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The Positive Mitzvah of Publicly Naming One or Ones Destroying Our Planet
Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal
Shalom :
Shabbat Parasha Noah, this year October 23-24, 2009, Cheshvan 6, 5770, will be a special Shabbat when congregations and rabbis are asked to pay particular attention in their sermons, and activities, to help promote Eco-Judaism and the urgent saving of our Planet. This call is shofared by The Shalom Center and Rabbi Dr. Arthur Waskow. For more information and about how you and your congregation can participate in this, email office@shalomctr.org .
The month of Elul is a time of serious self-reflection for Jews in preparation of the Autumn High Holy days, beginning with Selicoth, moving into Rosh ha Shana, and ending with Yom Kippur. Elul is a time for Jews, if we haven't done so each day during the year, to do a complete written moral inventory of our souls. This ''chesbon ha nefesh'' is to not only discover our character defects, but to find them objectionable. We ask G!d to remove them from us, during our Tashlich ceremony during Rosh Ha Shana.
When we do our honest Chesbon we will come across names of those that we owe amends to or may harbor a grudge against. During the day of Selicoth, we, if we haven't already done so, make teshuvah (amends) to those we have harmed, and ask G!d to help us forgive those to whom we resent.
By Yom Kippur our slate is hopefully clean. We can begin anew with a new year hopefully doing more positive mitzvoth and less negative ones. For those of us needing more time, we actually have until Shemini Atzeret {12 days after Yom Kippur} to finish this task.
During the Holy Days we are continually echoing prayers to Avenu Malkeinu, Our Father, Our King. We promise that we will do Tsaddakah and Chesed, Righteousness and Kindness, to help us atone for chetim, (missings of the mark) that we have done in our relationship with the Almighty. The bad deeds that we have done to our fellows, are not atoned on Yom Kippur, unless we do teshuvah to those human individuals. (Talmud Bavli Tractate Yoma 8:9)
One way we are taught to do Chesed is visiting the sick, called Bikur Cholim . We are taught that the Shekanah, God's Holy Presence, in the feminine gender grammatically, and spiritually, sits at the head of the ill.[Yoreh Deah 335]. We are also taught that each of us who visits the sick, removes 1/60th of their illness. (Talmud Bavli Tractate Nedarim 39b).
We are also taught that not visiting the sick is a violation of "You shall not stand idly by while your fellow's blood is shed" (Lev. 19:16). We can not think that it is another's responsibility to visit and care for the sick. We cannot think that one's children or one's neighbors will care for the old widow, for example. We must. It would be her blood on our hands if she fell down the stairs to make herself a cup of tea. Our Psalmist taught "Fortunate is he who cares wisely for the needy. On the day of evil, Ha Shem will save him" (Ps.41:2). After all, an old sick woman, might be our own mother, needing aid.
Indeed our Mother is very ill and needs our aid and care. She calls out:
Pollution, Cain, and misery
Oceans of golden mystery
Armies boisterous and armies loud
Portraits of a vicious crowd
Talk to me, talk to me now
Hey man, you're all that I have
Me, myself, myself and I
Were born to work and born the die
I have chosen my anthems
Of these I am proud
Portraits of a divided crowd
Talk to me, talk to me now!
[Mother Earth Is A Vicious Crowd,Patrick Dahlheimer 1991 (C) ]
Our tradition has many specific rules in visiting the sick. The rich are required to visit the poor. One should visit a number of times a day unless the sick person needs to rest. Relatives and close friends visit in the first three days, and others after. But if the person is seriously ill, visiting and caring starts immediately.
And interesting rule exists: One should not visit the ill during the first 3 hours of the day as many ill patients look fine and one may not see the need to come and care for them again. Nor should we visit in the last 3 hours of the day, as ill people look worse then, and we will not care for them, as we will despair in their recovery.
Rabbi Akiva declared that one who does not care for the ill is a shedder of blood (Talmud Bavli Tractate Nedarim 40a).
