God said, “Let us make man in our image and likeness. Let man dominate (sometimes translated as ‘rule’) the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the livestock animals, and all the earth ¬and every land animal that walks the earth.” - Genesis 1:26
"God took the man and placed him in the Garden of Eden to work it and guard it." - Genesis 2:15
Behold, we find two separate statements in Genesis about humanity’s relationship to the earth. Do you notice any differences in the relationship as it is described in the first citation and the second? [Ponder this before reading ahead!].
In the first text we read that humanity is told: “Let man have dominion over, mastery over the land. To have dominion over the land is to control it. To control it places choice in the hands of the controller. It is a relationship of possession that does not assume any caring relationship between the dominator and the one being dominated. It also does not assume one must be “responsible” for the other, or that one is being placed in the care of the other.
The second text in Genesis describes a different kind of relationship. Humans were placed on the earth to tend (also translated as “to work it”) and guard it. To work the land requires attentiveness, inherently a car¬ing relationship. To guard also elicits a sense of responsibility for the well-being of another. Though humans are created last in both creation stories, in one their job is to control God’s creation. The other story envisions humanity as a steward of the earth, placed there as a caretaker of God’s creation.
It seems as if our civilization believes that God placed humans on earth to CONQUER it. Yet we know today that we cannot afford to think that way. When speaking of the earth, many of us say, "OUR oceans," "OUR environment," "OUR oil reserves," "OUR crops." In almost every culture that exists today there is a pervasive understanding that the world belongs to us so we can do what we want with it. Traditional Jewish interpretations remind us that the earth belongs to God, not to humans.
Of course, we are also being inundated with warnings about global warming, the disaster of our dependence on oil and the drilling required to find it (we almost lost the Alaskan wilderness to this need). I even gave a sermon on it this past Rosh Hashanah 5768.
When I express guilt to some friends over letting the wa¬ter run, they respond: “Come on, you are only one in a million people. Your personal behavior is not going to make a difference.” I feel even MORE uncomfortable with that answer. That’s how we ended up where we are now.
Recently, our Board voted to “Go Green” regarding the way we receive HaKesher. There were a number of reasons for that choice. The most profound one supports our second Genesis text; we do our part to be stewards of the earth. We do not need to contribute to waste. At Camp JRF, they weigh the food waste left over after every meal and challenge each other to reduce the amount of food that ends up in the compost pile.
Back to HaKesher…I worried that I wouldn’t spend as much time reading it if it was on my computer (along with hundreds of e-mails). I need to make the choice to read it online even if it is an inconvenience or stimulates a resistance to change. Please take the time! We save time and money, and may even experience personal satisfaction. Don’t worry -- those who do not have access to e-mail will be provided for and there will be paper copies in our lobby.
Join us in this wonderful endeavor. At Dor Hadash, we recycle bottles and paper and HaKesher is going green. What should we do next to reduce our footprint on this earth? With the High Holy Days approaching, what vows can we make for the next year? What’s our next green project going to be…?
Have a green and happy summer!
Rabbi Yaffa-Shira
