Shemittah and Modern Environmental Thought

Overview

Recall questions on what shemittah is and teaches about ownership of land, the changing meaning of Tu B'Shevat and the effect of climate science.

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

Questions from this subtopic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

1. 1

   Define shemittah.

   Model answer

   The sabbatical year in which the land of Israel is left to rest every seventh year.

2. 2

   What does shemittah teach about the ownership of land?

   Model answer

   That the land ultimately belongs to God and human ownership is conditional, since in that year its produce is left open to all.

3. 3

   How has Tu B'Shevat changed in modern Judaism?

   Model answer

   Once a date for reckoning the tithing of fruit trees, it has become a festival of tree planting and environmental awareness.

4. 4

   How has scientific understanding of climate change affected Jewish thinking on stewardship?

   Model answer

   Once human activity was shown to be altering the whole planet, ancient rules about local waste were reread as demanding action on energy, consumption and emissions.

5. 5

   Give one way Jewish communities put environmental stewardship into practice.

   Model answer

   Synagogues have adopted energy saving and ethical purchasing policies and have organised environmental education and campaigning.

6. 6

   Explain what eco-kashrut means.

   Model answer

   An approach that extends the idea of fit food beyond ritual requirements to how it is produced, taking in animal welfare, workers' conditions and environmental cost.

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