The Common Sense of the Wisdom Tree

Tu B’Shevat/Jewish Educational Supplement

by Renée Levine-Blonder

Goals:
1. Inspiration for developing a relationship with the natural world (feeling
that each individual is connected to the natural world and using our senses
to feel that connection).
2. Motivation to help take care of the natural world/environment.
3. Explore ways to help take care of natural world.
4. Explore reasons why people should take care of natural world.
5. Explore the ideas of interconnectedness of all life.
6. Learn some blessings that are related to the natural world.
7. Learn some tree-related Hebrew vocabulary.
8. Learn and discuss some verses of Jewish text that are connected to the
environment.

Discussion Topics:
1. Initial reactions to film

2. How did this video make you feel? Why?

3. What did you like about the video? Why?

What didn't you like about the video? Why?

4. What message did you hear from the video?

5. Do you feel connected to the natural world? How so?

What are some things you can do to help feel closer to the natural world?
Does this connection make you feel responsible for taking care of the
environment?

6. According to the video do human beings have a responsibility to take

care of the Earth? What do you think?- do human beings have a
responsibility to take care of the Earth? why or why not?

7. What does the Jewish tradition say about the responsibilty of the Jews to
care for the earth?

8. What is Tu B'Shvat and why do we have this holiday?

9. Think about the following sentence which comes from Midrash Sifre

"If not for the trees, human life could not exist." (This verse was found in
Molly Cones' book Listen To The Trees)

What does that mean?

Why do you think our tradition discussed trees and the natural world?

This line of midrash from Sifre is a midrash on Deut. 20:19:

"When you besiege a town for many days, waging-war against it, to seize
it: you are not to bring-ruin on its trees, by swinging-away (with) an ax
against them, for from them you eat, them you are not to cut-down- for
are the trees of the field human beings, (able) to come against you in a
siege?" (Translation from The Schoken Bible: Volume I, The Five Books Of
Moses by Everett Fox).

What does this really mean? How do you interpret it?

How did the rabbis interpret it (compare the Deut. verse to the Midrash
Sifre verse)? Why do you thnk they interpreted the Deut. verse in this
way? What are they saying about the importance of trees in our lives?

10. Do our actions impact the future of the natural world? (i.e. if we don't
help to take care of the natural world now will it help to take care of us in
the future-- will there be enough food, shelter or resources to survive?

Read the second paragraph of the Shema and compare it's message to the
message of the video. What do you think/feel about the second paragraph
of the Shema? Some of the movements in Judaism have taken this
paragraph out of their siddur. Why do you think that was done?

11. What do the trees and other things in the natural world give to human
beings?
Why are these things important, what would our lives be like without them?
What do human beings give to nature?
Could the natural world live without human beings?
How can we improve our relationship to the natural world?

12. In Ecclesiastes 1:4 we read;

"One generation goes and one generation comes, but the earth remains
forever."

And in Genesis 1:28 we read;

"Replenish the earth." (These two verses are found in Molly Cones' book
Listen To The Trees) Do these two verses contradict each other?
Look into each verse a little deeper. What is each verse trying to say?
How do each of these verses complement each other?

13. How did our ancestors feel about the land?

In Leviticus. 25:2-5 we read:

"Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: When you enter the land
that I am giving you, the land is to cease, a Sabbath-ceasing to YHWH. For
six years you are to sow your field, for six years you are to prune your
vineyard, then you are to gather in its produce, but in the seventh year
there shall be a Sabbath of Sabbath-ceasing fro the land, a Sabbath to
YHWH: Your field you are not to sow, your vineyard you are not to prune,
the aftergrowth of your harvest you are not to harvest, the grapes of your
consecrated-vines you are not to amass; a Sabbath of Sabbath-ceasing
shall there be for the land!" –
Translation from The Schoken Bible: Volume I The Five Books Of Moses by
Everett Fox) Why do you think it is important for the land to rest?
What effect do you think "the rest" has on the production of the crops?

Activities:

1. Learn the parts of a tree and other things in the environment in Hebrew.

2. Learn the words for the 5 senses in Hebrew.

3. What do you learn from the natural world? Sometimes we go about life
with our senses turned off. We aren't always aware of how the outside
world tries to reach us through our senses. Try consciously opening up
your senses. As an activity or homework assignment spend time each day
for a week outside (preferably under a tree) and write down in a journal:
a. what do you hear?
b. what do you feel?
c. what do you smell?
d. what do you see?
e. what do you taste?
f. what is your general feeling being outside under the tree?
g. What did you learn something through what you heard, smelt, felt, saw
or tasted?

5. Write a poem in which each stanza describes the stimulation you are
receiving from one of your senses.

6. Produce a public service announcement that encourages people to

engage in an avitivity that honors the environment.

7. Plant a tree, flower, vegetable or plan and take care of it - keep a

journal about how it is doing and how you feel doing it. (Contact a local
urban/citizen forestry organization for help and resources on planting
trees).

8. Recycle. Either begin or enhance a recycling program in your home or

school, synagogue or other community organization. Although there might
already be a recylcing program in place, are people actually using it
effectively? What can you do to encourage others to participate?

9. Put together a resource list of places in your area that recycle. You can
hand out this list to the people in your school, congregation,etc. along with
a little paragraph explaining the importance of recycling and how it benefits
the natural world of which we are a part.

10. Learn some of the blessings for nature:

when you see the first trees in blossom you say-

"Blessed are You our God, Ruler of the universe, whose world lacks
nothing needful and who has fashioned goodly creatures and lovely trees
that human beings can enjoy."

There are even blessings when you smell a nice scent from grasses and
trees.

for grasses you say-

"Blessed are You our God, Ruler of the universe, for all the fragrant
grasses."

for trees you recite-

"Blessed are You our God, Ruler of the universe, for all the fragrant trees."

When you taste the first fruit of the season you say:

"Blessed are You our God, Ruler of the universe, for giving us life, for
sustaining us, and for enabling us to reach this moment."

When you eat any fruit that was grown on a tree you say:

"Blessed are You our God, Ruler of the universe, Creator of the fruit of the
tree."

What senses do each of these blessings involve?

Why do you think our tradition has blessings for these various things
(seeing a tree in bloom, eating the first fruit of a season, when you smell a
beautiful fragrance from the natural world)? It's built into Judaism to honor
and respect the natural world and to respect God who is The Creator of the
natural world. However, the blessings are there so that we do not take
these beautiful, natural things for granted. They make us recognize that
these things are gifts that enrich our lives and that we need to take care
of them in order for them to continue in our world. Additionally, it is an
interplay between human beings and God. The natural world is a way for
human beings and God to interact and communicate. God created these
things for us but they don't survive unless we take an active part in caring
for them- in having a relationship with them. When we take the time to
care for them and sometimes just to be with and live in the presence of
nature then we are working with and communicating with God.

Write your own blessing or prayer about the environment. It can be a

general one or try to focus on one element of the natural world that really
speaks to you and write a blessing or prayer for that one thing. Are you
grateful for that thing? Why are you grateful- what does that thing give to
you? What do you give to it?