Earth Etude for Elul 23- Teshuva and Beauty

by Lois Rosenthal

The weekly Haftorah readings follow the story of the Israelites after they crossed the Jordan into the Promised Land.  The writing styles vary greatly, from poetry to historical prose.

Of particular note are writings from the time of the divided kingdom. Conquests of the Northern Kingdom of Israel and the Southern Kingdom of Judah were seen by the prophets as divine punishment for failure to follow the Torah.  The writings from this time are full of harsh rebukes and biting metaphors. This is the type of reading found in the weeks leading up to Tisha B’Av.

Once Tisha B’Av is over and the High Holidays are approaching,  the tone changes. Both Torah and Haftorah readings become infused with literary beauty – the lyrical prose of Deuteronomy accompanied by the lovely poetry of the late Isaiah, filled with images of nature’s grandeur as a reflection of the divine, beckoning us to look around at the world and the heavens and there find G-d.

This turning away from harshness towards hope and tenderness reflects the history of the period.  Seventy years after the destruction of Solomon’s Temple and exile in Babylonia, the ascendancy of Persia brought a king who allowed the Jews to return to their homeland.  Isaiah’s writings from that time offer consolation and hope for a future of life back in the homeland.

Thus Teshuvah – a return from exile to home, from harshness to spiritual comfort, and, for us, a turning from the concerns of ordinary life to a remembering of the divine – is undertaken in a milieu of beauty which awakens the soul to the process of positive change.

We know that the perception of beauty affects us deeply.  We crave beauty, we seek it out, we spend our precious moments dwelling on that which offers it.  So, for example, the harmonies of violin music are so arresting as to bring tears to our eyes.  A Dutch still life entices us with its intricacies and balance; time stops while we gaze at it. Intense patterns on flowers are gorgeous beyond human imagination. Birds’ plumage dazzles us with striking elaborations.  The music of  synagogue prayers draws us in; we sing and the notes hum inside us. We gaze at colors of a sunset sky; we rush outside to see a rainbow.

We perceive beauty and drink spiritual nectar – tasty, nourishing, filling.  Every single human being is endowed with this faculty, through whatever sense functions within them.

On the physical level, there seems to be no biological utility to this capacity we have for deep appreciation of certain “results” of our five senses. Call it a gift from G-d, a blessing.  
But still, nothing in biology is maintained unless it endows the species with something positive to strengthen and perpetuate itself.  The biologic utility of the pleasures of food, sex, etc seems obvious. But what about the pleasures of seeing or hearing beauty in nature or in the artistic creations of humankind?

This pleasure feels like an instinctual form of love, an immediate response on a tiny scale.  Suppose you come across a wild iris in the woods.  The iris is existing happily in its own environment; it doesn't need you for food or water. You find it beautiful, it pleases you.  You have experienced a quantum of love for this little iris. Now you care about it. A connection has been made.

A piece of music stirs us – how beautiful! It was composed by a human being, played by other human beings. We don’t know them; they may look nothing like us. And yet, some of that sense of beauty, that love we felt for the music spills out onto the humans who created it.  A connection has been made.

Look out over a swath of treetops. The pattern of greens and rounded shapes is so pleasing.  We can’t help but love the trees, plus the whole web of nature that sustains them and relies on them.  A connection has been made.

Our ability to take pleasure from the natural world and from artistic creations of humankind creates threads of connections  between each of us and the myriad elements of nature.

Beauty does have biological utility. It is the antidote to narcissism and loneliness.  It connects us to the web of existence in the world, causes us to care about it, love it, and of course, do everything we can to preserve it.

Genesis was right.  We are stewards of the world.  We are the only species that can preserve it or cause large scale destruction of it.  Look for beauty in the world and there you will find the passion to preserve it.

Lois Rosenthal is a member of Temple Tifereth Israel Winthrop where she teaches Hebrew School, does Bar/Bat Mitzvah tutoring, and participates in Shabbat services.