Certainly we can make the short leap that if we are commanded to care and heal the sick, and that by not doing so we are murderers, we can apply these very mitzvoth to the saving of our ill Mother Earth as well as all our human fellows spinning on this blue-green Dreidel around the sun. Ecologically, not caring for our sick Mother Earth will bring us to 'the day of Evil.' And there will be no one to rescue us.
The special rule of what hours to visit the sick is set so that we neither neglect them because we think they are not ill, or because we think that they are terminal. We have an obligation to look at our Mother Earth rationally and honestly, and not hold back care, because of false reports. Our Mother Earth is not unfixable at this stage, but neither is She is terrific form, not needing our help.
Bikur literally means to examine. We have an obligation to discover for ourselves. When visiting a sick person, we don't just ask the nurse or doctor how the patient is, we ask the patient, and we determine what we can do to help them get well and be comfortable. We have the obligation to scientifically view Mother Earth, and realize that scientists are not ''crying wolf.''
Cholim of course means sick people. When the vowel at the end is changed and the consonants are pronounced Cholem, the word means 'dreams.' Sick folk with fevers have delusional dreams. When they are lucid they dream of being healed. To be healers, we cannot however be in a delusional dream, thinking either ''all is Okay,'' or ''all is hopeless.'' Cholem is also the vowel, the dot, than when placed over a silent vuv, makes an 'O' sound as in the vuv in the Ivrit ''Shalom.'' When we visit the cholim we take away their 'o' and their 'oy', and give them shalom, rest and silence.
Just as we have rules on caring for the sick in Judaism, we need to develop rules for caring for Mother Earth. And She needs us now. We need to immediately care for Earth, putting aside partisan politics and turf wars over private or government grants.
True Tikun Olam, means we are junior partners with G!d. We are taught that G!d provides us with remedies and paths to save the world. An example of this is that He split the Sea of Reeds because the Hebrews carried the Coffin of Joseph, not forgetting him. When we study what Egyptian sarcophagi looked like with embalmed dead in them (Joseph was embalmed, Gen. 50:26), and then read later in the Chumash what our Ark of the Covenant looked like, we realize that Joseph's coffin was an ark before the Hebrews built a second ark to carry the Tablets. For most of the 40 years in B'Midbar we carried two arks, but at the Sea of Reeds, we had Joseph's only. Both the words used for the Ark of the Covenant and Joseph's coffin are '' aron.''
I had an interesting discussion about this with Rabbi Gershon Caudill of Seattle, a good friend and a wise man.
And what was the merit of Joseph, Zekhut, that earned the Hebrews the splitting of the Sea? Joseph did not give into his yetzer ha ra and said no to Mrs. Potiphar when she tried to seduce him. As humans we do give in to daily enticements as we over -consume the benefits of the Planet. We are seduced by false science telling us that what we are seeing is some natural cycle that will do Tikun on itself, as we keep on spilling carbon emissions.
The Slonimer Rebbe, Rabbi Sholom Noach Berezovsky (d. 2000) , in his Nesivot Sholom, says today's world ''morally is like the world was at the time of the Flood, when the spiritual filth is powerful and widespread.'' Now for those who have studied the Chumash, Talmud and Midrash and know the details of what humans were doing during Noah's time. We may see some parallels, but in my opinion we morally haven't sunk to that level. Noah was the only one ''righteous in his generation.'' We have plenty of good people today. [If you are still reading this, you're one of them. :-) ] But ecologically we are in a behavioral sink.
The people of Noah's time were ecologically out of balance. They mated animals of totally different species, and mixed species of plants and fruit trees.They had no respect for the seasons. They paid no attention to how they treated the earth as well as each other. They had no love for Mother Earth nor for their own mothers.
As we read when the water subsided, plants and trees did just fine without human interference, as olive trees grew.
