Being good stewards of creation

This year, as it does every year, the Jewish holiday of Tisha B'av came and went in July The ninth day of the Hebrew month of Av, according to Jewish tradition, is the day that both the First and Second Temple were destroyed It is also the day Jews were expelled from England in 1290, from Spain in 1492, and the beginning of the deportations from the Warsaw Ghetto to Treblinka in 1942 It is a fitting day to mourn

Tisha B'av is a day that a majority of American Jews ignore Some folks ignore it because it comes in the middle of summer vacation, some just simply forget, and some never even knew

Faces on Faith

For many years I ignored Tisha B'av willfully I no longer mourn the destruction of the ancient nation of Israel/Judea It's been back for 75 years I don't mourn the destruction of the temple I don't want it rebuilt if it means we have to go back to sacrificing animals all day long. No thank you.

But then, as we swelter through the hottest year on record, with boiling seas and vast swaths of forest burning worldwide, I thought about the impending loss of the temple that God created for us Our planet

This Tisha B'av we mourn the destruction of not a building or a biblical nation, we mourn the loss of species and habitat, clean air and water Most of all, I mourn for our grandchildren who will inherit the disastrous results of previous generations' hubris and selfishness.

It is fitting that there is a holiday to do a deep dive into the causes and effects of environmental destruction, because the Bible has a lot to say about environmental issues

In Jewish law, ecological concerns are reflected in biblical protection for fruit trees, rules against harming the public domain, ancient rabbinic debate over noise and smoke damages, and more modern Jewish legal responses to agricultural pollution

The first of these basic teachings, known as Baal Tashchit, is a prohibition against wasteful misuse of the world's resources Based on a verse in Deuteronomy chapter 20 which reads: “When in your war against a city you have to besiege it for a long time in order to capture it, you must not destroy its fruit trees You may eat of them but you must not destroy the fruit trees ”

Our rabbis explained that Baal Tashchit applies to any pointless destruction of resources

Another more subtle area of Jewish law are the Laws of Neighbors, Hilchot Shekeinim These laws are based in the rabbinic discussion of the necessity of properly disposing human waste so that it does not affect the health and well-being of our neighbors It is later expanded to prohibitions on allowing the smoke from a fire used for heating and cooking to blow into a neighbor's home Yes, two thousand years ago rabbis were dealing with the effects of secondhand smoke and carbon emissions

The Jewish tradition also insists that we maintain species diversity under the principle called Tzaar Balei Chayim The Bible prohibits inflicting emotional or physical pain on animals. We read in Deuteronomy 22:6: “If you come across a bird's nest beside the road, either in a tree or on the ground, and the mother is sitting on the young or on the eggs, do not take the mother with the young ”

1 cup broccoli florets

1 red pepper, seeded and chopped

1/4 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and sliced

4 ounces Feta cheese, crumbled

Dressing:

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1/4 cup Champagne vinegar

1 teaspoon honey

1 teaspoon fresh Italian parsley, chopped

1 teaspoon fresh basil, chopped

Salt and pepper, to taste

3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Wash greens and spin dry Place all ingredients in a large bowl Chill in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes Remove and top with crumbled cheese and serve at once

Prepare dressing by whisking together vinegar, parsley, basil, Dijon, honey, salt and pepper Slowly incorporate the oil Serve prepared dressing

Island Worship

∫ Bat Yam Temple of the Islands

2050 Periwinkle Way, Sanibel (Sanibel Congregational United Church of Christ), https://www batyam org/, https://www facebook com/batyamsanibel/

Rabbi Sunny Schnitzer

Sabbath service on Friday at 7 p m at the Jewish Federation of Lee & Charlotte Counties, at 9701 Commerce Center Court, Fort Myers, and via Zoom For Zoom links, email batyamsanibel@gmail com

∫ Captiva Chapel by the Sea

11580 Chapin Lane, Captiva, 239-472-1646, https://www captivachapel com/, www facebook com/Captiva-Chapel-By-The-Sea

Rev Dr Doug Dortch

Services will return for season in November Videos of services from the past season can be found on the chapel's website and Facebook page

∫ Chavurat Shalom of Southwest Florida www chavuratshalomofsouthwestflorida org

Classes and discussion on Thursday at 11 a.m. via Zoom. Torah Talk on the third Thursday of each month at 11 a m via Zoom Friday Shabbat service at 7:30 p m via Zoom Len Minsky Current Events discussion on Saturday at 11 a m via Zoom

An informal “schmooze” session on the second and fourth Tuesday of each month at 7:30 p m via Zoom For Zoom links, email ChavuratShalom@gmail com

∫ Sanibel Community Church

1740 Periwinkle Way, Sanibel, 239-472-2684, https://sanibelchurch com/, https://www facebook com/sanibelchurch/

Pastor Jeramie Rinne

Sunday service at 10 a m in the SCC Sanctuary Sunday service at 4 p m at the Fort Myers Community Church, at 8440 Cypress Lake Drive, Fort Myers Services will be recorded and posted on the SCC's YouTube channel on Monday

∫ Sanibel Congregational United Church of Christ

2050 Periwinkle Way, Sanibel, 239-472-0497, https://www sanibelucc org/, https://www facebook com/sanibelucc/

Senior Minister Rev Dr Mark Boyea

Sunday service at 10 a m at The Refuge Church, at 1901 Brantley Road, Fort Myers

∫ St. Isabel Catholic Church

3559 Sanibel-Captiva Road, Sanibel, 239-472-2763, https://www saintisabel org/, https://www facebook com/stisabelcatholicchurch/

Father Edward Martin

Friday Mass at 9 a m Weekend Masses on Saturday at 4 p m and Sunday at 10 a m

∫ St. Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church

2304 Periwinkle Way, Sanibel, 239-472-2173, https://www saintmichaelssanibel org/, https://www facebook com/saintmichaelssanibel/

Rev William “Bill” Van Oss

Saturday service at 5 p m with a social to follow Sunday service at 9:30 a m with a coffee hour to follow Services take place at The Gathering Place @ St Michael's at the church; enter off of Dunlop Road

The sage Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman, also known as Nachmanides, in the 13th century explains: the crime here is that catching the mother and young together is taking a step towards the animal's extinction In our era, each year as many as 50,000 plant and animal species die off primarily because of human activity One need only read of the dying of coral reefs off the Florida coast to understand the immediacy of species extinction

It is up to us to be good stewards of creation To nurture and restore it It is the responsibility of humanity to do so for this generation and for the generations that will follow us The priority for all people of faith must be, I believe, to make the investment of creativity, intellect and spirituality to respond to the dramatic and unprecedented circumstances of our 21st century ecological crisis Our shared biblical tradition demands it Nothing we do in our churches, mosques, synagogues and ashrams can be more important than this

The challenge for our generation is to evolve a theological and spiritual worldview, and accompanying rituals, as a meaningful response to our situation and to inspire us to change our behaviors of con-