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| Praised are you O' Lord God
who is King of the universe, who has withheld nothing from
Your world, and has created therein beautiful creatures
and good trees for the enjoyment of humanity. |
Barukh ata adonai eloheinu melekh HaOlam
she'lo chisar b'olamo davar, uvara bo brit tovot v'elanot
tovim lhanot bahem b'nai adam. |
This blessing can be found on page 710 of Siddur
Sim Shalom.
On Monday of this week we celebrate the Holiday
of Tu B'shvat. It is on this day, referred to by the Rabbis of
the Mishna as the New Year for the trees, that we take special
notice of the role trees play in our environment. Many synagogues
and Jewish schools enjoy a Tu B'shvat seder in which the varied
produce of trees are highlighted. This 16th century kabbalistic
custom provides us here in the diaspora the opportunity to substantively
relate to our brothers and sisters in Israel who are now beginning
to experience the weather of springtime.
We have also taken this moment to underscore the
Jewish perspective of responsibility to the environment. We have
co-opted this holiday about the birth and the produce of the trees
and expanded its message to one of preservation. But at the core
of this holiday is the simple message of the symbiotic relationship
we have with trees. This bracha, which can only be recited once
a year is reserved for just an occasion. When we first witness
the blossom of spring and the trees' first bloom we acknowledge
the close ties we enjoy with them. Whether it is through the awe
inspiring redwoods or the beautiful dogwoods or the powerful oaks
that inhabit the space around us, we ought to give thanks for
all they provide.
There is wonderful piece of Talmud that instructs
us that when we engage in battle we are not to wantonly destroy
the trees in battle. Though the strictures of war sometime preclude
such careful conservation of the surroundings, the sages remind
us that everything has a purpose and to everything there is reason
for being. Trees often are the witnesses to the battle we wage
in our lives. We all recall special trees of our youth, trees
that served as base and trees that supported our tree houses and
trees that carried us on swings. Some recall trees in which we
carved our initials and some recall lying in ones special shade,
as Shel Silverstein gently taught us of the unselfish nature of
nature in his legendary book The Giving Tree.
One of my most fond memories is when we took our
son, just beginning to walk peach picking. We walk among the trees
looking for the best, the most ripe, the largest and the sweetest
fruit. One of the rules of this orchard was you were free to eat
as much as you would like while you picked, but you were not supposed
to waste any. If you started a peach you should be prepared to
finish it. We walked for hours and we ate much. And we have the
most delightful pictures of that afternoon. It is a day for which
I am supremely grateful. It is that day I recall each time the
fruit begin to burst into the world each spring. There is excitement
in watching the world renew itself.
Copyright © 2001 Rabbi
Yohanan Stein. All rights reserved.
New Jersey Region United Synagogue
of Conservative Judaism
PO Box 390; 1025 St. Georges
Ave
Linden, NJ 07036-0390
Phone: 908-925-USCJ (8725)
/ Fax: 908-486-USCJ (8725)
E-mail: njersey@uscj.org
Copyright © 2000 -
2003 New Jersey USCJ. All rights reserved.
Last Updated: July 2003
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