My Garden of Eden–And Yours
My own Gan Eden was not in the East by the Tigris and Euphrates, but 90 miles west of San Antonio in the Texas Hill Country near a small town with the improbable name of Utopia, on the cool, green Sabinal River. (more…)
Sacred Song of 42
Here is a beautiful chanting song of an ancient mystical prayer whose words include the 42-letter Divine Name. (more…)
Rainforests: Lungs of Our Planet
The scenes in this video help me to see the rainforests as the lungs of our planet. The Rainforest Alliance is a network of people working together to preserve forests and the communities that depend on them, in 78 countries around the world. Learn how to get involved.
Feet on the Earth: Take Your Shoes Off
When Moses stood at the burning bush, (Exodus 3:5), YHWH told him to remove his shoes, because he was standing on holy ground. If weather, terrain, and social setting permit, going barefoot can be a great way to make a fast connection with the earth (even indoors but all the better if you can do it outside on the ground). Take some time to feel the textures and temperatures on your feet and sense your connection with the earth.
Hands on the Earth: Find Your Own Garden Connection
Experience a taste of Eden by growing some of your own vegetables, fruits, or flowers. There are may ways to find your own connection to the vibrant energy of growing plants, wherever you may live. (more…)
Bitter and Sweet of the Garden at Passover
Passover, the Festival of Spring and Freedom, is a holiday associated with food. Matzah, of course, the flat unleavened bread (I recommend whole wheat), to remind us of the unleavened bread that our ancestors baked in their haste to leave slavery in ancient Egypt, with no time for the dough to rise. The other tastes of Passover have their own associations, bitter and sweet. Eating these symbolic and seasonal natural foods helps to literally internalize the Seder’s message of freedom.
Farming Tzedakah: The Gleanings and Corners of Your Field
The Torah (Leviticus 19:9-10) teaches that farmers must leave the gleanings of their harvest and the corners of the fields for the needy to come and collect This is an early form of tzedakah (justice, charity) that is elaborated on in the Mishnah, the foundational text of Rabbinic Judaism, and found in many Jewish siddurim (prayerbooks). The sense is that land is not strictly our property, but ultimately belongs to God (because “I am YHWH your God”). How can we do this mitzvah (good deed, divine imperative) today?
Community Gardens: Edible Towns and Gangsta Gardeners
Gardening today is becoming one of the most innovative areas of Tikkun Olam, healing and repairing the world. Community Gardens and sharing of garden harvests help the environment and feed the hungry while fostering community.
Gallery: A Synagogue Farm in the Suburbs
Congregation Sons of Israel in Briarcliff Manor, New York, founded the CSI Community Organic Farm on 1.5 acres at the back of the synagogue’s property. The farm offers communal gardening, a farmer’s market, and donations to the needy. Chickens are raised and their eggs are sold at the farmer’s market. The farm promotes Jewish traditions and values in areas such as ecology, agriculture, nutrition, wellness, spiritual connection, social and environmental justice. Check back for more photos as they grow!
Please share in the comments if you know of a synagogue farm or communal garden. (Return to the Gateway of Gardens.)
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