Earth Etude for Elul 22 - "Yeah, I Think We Should Kill Them All"

By Alexander Volfson

 

I wasn't sure visiting Yad Vashem, Israel's official Holocaust memorial, would leave an impression on me; after all, I had heard it all before. Not only that I had absorbed the notion that all of humanity's reckless violent ways were behind us. Genocide, alas, is so common that it has its own major in college, which, unfortunately, does not fall under archaeology. Remarkably, this practice continues to this day.

The typical story arc of the Holocaust goes like this: those awful Germans wanted to murder all the Jews and almost got away with it. That's why it's so important that Israel be the Jewish homeland. Truth is, that's not how it happened. Our Yad Vashem tour guide emphasized two central principles that shaped post-Great-War Germany. The first was "it was a process." From ideas to curfews to ghettos and pogroms to work camps to death camps, these activities started small but gradually intensified. The second was "groupthink" or peer-pressure, as I like to call it. This also intensified over time where, at first, one might simply be given a funny look for non-conformity; quickly, the consequence was being sent to the same work camps as the other "undesirables."

What struck me was that both of these principles are surprisingly universal. Society's norms tend to have inertia and thus, it takes time for them to change (i.e. it's a process). Similarly, conformity (the result of peer-pressure) is a feature, sometimes more prevalent than others, but one which nonetheless appears consistently across societies throughout time. In light of this, the images around me began to take on a different meaning. Where once the people behind the barbed wire were innocent and those in front of it evil it became clear that the Germans were not born to be cruel just as much as the Jews, Gypsies and handicap were not born to be victims. Contrary to Nazi doctrine it was not genetics that determined the outcome but circumstance and societal forces that steered the paths of oppressed and oppressor. Where innocent Germans once stood, in hindsight they look pretty guilty. Not all of them, and certainly not equally, but the responsibility lies across societal echelons. Atrocities do not commit themselves.

Where the Holocaust is used to justify a Jewish state where Jews can be safe, the lesson I got was that what Jews (and frankly all ethnicities) need is a country where simply every ethnicity is safe. If we, today, can see the pure humanity of the people that stood in the Warshaw ghetto and ask ourselves, "Why didn't they just let them live like everyone else?" then we must ask the same question of today’s ghettos. We may have no relationship to them, and yet, the way to treat them is clear: just the same as all other humans.

The quote that titles this essay does not refer to murdering Jews and comes from neither a 1939 German nor a 1945 German. It comes from my relative and was made, with a shrug, in reference to the inhabitants of Gaza. Euphemistically known as "mowing the lawn", let's just call it what it is: genocide. This teshuva, let us take a good look in the mirror. How are we supporting genocide? More importantly, how will we stop it?

Can an honest resident of the USA look in the mirror and not find genocide? Not find ecocide? Not find harm to future generations by how we treat each other and the Earth that nourishes us all?

I think it's worth reflecting on.

 Alexander Volfson, a humanist and Earth-ist, loves finding ways to bring folks together to work toward sustainable lifestyles. Alexander is a co-founder of  Transition Framingham. When he's not fixing things (from appliances to bicycles to computers) or planting them (for a permaculture designed garden), he's biking somewhere or learning something new.

Earth Etude for Elul 21- What Does Atoning and Returning to God Mean?

by Rabbi Judy Weiss

Ps. 27:1 "The Lord is my light and my rescue. Whom should I fear?"
For an entire month before Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, we focus on atoning and returning to God. But what exactly, in real life terms, does atoning and returning to God mean? We plan our path to return by adding Psalm 27 to our daily prayers. This psalm repeatedly affirms hope in God. It ends with:
Ps 27:14 "Let your heart be firm and bold, and hope for the Lord."
As Robert Alter comments, the Psalm opens and closes with the same sentiment "It begins by affirming trust in God and reiterates that hopeful confidence, but the trust has to be asserted against the terrors of being overwhelmed by implacable enemies.”

The psalm focuses on hope, but what does hope have to do with High Holiday atonement? We all have some circumstance that destabilizes us, quashes our hope, fosters procrastination, apathy, or alienation. As you think about your issue, consider the possibility that one type of sin is succombing to despair, and for this sin, returning to God is pushing despair away and holding on firmly to hope.

