Earth Day

Earth Day

Partnership & Responsibility

The Midrash teaches that the Holy One led Adam through the Garden of Eden and showed him all of the trees.  God said, “See how beautiful and perfect are my works! All that I created, for your sake I created it. Pay heed that you do not corrupt and destroy My universe; for if you corrupt it there is no one to repair it after you.”  (Ecclesiastes Rabbah 13:1).

This remarkable commentary was written over 1,200 years ago.  Today its message is more urgent than ever.  We have not been good stewards of the earth, and the consequences are ever more obvious.  The Midrash teaches that each of us has the responsibility to do what is in our power to restore the beauty of the world to its initial perfection.

There are longs lists available to help you reduce your environmental impact.  I will suggest only a few possibilities and link them to some classic Jewish teachings.

Plant a Tree – The Mishnah teaches that if you are planting a tree and someone says the Messiah has arrived, you should finish planting the tree and then check it out.  Caring for the planet takes first place. Trees help control the wind, provide shade to reduce the need for artificial cooling, help prevent erosion, clean the air and more.  Besides, they add beauty to our land.

Our ancient sages taught that one should have compassion for the pocketbooks of the community; that is, it is important to take cost into consideration.  All of the following suggestions offer ways to reduce your environmental impact and to save money in the process.

Using Compact Flourescent Light Bulbs (CFL) instead of regular incandescent bulbs with will save you 75% on your lighting bill.

Shut off the pilot light during the summer months.  All the gas you burn in those months represents wasted dollars going up the chimney.

Do your spring maintenance – service your air conditioners, furnaces, refrigerators, and such now to help them run more efficiently.  Your cost of running them will be less.

There are dozens of practical ways you can act to reduce your environmental impact.  Check out the chart at http://globalwarmingactionalliance.org/images/uploads/lowering1.pdf.  Regardless of your political stance on Global warming you can find suggestions that will save you money, make your cars, tools and appliances run more efficiently, and beautify our world.