כִּֽי־בָרֵ֣ךְ אֲבָרֶכְךָ֗ וְהַרְבָּ֨ה אַרְבֶּ֤ה אֶֽת־זַרְעֲךָ֙ כְּכוֹכְבֵ֣י הַשָּׁמַ֔יִם וְכַח֕וֹל אֲשֶׁ֖ר עַל־שְׂפַ֣ת הַיָּ֑ם
I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand upon the seashore.
–Genesis 22:17
In Jewish tradition, the Moon has been associated with women and the feminine. In today’s world, one of the most central social movements for Tikkun Olam (repairing the world) is that of achieving full equality and rights for the world’s women and girls. Some see the advancement of women as a symbolic fulfillment of the old Midrashic tale that the moon (the feminine principal) will someday shine like the sun (the masculine principle). Appropriate then that the phrase “half the sky” has come to symbolize this movement.
Imagine a living, green menorah as a symbol of our covenant to be guardians of God’s earth.
The rainbow, with its varied and beautiful refracted hues has become the symbol of diversity, including in our Jewish communities: diversity of gender identity and sexual orientation, race and ethnicity, and physical or intellectual ability, among other factors. The Torah teaches that every human being is created in the divine image. Check into these organizations that foster diversity and inclusiveness in the Jewish world (I love noting how often retreats and camps are part of the work!):
It is all too easy to see so many situations in the world—on the local or global scale—that seem dark and bleak. Consider the old proverb, “Better to light a single candle than to curse the darkness.” Find one step that you can take for light,for healing, and do it today. (more…)
Although we often first learn the story of Noah as children, as if it is just a colorful tale of a floating zoo, it is actually a terrifying story of destruction, chaos, and survival. After Noah, his family, and the animals survive the Great Flood, God chooses the rainbow, an existing natural phenomena, as the sign of a covenant of forbearance not just with one person or even a nation, but with the entire planet.
We have heard the expression “Sea of Torah.” But how about Torah as coral?
Famed oceanographer Sylvia Earle explains that just a few decades ago, human beings imagined that the world’s oceans were so vast, there was no way that humanity could harm them. The ocean was seen as bottomless basket of resources for humanity, providing us with everything from fossil fuels to fish. (more…)
The blowing of the shofar is also a call to take action for justice in the world.
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