My issue is climate change activism. I’m regularly filled with despair that my children and grandchildren won’t be safe, and that it is already too late to help them. Greenland's ice sheet is melting faster than predicted. So is the West Antarctic icesheet.

I steer clear of this, my worst fear, I turn towards hope that humanity will eliminate carbon emissions and will stabilize the climate relying on the fact that 8 of the 10 largest world economies are already charging for fossil fuel emissions. China has six operating regional cap and trade initiatives, plans to start a national system for pricing emissions soon, and will prohibit coal powered electricity generation in Beijing by 2020.

Yet, very often I veer again into despair. The Beijing coal plants will be converted to natural gas which is no better for climate change than coal Missouri has 21 functioning coal plants, Kansas just issued permits for a new coal plant, and Florida's Governor and Junior Senator deny anthropogenic climate change is happening. Seas are rising rapidly in the area. Some Miami streets flood with sea water and sewage during high tides. Residents will experience trouble flushing toilets as water level rises. Ludicrously, Miami construction continues as if it is a gigantic Ponzi scheme to maintain real estate prices. Climate change denial also props up real estate values in coastal North Carolina.

Religiously, I redirect myself towards hope. Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN) routed an extremist primary opponent. Alexander's victory is a hopeful sign because, during the campaign season, he toured a solar factory, acknowledging anthropogenic climate change, acknowledging the need for emissions-free energy (solar, nuclear, bio), and acknowledging the need to eliminate fossil fuel companies special tax breaks (above and beyond the breaks that all other corporations receive).

I commonly do penance for despair by reading a few more articles, writing several more letters to the editor. Did you know that Senate candidate Gary Peters (D-MI) is running on climate change? Peters pressed his opponent (Terry Lynn Land) to affirm climate change is caused by humans and requires action. He trailed by 3 points six months ago, but is now up by 7. His campaign emphasizes Land receives campaign funding from Koch industries, the same Koch industries that stores piles of petroleum coke near residential Detroit neighborhoods. Voters seem to be responding to the health risks from exposure to petroleum coke dust, and to Peters' calls for climate action. When the Koch brothers are a liability to the Republican party, strong Republican leadership will be able to reassert traditional Republican environmental values. I see hope here, opportunities for people to learn and connect, improve their situation and steward the world.

Despair furtively makes me forget hope. Climate change deniers caused Congress to waste decades. In 1988 Dr. James Hansen testified before Congress about climate change. Since then, climate change progressed faster than scientists had warned based on almost every measure. Deniers persistently bombard the public with propaganda, destroying resolve, undermining hope.

Ps 27:3 says “Though a camp is marshaled against me, my heart shall not fear."
What is this military camp? Although the psalm means external enemies, rabbinic commentators suggest the enemy camp could be internal, our internal evil inclination. As some shun murder, adultery and swearing, I cold-shoulder despair. I reposition towards hope with the knowledge that Dr. Hansen left NASA to advocate full time for climate action. Despair, a weapon of the evil inclination, can be rebuffed.

To this climate change activist, atoning and returning mean defending against despair. Surrendering to the idea that it’s too late for climate action, cannot lead to a good outcome. Devoting oneself to hope that there is still time allows advocacy and anger, curbs apathy, prevents hatred towards deniers, and ends alienation from people and nations who are in worse straits than we are.

Whatever your source of despair, whenever your heart shrinks from bold, firm action, remember atonement and returning to God means affirming hope. Remember the old joke about the man on the roof during rising floodwaters? Drown fear, squelch everything you know, grab the helicopter ladder, and be rescued.

Rabbi Judy Weiss lives in Brookline, MA with her husband Alan. She teaches Tanakh and volunteers with Citizens Climate Lobby.

Earth Etude for Elul 19- Soul Accounting in the Year of Release

by Rabbi Regina Sandler-Phillips 

Ecology and economy, spirituality and social justice are directly connected in our Jewish values of heshbon (accountability).  Every time we open our wallets or check our bank balances, we face issues of heshbon — no less than when we search our souls (heshbon hanefesh) during this Season of Turning. 

