Our Actions Do Have Consequences (Inspired by the words of Michael Gold)

And it shall come to pass, if you give heed diligently to my commandments which I command you this day, to love the Lord your G-d, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, that I will give you the rain of your land in its due season, the first rain and the latter rain, that you may gather in your grain , and your wine and your oil.  (Deut. 11:13-14)

This statement is found in the 2^nd paragraph of the Shema.  I think of it as being highly relevant in this day and age.  Many see it as making sense as an ecological message.  Causation exists in the world and as such, if we take care of the Earth, which is part of our obligation while serving G-d, then the Earth will treat us properly.

It is hard not to notice that temperatures are in the triple digit range all over the world this summer, that glaciers are melting, and fires are raging.  It is hard not to figure out that global warming is actually here.  From a Jewish religious perspective,  the value of creation is to acknowledge that G-d created a good world and we have a responsibility to  take care of it.  Caring for the environment is part of our understanding that we are doing so as part of our responsibility toward future generations, not just to our own generation.

Global warming  manifests itself in  extreme summer heat, increased difficulty controlling air pollution, electricity disruption, rising sea levels, water shortages, and extreme weather events. The 2^nd paragraph of the shema talks about causation.  When scientists speak of Global Warming they also speak about causation.  When we burn fossil fuels carbon dioxide is released into the air and that holds extra heat causing the temperature of the Earth to warm up.

Lest one think that being concerned climate change is merely a function of one’s political stance, it is important for us to realize that Conservative Jews have been particularly active, bringing the voice of tradition, and the Torah, into civic space about this topic.  The Rabbinical Assembly was instrumental in founding COEJL, the Coalition on environment and Jewish life, and  has called upon Jewish institutions to perform environmental self-evaluations and energy audits.

I do believe that we human beings have a way of viewing life that includes seeing that our behavior has consequences.  As parents, we teach our children that their actions cause certain results, either positive or negative.  Perhaps the Torah is trying to tell us the same message as children of the Universe.  What we do matters in terms of how the world around us functions. We have the power to ruin the quality of the air we breathe and the waters that surround us.  We have the power to wreak havoc on eco-systems that have been here far longer than we have been here.  But the flip side of these statements is that if we hearken diligently to G-d’s commandments which include being shomrei adamah, guardians of the Earth, the Earth will treat us properly.

https://climate.nasa.gov/

http://www.coejl.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/6/2015/09/Judaism-Climate-Laudato-Si-8-pages-9-2-15-2.pdf