Hence scientifically, spiritually, and ecologically we have to care for sick Mother Earth. Our traditions give us not only permission, but demand that we do. We cannot continue in ignoring the Earth, and to not do active Bikur Cholim and chesed and tsaddakah for our Mother. We cannot continue to disrespectfully and foolishly gobble Her up. We can not treat our Mother as if She is a seductive whore like Potifer's wife, to use and discard. We will cause the Sea that was split for us for a safe crossing into Life, crash down on upon us, to drown us as it did to Pharaoh's army, horses and chariots.
Just as we have specific rules for caring for the human sick, we must develop firm rules of how we can care for Mother earth. Further just as the Noachide covenant after the flood was given to all Humankind,[ including Shem (Noah's son), who is the father of Semites (Shemites)], so must these rules be for all humans on our globe. While Jews can look at our texts, as I have done, and only using one aspect (Bikur Cholim), other faith groups can review their texts for similar inspiration. When we read our Chumash, the Noachide covenant was made not only with every human, and every future generation of humans, but with all animal life, as equal partners.
Hence equal partnership also depends that we learn to live in peace with one another, and stop fighting over land and resources. If we do not we will have no Mother Earth to give us land to live on or resources to use.
One aspect of rules for caring for Mother Earth includes outing those corporations who we know from first hand information and hard facts that are actively, or passively, killing our Spinning Top, and life on it. I was discussing this question with Rabbi Dr. Arthur Waskow, one of the main pathfinders of Jewish Renewal and founder of the Shalom Center in Philadelphia. I am honored to be able to do post-ordination (semicha) study with him. What do our spiritual rules of Lashon Ha Ra say to guide us?
When it comes to Lashon Ha Ra's rules I usually refer to Rabbi Yisrael Meir Kagan (d. 1933) and his texts. His 1873 text ''Desirer of Life'', (Chofetz Chaim), from Psalm 34:12, earned him the name The Chofetz Chaim. Along with his ''Guarding of the Tongue'', (Sh'mirat Ha Lashon ), these two books outline when, in rare incidences, one can talk about someone else.
Secondhand truthful information, which would ordinarily be considered rechilut, (spreading gossip of what one heard, as opposed being the primary person to say it) and not allowed to be repeated, may be communicated for a constructive purpose (l'toelet), provided that it is not presented as fact. Regarding lashon ha ra, however, communicating secondhand information for a constructive purpose is prohibited in most cases.
The Chofetz Chaim explains that ''while achieving a positive result on the basis of firsthand information is justified even when the chances for success are minimal, secondhand information may be used only when one can assume that the intended result will almost certainly be achieved. Consequently, one may inform one party in a prospective shidduch (marriage match) or business partnership of possible major problems regarding the other party on the basis of hearsay, since such information will probably be taken very seriously. For the same reason, one may warn a potential victim of impending danger on the basis of secondhand information. ''
Conversely, one cannot publicize the ''alleged unethical behavior of an individual with the hope that social pressure will encourage him to change his ways or reimburse his victims''. However, and I will bold this for emphasis, ''this would be permissible only when one has witness to such behavior.'' The Chofetz Chaim continues that ''the effectiveness of social pressure in persuading people to change their ways is far too limited to justify relating secondhand negative information – even if it is clearly stated that the information has not been verified.''
Hence, corporations, and their Jewish or non-Jewish CEOs, and officers, can be publicized in an ad in a newspaper, if they and/or their corporations are clearly responsible, with first hand information, for causing harm to Mother Earth.
We are at the point where polluting our Mother Earth, including Her atmosphere above, is murder. It kills us right now and will kill all of us in the near future. To not announce such, when we have truthful information, and tried at least three times to meet with them to ask them to change their ways, would put us in the position of sinning, as we would be letting our neighbors sin without trying to reprove them. (Lev. 19:17 ). At that point without announcing that they are murdering, would be allowing a rodef, a pursuer with a knife in his hand, to kill us. (Talmud Bavli Tractate Sanhedrin 72b). And the Talmud teaches that no one's blood is more red than another. (Talmud Bavli Tractate Sanhedrin 74a).