How are we “spending” each day of our lives? The ancient sage Ben Zoma (Mishnah Avot 4:1) taught that the wise are those who learn from every person; the brave are those who control (literally, “occupy”) their own impulses; the rich are those who rejoice in their own portions; and the honorable are those who honor creation and its creatures.

This integrated four-fold teaching offers a blueprint for sustainability in the coming year of sh’mitah / release.  Each of us can learn how to appreciate our abundance, to moderate our consumption, to discern which of our expenditures truly honor creation and its creatures — and to control our impulses regarding those purchases that do not.

Agricultural rhythms of tithing through the sabbatical cycle have given us the financial ethics of wealth redistribution on a proportional basis.  In order to share our wealth proportionately today, we need clarity about our actual discretionary spending and our place in the world economy.  Membership in the global “one percent” is a surprisingly low bar for affluent Americans — and experience has shown that peer support is needed to bring this spiritual, financial and environmental heshbon to the next level.

Welcome to Nedivut Tzedek / Generous Justice, an intergenerational network of Jewish learning circles for just giving.  Our circles renew the Jewish values and practices of heshbon through study, storytelling, supportive action / reflection, and cultural development.   Participants learn how we vote with our daily money choices for the state of our world, and how to mobilize the power of those choices for social change as well as for greater personal fulfillment.

Generous Justice circles are taking root within local communities through a series of local outreach programs, building momentum toward a retreat-based leadership training in August 2015.  A resource manual will be available beyond the 2015 training to extend the reach of Generous Justice to additional communities of concern.

When our personal tzedakah meets the ethical metric of proportional giving, we discover how much we can really afford to contribute toward the causes most important to us.  After that, setting distribution priorities becomes a process of ongoing action / reflection in the service of change.  We put our money where our mouths, hearts and minds are, making thoughtful course adjustments as appropriate — and we let the earth rest from our relentless consumption.

Throughout the coming sabbatical year, Generous Justice will bring together Jews across generations, income levels, personal temperaments, spiritual orientations and political ideologies to support each other in realizing our full giving potentials.  Like our ancestors, we will start from wherever we are, with whatever we have — and keep the issues in proportion.

© 2014 by Rabbi Regina Sandler-Phillips

Rabbi Regina Sandler-Phillips is the project director of Nedivut Tzedek / Generous Justice, and the executive director of WAYS OF PEACE Community Resources in Brooklyn, New York.

Earth Etude for Elul 20 - Turning and Returning

by Daniel Kieval

What is the shape of time? This question may sound strange, but it actually guides us to understand the process of teshuvah, our great task at this time of year.

In one dimension, time is circular, repeating in endless cycles. “And the seasons they go round and round…” Every year in the natural calendar, the same seasonal patterns repeat at the same times. In the Jewish calendar, we observe the same holidays, rituals, and rhythms each year. In the process of teshuvah we return to our self, coming home to who we were before we drifted away over the course of the year. Every Rosh Hashana, as we return to that moment in the circle, we return to the self we have been on every other Rosh Hashana; the days are cosmically connected by being the same point on the circle.

Yet, we are also moving forward along the arrow of time. Life is always in transition, and no moment ever recurs again exactly. Winter may return to the same spot in the same forest, but the trees are a year older, and some branches have fallen, and new ones have emerged. We return to ourselves each year in teshuvah, but we are also in a different place: we have had new experiences, made new mistakes, learned new lessons. Every Rosh Hashana is entirely different from every other Rosh Hashana. In the Jewish conception of time, we are always moving toward a better world, the Olam Haba, the “world that is coming.” Joanna Macy calls this movement from our current state of affairs to the world we envision the Great Turning, a “shift from the industrial growth society to a life-sustaining civilization.”

So is time a circle or an arrow? It is both. Time is a helix, the shape you see on a corkscrew; it moves forward along a line, but circles around as it does so. Each Rosh Hashana, we are aligned with all of the Roshei Hashana of past and future years, but we are also in a unique place in time, that never was exactly before and will never be exactly again.

Teshuvah, then, needs to recognize both processes. It is a returning, coming back to ourselves year after year no matter where we’ve been. And it is a turning, perhaps even a Great Turning -- turning away from the mistakes and triumphs of the past and turning toward the next steps in our ultimate mission: to bring about the redemption of the world.

