When I went to Shabbat at one of my coworkers houses the other week, I played a game where everyone
at the table had to come up with a question to ask the table and everyone had
to answer at least one question until all the questions were done. I decided to
ask a question about the connection between environmentalism and Shabbat, as
this is a topic I knew several members at the table probably felt strongly
about. I had had a really interesting conversation with a Rabbi who was
struggling with how to balance in his own conscience, the constraints of
Shabbat and how these are navigated in modern times, and the environmental consciousness
aspect that gives Shabbat some of its holiness. Since I too find some of the
ways in which Shabbat is practiced distasteful and environmentally destructive,
I was hoping to get some explanation about that from someone at the table. I
ended up with that and more.
Without really going into the issue of the wastefulness of leaving
electronics on so as to not light a fire, Yonathan answered my question by
going directly into one of the meanings of Shabbat as it was originally
practiced. He spoke about how, in pre-modern times, it was really impossible
for practicing Shabbat to have a negative environmental impact, and as part of
the spirit of Shabbat was to give the earth a day to rest, free of human
manipulation and destruction, it might be better for Shabbat practices to be
held to this standard, rather than the standard of whether or not any specific
prohibitions had been broken. This is generally the perspective I have taken
for myself as well though I had contextualized it in relation to other commandments
to be ethical and environmentally conscious in the Torah, rather it being a way
of staying true to the spirit inherent in Shabbat itself.
Yonathan went on to talk about, not just the weekly Shabbat, or the
seventh year Shabbat, but the 49th or 50th year Shabbat
(apparently there’s some confusion as to whether you celebrate this Shabbat in
place of the 7th year Shabbat or the year after). Since I don’t know
the Hebrew word for it, let’s just say it’s the 50th. On the 50th
year Shabbat, all peoples were to return to their portion. Apparently, the land
promised to Abraham had been divided equally between the twelve tribes and
again within the tribes themselves. On every 50th Shabbat, everyone
who had sold their lands to another, who had purchased lands for themselves,
were supposed to replicate this division of resources by returning to their
portion. I couldn’t help grinning. Socialism! This is why I love Judaism, its
thousand year old Socialism!
Obviously in practice, following the 50th Shabbat is
difficult, economically unsound from a capitalist calculation of positive
growth, and maybe even impossible to implement. While there’s apparently
nothing in the Torah to day it wasn’t practiced, there’s nothing to say it was,
and given the complexity of it, and the fact that one of the reasons the Jews
were expelled from the land was that they couldn’t get it together enough to
practice the 7th year Shabbat, it’s pretty unlikely the 50th
was ever practiced. Still you got to admit it’s a pretty cute idea, particularly
in context of the land grabs Israeli’s are making today. Part of me wanted to
get go outside and yell, “See! The conflict would be all over if you could
just practice your religion and divide the land amongst its inhabitants, Jews
and Palestinians alike.” Obviously, I didn’t and wouldn’t expect to be
listened to if I did, but I’m still fighting the temptation. This little nugget
of knowledge was even more poignant in context of the expulsion because it was
basically like God saying, “your religious claims to this land are worth
nothing if you do not live here justly”.
Hunter
On observing Shabbat and sensitivity to the environment. Most people who do not use electricity on Shabbat have timers that automatically turn off the lights at a certain time and turn them on at a certain time. So, technology allows people to respond to two imperatives that may hold sacred. On the Sabbatical year,the agricultural lands in Israel are ‘sold’ to someone so the produce can still be used.
I forgot to add that observant Jews do not use their cars or ride in vehicles for the 26 or so hours of Shabbat nor do they turn on TVs and Tivos, computers, etc. That must save significant amounts of energy, no?
Definitely. I just think it’s interesting that the emphasis of Shabbat, at least how it’s articulated to non Jews, is usually more about the things you can or cannot do rather than a day to attempt to minimize your environmental impact, spend time with family, etc. I think that for some people observing shabbat has become how to deal with certain prohibitions in modern times, like leaving ovens on rather than starting fires or asking a goy to do it for you, rather than interpreting how you should act with environmental conciousness as a main objective.
In my synagogue, the Rabbis and congregants view Shabbat very differently. Indeed, in most of the synagogues I like in Israel and in the US, people understand that Shabbat is an opportunity to move away from routine, from the ordinary to the extraordinary, to think about how to communicate with God, whatever that means, but more importantly with people you know well and those with whom you have little contact. It is a time to think and appreciate creation and creativity. Some of the people in my synagogue [in NYC] are observant–I am–some not so, but all want to mark Shabbat with prayer and song. I don’t consciously think about minimizing my environmental impact but I do express gratitude–in my prayers–for all living things on the earth. That phrase in Hebrew is added to the Kaddish prayer and to some others. This is a synagogue that has been in the forefront of social justice activities–including same-sex marriage–and acknowledges Israel as a blessing for the Jewish people even as it works for Palestinian rights. Assumes that the basis of Judaism is a sort of social contract between God and people to work to repair the world.
Tikkun Olam :]