flow of economic life to become clogged by animosities.”

This is quite similar to today’s economic meltdown, which was initiated  by the subprime mortgages, which were based on the unethical loan of money to people who most likely not be able to pay it back and would have to suffer the consequences of morgage defaults.

When the price of commodities rises unexpectedly and the world is facing an economic meltdown we should look for both the observable and metaphysical reasons as to why this is happening.

Over Population in the Land of Israel? Gittin 57A

The Gemara states that the land of Israel is described in Jeremiah 3:19 as the “land of the deer”. Why a deer? The deer has a very special property that other animals don’t. After a deer is killed and it’s skin is removed the skin shrinks and can no longer contain or cover the carcass of the deer. The skin fit the deer only as long as it was on the deer.   So too the land of Israel is considered to be the skin of the Jewish people. As long as Jews are setlled in it it grows with them and can supply them with all of their needs but as soon as the Jews leave their skin the land ”shrinks” and can no longer meet the needs of those living in it.

Talking To Birds: Gittin 45a

Just as King Solomon communicated with the Animal kingdom so did other people in talmudic times.  The Gemara tells of a story of Rav Eelish who was taken captive and held together with a non Jew who was able to communicate with birds. One day a raven came to Rav Eelish and was trying to communicate with him. Rav Eelish who did not understand what the bird was saying asked the non jew to translate for him. The non Jew said the raven is saying “Rav Eelish run, Rav Eelish run.” (now is an opportune time for you to make an escape). Rav eelish said the raven can not be trusted for he did not fulfill the task which Noach asked of him at the end of the flood.

Meanwhile came a dove and was trying to communicate with him. Again  the Rav asked of the non Jew to translate for him what the dove woud like to say.  The non Jew said the dove is saying “Rav Eelish run, Rav Eelish run”. Said Rav Eelish it may very well be that the non Jew is lying to me but since the jewish people are compared to a dove and since the dove called me perhaps a miracle will happen for me and I will be able to make my escape.

A Fragrant Environment for the Righteous – Sotah 12a

Asks the Gemara ‘Why was the basket in which Moses was placed into the Nile only tarred from the outside and not from the inside as well?” the Gemara answers so that the the baby Moses should not have to smell the bad odor of tar.

Being Careful with One’s Possesions Sotah 12a

The Gemara asks how come Miriam placed Moses in the Nile in a basket made from a relatively cheap material called Gomeh?  Why did she not use a stronger material to make the basket for little baby Moses? One of the answers of the Gemara is that the righteous are careful not to waste any of their possesions and that Gomeh was sufficiently strong material for the basket that was needed. The Gemara explains that the reason the righteous are very careful with their possesions because they are careful not to use anything that may have been stolen.