Daniel Kieval is finishing three years of work as a Jewish environmental educator with the Teva program in Falls Village, CT.

Earth Etude for Elul 17 - Meditation on Elul

by Richard H. Schwartz

Elul is here. It represents a chance for heightened introspection, an opportunity to do teshuva and improve our lives, before the “Days of Awe,” the days of judgment, the “High holidays” of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. The shofar is blown every morning (except on Shabbat) in synagogues during the month of Elul to awaken us from slumber, to remind us to consider where we are in our lives and to urge us to make positive changes.

How should we respond to Elul today? How should we respond when we hear reports almost daily of severe, often record-breaking, heat waves, droughts, wildfires, floods, and storms; when atmospheric carbon dioxide levels have reached 400 parts per million (ppm) for the first time in human history, far above the 350 ppm that climate experts believe is safe, when polar ice caps and glaciers are melting far faster than projections of climate experts; when some climatologists are warning that we could be close to a tipping point when climate change could spiral out of control with disastrous consequences, unless major changes are soon made; when we appear to also be on the brink of major food, water, and energy scarcities; and when, despite all of the above, so many people are in denial, in effect “rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic as we approach a giant iceberg”?

I believe that we should make it a priority to do all that we can to awaken the world to the dangers and the urgency of doing everything possible to shift our imperiled planet to a sustainable path. We should urge that tikkun olam (the healing and repair of the world) be a central focus in all aspects of Jewish life today.

We should contact rabbis, Jewish educators, and other Jewish leaders and urge that they increase awareness of the threats and how Jewish teachings can be applied to avert impending disasters. We should write letters to editors, call talk shows, question politicians, and in every other way possible, stress that we can’t continue the policies that have been so disastrous.

The afternoon service for Yom Kippur includes the book of Jonah, who was sent by God to Nineveh to urge the people to repent and change their evil ways in order to avoid their destruction. Today the whole world is Nineveh, in danger of annihilation and in need of repentance and redemption, and each one of us must be a Jonah, with a mission to warn the world that it must turn from greed, injustice, and idolatry, so that we can avoid a global catastrophe.

Richard H. Schwartz, Ph.D., is Professor Emeritus of College of Staten Island, author of Judaism and Vegetarianism, Who Stole My Religion? Revitalizing Judaism and Applying Jewish Values to Help Heal Our Imperiled Planet, other books, and 200 articles at JewishVeg.com/schwartz, President Emeritus, Jewish Vegetarians of North America (www.JewishVeg.com); President, Society Of Ethical and Religious Vegetarians (SERV), and associate producer of A SACRED DUTY (www.aSacredDuty.com).

Earth Etude for Elul 16 - The Compost Bin in Our Hearts

 by Rabbi Katy Z. Allen

My compost bins are so much more than just a place where compost happens. The area beside the three wire and wood bins is place where I often feel my father’s spirit – he was raised on a farm, and though he became a professional, gardening was in his blood, and he spent much of his spare time in his garden and his orchard.

Yet, it is not just the reminders of my father or the sense of his hovering spirit that gives meaning to my compost bins. They are symbolic of so much – which may be more the truer reason that I think of my father whenever I take out the compost.

We gardeners deposit plant food wastes, garden trimmings, and chopped up leaves into our compost bins. We let the rains come to add water, and from time to time we add a bit of soil. Then we let nature take its course, and before too long, all of that “waste” has turned into dark, crumbly humus that will enrich the soil of our garden. The leaves, the banana and orange peels, the corn husks – all this and so much more has been transformed from something seemingly useless, a by-product, into something good, useful, and enriching.

And when my heart is feeling heavy, and I sit quietly beside my compost bins, I, too, get transformed. The grief and sadness in my heart are lifted, and I find myself once again able to be useful, to myself and to others. I am able to forge ahead into new territory. My relationship with the Holy One of Blessing has deepened.

This, in essence, is what teshuvah is about, turning the excess materials of our hearts and souls – those feelings of sadness, anger, jealousy, and more – into a deeper and closer relationship with G!d – re-turning to G!d – and in the process finding ourselves enriched.

