Cleantech and Green Living from the Land of the Prophets
Posted in Religion on Mar 7th, 2008
Religious Jews read one portion of the Torah every week. These portions are divided up so that over the course of one year the community will read through the entire five books of Moses.
This weeks segment, Pikudei, describes the building of the Mishkan, the tabernacle. One of the aspects that is described is the clothing [...]
Posted in Religion on Feb 13th, 2008
It once happened that a farmer was removing stones from his field and putting them onto a public thoroughfare. There was a certain pious person who challenged the farmer: “Why are you taking stones from what is not yours and putting them onto what belongs to you?” The farmer just laughed.
Posted in Religion on Dec 21st, 2008
A modified version of this post will be presented as part of Sviva Israel’s Eco Lights Hannukah Program
Ever wonder why every day of Hanukkah we add another candle?
The Talmud explains that this disagreement goes back to the great sages Hillel and Shamai. Hillel explains that we add another candle every day “for the days coming” [...]
Posted in Religion on Jan 17th, 2008
In Judaism it is traditional to make blessings. In fact sometimes it can feel, for the initiated, that one makes blessings for everything! It can be inconvenient, however, I believe that what lies behind, is the true nature of what it means to be green.
Posted in Religion on Jul 3rd, 2008
Last week, God took care of the waste in the camp. This week Moses hits the rock. The Israelites had been traveling in the desert for roughly forty years, and Miriam, the sister of Moses and Aaron, dies. After Miriam dies suddenly the People of Israel lack water. Commentaries explain that in Miriam’s merit a [...]
Posted in Religion on Jun 26th, 2008
This week’s Bible segment describes revolution and miracles. The leadership of Moses and his brother Aaron are questioned and God comes and backs up his choice with various miracles.
But the challenge was no simple disagreement.
Korach’s challenge to Moses was seen as blasphemy. God had set up the camp to be an incubator for his young [...]
Posted in Religion on Oct 23rd, 2008
“Look at My work, how beautiful and perfect is everything that I created. I created it for you. Be careful not to ruin and destroy My world. If you ruin it, there is nobody to restore it after you.” (Ecclesiastes Rabba 7:28)
It’s not only about offsetting and it’s not about who’s right. The above [...]
Posted in Religion on Jul 31st, 2008
When I was growing up whenever we would go to a park or on a camping trip, my parents would instill in me the importance of leaving the area where we had just been cleaner than how we had found it.
This is probably one of the most influential ideas from my parents that has traveled [...]
Posted in Religion on Jul 24th, 2008
You’re eating a bag of chips while walking down the street. As you finish you look around to find a trash can but nothing is in sight.
Do you drop it? If the city doesn’t bother to make waste bins available, why should you care about the city’s cleanliness? How about eating a piece of [...]
Posted in Religion on Jul 17th, 2008
Two brothers wanted to thank God for what he had given them, but God only accepted the sacrifice of one of them. Abel sent the best of his livestock in thanks to God for all the blessing that he had given him and God found favor in his actions and accepted his gift. His brother, [...]
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