We truly need to teach those who profit on the Rape of our Mother Earth are like those "who are apparently rich, but in truth have nothing" (Prov. 13:7). And we must teach that they are raping, and stealing and doing Chamas, to every other human on the Planet.
The Chofetz Chaim teaches that the Torah demands us to judge our fellow with favor. We are to not conclude that he has sinned. We must try to think of an alternative way of explaining his acts. Even when we are sure someone has sinned, we still must give him the benefit of the doubt, that he sinned out of ignorance. We have an obligation to reprove, if they are willing to listen.
Giving someone the benefit of the doubt cannot not be done at the expense of another. If one has witnessed with first hand evidence that one person or persons is attempting or actually has harmed another, the Chofetz Chaim teaches that ''the need for accuracy does not require an attempt at justifying the perpetrator's motives. Even if the act is out of character, it must be rectified, and one may, therefore, inform the appropriate parties.''
The ''appropriate parties'' for a corporation , or a government, attempting to kill Mother Earth is all of humanity. "Nor shall you take a stand against the life of your neighbor: I am the Lord.''(Lev. 19:16). We are all neighbors on Mother Earth, and those who are destroying it, which is practically everyone on this Planet in some small way, make us rodefim of each other, and frankly suicidal.
The 4th utterance of the Tablets states : "Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you,"(Ex. 20:12). Dishonoring our Mother Earth, by hurting Her, and not caring for Her now when She is extremely ill, will literally make humankind's days short upon Her.
Oh, Mother Earth,
With your fields of green
Once more laid down
by the hungry hand
How long can you
give and not receive
And feed this world
ruled by greed
And feed this world
ruled by greed.
Oh, ball of fire
In the summer sky
Your healing light,
your parade of days
Are they betrayed
by the men of power
Who hold this world
in their changing hands
They hold the world
in their changing hands.
Oh, freedom land
Can you let this go
Down to the streets
where the numbers grow
Respect Mother Earth
and her giving ways
Or trade away
our children's days
Or trade away
our children's days.
Respect Mother Earth
and her giving ways
Or trade away
our children's days.
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
Ragged Glory, 1990, (C)
Shalom:
Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal
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| Rabbi Arthur Segal reveals the path to Jewish Spiritual Renewal - and happiness in troubled times...
YES, it is possible. Even when the world seems to be turning upside-down, you can follow a simple, step-by-step process that will have you loving life every day no matter what is going on around you. It's no secret, but nobody's been talking about it for generations...until now.In His New Book:
"The Handbook To Jewish Spiritual Renewal by Rabbi Arthur Segal has given me the foundation to approach each day with honesty, reverence, hope and gratitude. I feel like I am having a personal conversation with a wise prophet with a jovial sense of humor." Diane Weinberg, Shalom. My name is Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal, and in my years of rabbinic counseling I've met an awful lot of fellow Jews who are short on faith that Judaism can deliver the happiness and joy that it promises, especially in these turbulent times. Their emotions run the gamut: sadness, loneliness, bitterness; fearfulness of what the future holds for them. Some are just downright cynical and angry. But I found the way out. That's why I became a rabbi after retiring from my dental practice; to help others up the path to a life of joy and freedom that I couldn't find in "normative" Judaism. I want to show you that path today. "You lead the spiritual practices of the entire program and offer our followers a unique spiritual opportunity." Hune Margulies, Ph.D. Reclaim Your Spirituality...And Your Life
In The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew, I distill teachings from our sages that have been passed along for thousands of years, along with lessons from the Torah and the Talmud. But unlike other Jewish spiritual texts that you may have read, or sermons you may have heard, this book presents these lessons in a concise, easy-to-read, easy-to-follow life transformation process that you can follow step-by-step at your own pace. And it is written in plain English with relevance to the modern world. I even threw in a few jokes to make it fun! This is stuff we were not taught in Hebrew school or in most synagogues, but it is what Judaism is really all about. "Wonderful stuff! I'm savoring it, bit by bit." Samuel Hughes, Senior Editor In The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew, you will learn:
A Question for YouLet me ask you a question: Are you enjoying life like the people in the cartoon at the top of this letter?Or, do you spend your days worrying about the economy... ...in conflict with friends, family, and co-workers... ...stressed out about the future? If the latter sounds like you I'm not surprised. As I said earlier, I counsel many fellow Jews who are in the same boat, and they look to their Jewish faith to find a happier life. However... Some have trouble understanding what they read in the Torah and how it relates to their own lives. Others find that their synagogues are more about social climbing and fundraising and less about spiritual awakening. Many simply give up, believing that Judaism has failed them, and they walk away from their Jewish faith. In my book, The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew, I will show you that true Judaism has not failed them...or you...and that you can return to your Jewish faith and enjoy your life to its fullest, even when the news of the day keeps going from bad to worse. "I couldn't have written the book or expressed my pain and concern for the Jewish people returning to Judaism. Thank God that He put this desire in your heart." Janelle Vechi It's simpler than you may think, and you don't have to become a rabbi as I did. To give you an idea what I am talking about, here is an excerpt from The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew: We become so far removed from God, our loving Sovereign Parent, that when we pray, (if we pray at all), we pray to meet an immediate need. We desire an immediate fix, rather than to seek renewal (return) and the wisdom to work toward renewal. We are satisfied for a moment if our trivial need is met. We therefore never achieve happiness in the long term. We are constantly searching and striving for our secular notions of success and happiness. While in this all-too-common state our egos "lock horns" with the egos of others, putting us in a sustained state of human conflict and resentment.
This is not the Jewish way to live; but most of us cannot find the way out. In this book, I will give a map to the tools of the process in simple terms and in language easily understood, to turn your life around to a much more pleasant state. If you follow the map faithfully and honestly, you will find that the journey is life-changing and life-affirming. "Nice Rabbi Segal! Thank you! Peace." Deepak Chopra's Intent.com What Would You Say Something Like This is Worth?Think about it… The teachings of the Torah and the Talmud all distilled into an easy-to-read, easy-to-understand, and easy-to-follow step-by-step process that will help you:
I know it sounds priceless and in reality…it is. But I sincerely want to share what has helped me and countless others with you. In other words, I want to show you the path to the happy and joyous life that your were meant to live. So I want you to have The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew for only $19.99. "The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal is an invaluable resource for anyone who is searching for more in their life. I was involved with organized Jewish religion, but something was always missing. Using this guide, and taking each chapter to heart, has transformed my views and put me on the track my life is supposed to be on, filled with love, trust and emunah (faith). Thanks Rabbi Segal!" Ben Pincus Like I said, I've been where you are: in a life missing spirituality; seemingly unable to cope with life's difficulties; and unable to find peace and inner shalom. But I found it and now I want to share with you the path that I have found and passed on to others with consistent success. It took me many years of work and study, and rabbinic ordination. But it didn't have to. And it doesn't have to for you. You can travel the same path that I did, but you can do it in only 254 pages!We are living in a historically turbulent time. Economic uncertainty, political corruption, threats of aggression, and religious conflict are everywhere. I know that I would find it difficult to find comfort without the peace and inner shalom that I have found through Jewish Spiritual Renewal. Please join me now. |
 Click to Order | A SPIRITUAL AND ETHICAL COMPENDIUM TO THE TORAH AND TALMUD Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal dissects each of the Torah's weekly sections (parashot) using the Talmud and other rabbinic texts to show the true Jewish take on what the Torah is trying to teach us. This companion to The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew brings the Torah alive with daily relevance to the Modern Jew. All of the Torah can be summed up in one word: Chesed. It means kindness. The Talmud teaches that the Torah is about loving our fellow man and that we are to go and study. The rest is commentary. This compendium clarifies the commentary and allows one to study Torah and Talmud to learn the Judaic ideals of love, forgiveness, kindness, mercy and peace. A must read for all Jews and deserves a place in every Jewish home. Price: $24.99 494 Pages Published by: Amazon's BookSurge |
"Very informative and timely. It allows many people to benefit from Torah lessons, where many of them may not otherwise have an opportunity receive such content."