It has been, I believe, through my connection with my father, who passed away almost 40 years ago, that I have learned to grieve. But grief is complex, it is not a one-time endeavor, it is a mosaic, and it returns, often when we least expect it. It shows up in new ways in response to new losses, so that frequently throughout our lives, something new and different needs to be transformed.

Thus it is for all of us, and thus it is in life. And so, our tradition provides the vehicle of the month of Elul leading up to Rosh HaShanah and all the days of the High Holidays, to give us the opportunity to let our compost be transformed, let our grief, fear, and despair be released, and let our hearts open wider, in an ever deepening relationship with the Mystery That Is.

Compost happens. May our transformation also happen.

Rabbi Katy Z. Allen is the founder and leader of Ma'yan Tikvah - A Wellspring of Hope in Wayland, MA, and a staff chaplain at the Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston. She is also the co-convener of the Jewish Climate Action Network and the co-creator of Gathering in Grief: The Israel / Gaza Conflict.

Earth Etude for Elul 15- Looking at the Whole Picture

By Susie Davidson

As a writaholic, I am also a readaholic. As we move forward in our chosen missions toward creating communities that feed, nurture and sustain (while protecting) all the inhabitants of the earth, I believe that it is also incumbent upon us to remain informed about the news of the day and the topics that affect underlying societal infrastructures.

Certainly, some of these infrastructures seem entrenched to the point of impermeability, none more so than the economic systems that govern world relations and, therefore, virtually every facet of our existence. For those of us concerned with environmental health and sustainability, there is possibly no greater challenge.

During Elul, we embrace teshuvah and serve G-d by returning and adhering to our highest visions. It may seem daunting, but with teshuvah to guide us, we can redouble our efforts. And there is even more motivation and opportunity right now, as 5775 will be a Shmita year. According to Hazon ("vision" in Hebrew), a New York-based nonprofit with six regional US offices, Shmita, which means ‘release," is a Sabbatical year practice that allows arable land to lie fallow while debts are forgiven, and the principles of an equitable and healthy society guide the management of agriculture and the economy.

"The Shmita cycle presents a cultural system rooted in local food security, economic resiliency and community empowerment," Hazon's Shmita segment states, as it advocates exploring and employing common ethics and values.

This includes knowing the difference between "money and value." An overabundance of goods leads to cheap prices, while scarce commodities are more valued. But according to Hazon, wealth, in Shmita practice, isn't synonymous with currency: "Market capital is replaced with social capital and investments are made in long-term relationships."

But how do we forge ahead in the face of a seemingly impermeable economic system that seems to be rooted in just the opposite ideology?

Sometimes the answer is simply doubling down, and a coalition of Boston area environmental groups has done just that. An August 8 Boston Globe article by Jim O'Sullivan, "Green groups make move for more muscle," details the formation of MUSCLE (Mass. United for Science, Climate, Environment), a group effort being formed by the Environmental League of Massachusetts, the Massachusetts League of Environmental Voters, Clean Water Action and the Sierra Club. According to the article, MUSCLE, whose members are tired of lip service with no results, plans to get environmentally focused nonprofits into state elections and legislative processes. This week, they will launch specific projects, including sharply messaged newspapers advertisements on climate change and youth-led efforts, and unveil 20 candidate endorsements in this fall’s races.

As a coordinator of the Boston chapter of the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life, I sit on the Clean Water Action's Alliance For a Healthy Tomorrow board. So for my own Elul teshuvah, I plan to become more involved in this effort.

"We weren’t going to be played with," states former state representative and ELM head George Bachrach in the Globe article. Bachrach was one of three members who recently resigned in protest from the governor’s greenhouse gas reductions advisory council.

Getting back to the economy, the article ends by questioning how MUSCLE-affiliated labor unions are going to balance their participation with, for example, their members' potential roles in building the controversial Keystone pipeline.

They might well look into Hazon guidelines for direction. By looking at the whole picture, and balancing immediate economic needs with long-term societal good, perhaps work opportunities can be found within a more sustainable, earth-nurturing energy field.

