Sacred Foods

Philadelphia Jewish EXPONENT
September 13, 2007

- Bryan Schwartzman, Staff Writer

Pushing for reductions in fossil-fuel emissions and trying to reverse the global-warming trend nationally and throughout the world may make perfect sense, but what on earth do energy-policy goals have to do with Judaism?

That question was posed to Rabbi Arthur Waskow -- who's written several books that examine how Judaism and the environment intersect -- after he'd delivered a recent talk on the subject at Congregation Kol Ami in Elkins Park.

His answer? Everything!

The founder of the Philadelphia-based Shalom Center replied that, first of all, a concern for stewardship over the earth is rooted in Judaism's biblical tradition, and is, in fact, a central component of it.

By Rabbi Arthur Waskow, from his book DOWN-TO-EARTH JUDAISM: FOOD, MONEY, SEX, & THE REST OF LIFE (Morrow).

By looking at Jewish approaches to food from the Biblical era to the modern age, we have brought ourselves to the edges of the present. If now we want to get a glimpse of possible futures for Jewish attitudes toward food, let us begin with four unconventional questions:
1. Are tomatoes grown by drenching the earth in pesticides "kosher" to eat, at home or at the synagogue's next wedding reception?
2. Is newsprint made by chopping down an ancient and irreplaceable forest "kosher" to use for a Jewish newspaper?

Developed by the Multireligious Project on Sacred Foods
Sponsored by ALEPH: Alliance for Jewish Renewal

Table of Contents page

PART ONE: THEOLOGICAL OVERVIEWS 2

PART TWO: SERMON TALKING POINTS AND ANALYSES OF SPECIFIC ISSUES 28

PART THREE: SACRED FOOD AND THE
HOLY CALENDAR 36

PART FOUR: IN DEPTH ANALYSIS 59

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF WHAT MAKES FOOD SACRED
A study in 8 Dimensions

The following is a discussion of what makes food sacred according to the three Abrahamic traditions. It is organized according to eight dimensions, some of which were mentioned in the article above. It covers a wide spectrum of issues wherein there is some disagreement. The term “dimension” is deliberately used to express the existence of a range of different views and teachings within each of the traditions. Each of the eight dimensions are drawn from four sets of sources from the classic texts of the three traditions: The Hebrew Bible, the Talmud, the Christian Scriptures or New Testament, and the Qur’an and Sunnah.

From the Multireligious Project on Sacred Foods
Sponsored by ALEPH: Aliiance for Jewish Renewal

Engaging the Congregation

How can your congregation practice what your faith teaches about food? The resources in this document can help you.

They include:

An overview of “What our Faiths Teach us About Food and Eating,” by Rev. Clare Butterfield

“A description of the New Age of Agriculture: Where We Are Now,” by Br. David Andrews, CSC

“A Vision for a Better Future,” by Shireen Pishdadi

A compilation of “Good Practices by Congregations,” by Arlin Wasserman

From the Multireligious Project on Sacred Foods
Sponsored by ALEPH: Aliiance for Jewish Renewal

Secular Certification Research

Introduction

One way that congregations can make positive change in the food and agricultural system is by the kinds of foods they choose for themselves and their institutions. With this in mind, the Certification Committee of the Sacred Foods Project researched food certification programs that specifically address issues encompassed by the Sacred Foods Eight Dimensions (available on our website: www.sacred-foods.org). The result is the attached report with its quick scan chart with detailed explanations below on how each program addresses the Dimensions.

By Rabbi Arthur Waskow *

We are going to approach this subject –- sacred food –- the way you approach a sacred temple: first the outskirts, where you may know the structure already, from afar; then some unexpected beauties in an anteroom; finally, an inner Mystery revealed not to your eyes but to your lips and tongue.

The inner mystery is the dish called charoset. Keep seeking till you find her!

In Jewish tradition, eating food is a sacred act – and there are a series of concentric circles in which the intensity of the attention paid to food and the sacredness felt in food increases.

HOW FOOD FRAMES THE FESTIVALS:
THE JEWISH PATTERN

By Rabbi Arthur Waskow

The cycle of Jewish festivals has become intimately connected with specific foods, and the themes of the festivals lend themselves to focusing on specific aspects of what makes food sacred.

DAYS OF AWE: ROSH HASHANAH THROUGH YOM KIPPUR (Evening September 12, through September 22, 2007)

Rosh Hashanah is symbolically connected with eating apple slices dipped in honey. The apple evokes the round cycle of the year as it begins, and the honey hopes for its sweetness. The festival focuses on ten days (traditionally known as the Days of Awe) of tshuvah/ turning one's self in a new direction that culminate in Yom Kippur, a day of not eating or drinking at all.

WHAT MAKES FOOD SACRED?
A STUDY IN EIGHT DIMENSIONS

A report for the Sacred Food Project of
ALEPH: Alliance for Jewish Renewal

Under grants from the Kellogg Foundation
and the Schocken Foundation

Conference on Sacred Food, June 7- 8, 2006
At Garrison Institute

Debra Kolodny, Executive Director, ALEPH
Arlin Wasserman, Project Director
Rabbi Arthur Waskow, Editor

Advisory Council of the Sacred Food Project *

Rev. Clare Butterfield, Director, Faith in Place, interfaith environmental ministry in Chicago; Unitarian Universalist community minister.

Shireen Pishdadi, Faith in Place, Chicago