Mauricio Benzipporah
Founder, Beta-Gershom Organization
A Spiritual and Ethical Compendium to the Torah and Talmud dissects each of the Torah's weekly sections (parashot) using the Talmud and other rabbinic texts to interpret its lessons.
Rabbi Daniel Ben Shmuel
A Spiritual and Ethical Compendium to the Torah and Talmud brings the Torah alive with daily relevance to the Modern Jew.
All of Torah can be summed up in one word: Chesed. It means kindness. The Talmud teaches that the Torah is about loving our fellow man and that we are to ''go and study.'' The rest is commentary.
A Spiritual and Ethical Compendium to the Torah and Talmud clarifies the commentary and allows one to study the Torah and the Talmud to learn the Judaic ideals of love, forgiveness, kindness, mercy and peace.
It is a must read for those seeking Jewish Spiritual Renewal and is the ideal complement to The Handbook to Jewish Spiritual Renewal: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew.
Here is an excerpt from A Spiritual and Ethical Compendium to the Torah and Talmud:
Since each parasha is the weekly Torah portion, you may read each of the chapters in the book during the course of a week while also reading the actual Torah portion. By doing so, you will learn a modern Jewish Spiritual view of each Torah portion. At the same time, your world will be open to the ethical teachings of the Talmud.
While many read the Torah as a history book, or a deed to land, or see it as a boring book full of legalisms and ritual for a priesthood that no longer exists, this book aims to show you the spiritual ethical lessons in each parasha. In a sense this book will hopefully help you enjoy reading and understanding the Five Books of Moses, what we call Chumash from the Hebrew word for "five." You may even discover that you want to continue your study with the Talmud and other Jewish texts.
Leslie Palma-Simoncek
Staten Island Advance
Complete your journey UP the path to Jewish Spiritual Renewal with a better understanding of the Torah's lessons through A Spiritual and Ethical Compendium to the Torah and Talmud for only $24.99...
...certainly a small amount to pay for the priceless wisdom contained within the Torah and the Talmud.
You can purchase each book individually, but if you purchase them together as a set, I will donate a portion of the sales price in your name to a tzadakkah of your choice, such as your synagogue. Think of it as your first act of loving kindness in your spiritually renewed life!
Click Here to Order
 Click Image to Enlarge | THE HANDBOOK TO JEWISH SPIRITUAL RENEWAL: A Path of Transformation for the Modern Jew |
 Click Image to Enlarge | A SPIRITUAL AND ETHICAL COMPENDIUM TO THE TORAH AND TALMUD |
About Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal
Rabbi Dr. Arthur Segal's love of Judaism and his Ahavath Israel led him on his personal quest for Jewish Spiritual Renewal, beginning his studies after retirement from a successful oral medicine practice. Rabbi Segal graduated cum laude with BA and DMD degrees, Specialty, and Post-Doctoral studies in Psychology from the University of Pennsylvania in the 1970s. He is an author in these chosen fields as well.
Rabbi Segal teaches classes on Jewish Spiritual Renewal and The Spiritual and Ethical Teachings of the Torah, TaNaK and Talmud via the Shamash online program. He teaches Torah, Talmud, and other great texts, such as Duties of the Heart by Ibn Pakudah of 1050 C.E. Spain, to adults in his hometown. Rabbi Dr. Segal does rabbinic counseling using the step-by-step process of Jewish Spiritual Renewal to help his fellow Jews achieve a spiritual life.
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©2009 Dr. Arthur Segal, P.A. d/b/a Rabbi Arthur Segal
Page header image is courtesy of Steve Greenberg (greenberg-art.com)