Recent revelations and lawsuits related to unprecedented surges in earthquake activity in US states where fracking is conducted (including 240 reported magnitude 3.0 or higher earthquakes in Oklahoma just this year), certainly give pause to the way we are approaching our energy needs.

"In your business and governing structures, as you make decisions that will affect others, consider the needs and voice of those who will be affected," states Hazon. "Take into account all members of your community, especially those who are most vulnerable: the elderly, the sick, minorities with the community, and those with low-income. This is not charity. This is healthy community."

Earth Etude for Elul 14 - Elul's Comin'

by Judith Felsen

In days of Av anticpatin’

I have done my exploration

searching, seeking digging deeper

all to clear the space as greeter.

From the bottom of my looking

I can sense great times are coming

soon our King will sure arrive

and in fields we both will thrive.

Therefore now and always ever

will this earth be seen as heaven

by all those who now know its glitter

shimmering sparks both there and hither.

May we join in joyful meeting

in all lands we’ve tilled this season.

Welcome King, we greet your visit

together harvest is on our list.

Earth Your place which is our home

hosts us as now our thanks we show.

With gratitude to our King,

on whom we are joyfully dependent,

and to the planet He offers with us

which we call our home.

Copyright 2014 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 dancer of sacred circle dance, an AMC kitchen crew , taril information volunteer, trail adopter, and daily student of Torah and Judaism. She is enrolled in Rabbinical Seminary International. She has studied Buddhism, A Course in Miracles, and other mystical traditions. She is a hiker, walker, runner, and lives in the White Mountains with her husband and two large dogs. Her life centers around her Jewish studies and daily application.

Earth Etude for Elul 13 - The Flood

by Rabbi Dorit Edut

The meteorologists predicted a possible heavy rainstorm and suggested bringing an umbrella to work.  But as I drove home from an interfaith conference, I got a call from my husband announcing: “ You’ll have to swim home – everything is flooded here.” My heart stopped beating for a minute when I heard this, realizing that all my rabbinic books and papers, many photograph albums including those from my parents’ lives in pre-Holocaust Europe, all our children’s albums and  memorabilia, my father’s award-winning black and white mounted photos, and beautiful maple wood furniture which pre-dated me – all that was DOWN THERE!

But for now, I had to focus on getting home somehow - and indeed, the roadblocks on the main streets and highways were everywhere, with 12 feet of water at a nearby highway underpass near our home. Parking the car at a school several blocks away, I trudged through knee-deep water, only to find my husband standing waist-deep  in the middle of the lake created on our street, valiantly trying to hold back the debris so the storm sewers could drain in front of our house.  All the basements in our small suburb and several other surrounding ones had flooded with 3-5 feet of contaminated water. The irony of it all only hit me two days later when the curbsides where piled high with water-logged garbage – our community was nationally  known for being a leader in recycling ! – yet now was contributing to a huge increase of  landfill acreage with all these destroyed belongings. 

Like Noah, I looked for signs of a renewal of life and dry land. This morning I found my “white dove” in the shape of the humongous white hydrangea trees and bushes and the fragrant white lily hostas blooming expansively in front of my house. Our garden did remind me that life  goes on and there is beauty and hope to be found around us, in just letting things go naturally.

As we enter the month of Elul, reflecting on what this all means and where we can improve our lives – and also entering the year of Shmita, of releasing the land to rest – I find several clear messages coming through:

First: Live simply and examine  what you are “attached” to.

Second: We have had an Oral Tradition accompanying our Written Law – perhaps it is time for us to focus on this in a new way, relying on our memories to tell the stories, archiving what is really important on computer memory sticks, and relying on the vast internet libraries instead of creating our own paper jungles at home.

Third: Thank and show appreciation for our neighbors, friends, and families for whatever ways they support us; be on the lookout constantly for  ways to help others, quietly and in advance of a request.

Fourth: While we never can fully understand the ways of God, we  know that if we truly rely on God’s help and direction, it will come; let us be patient and trusting as our ancestors were when they could not plant for an entire year. We will survive – and even prosper!