Animals Subscribe
A selection of initiatives, blogs, resources and communities on Jewcology which focus on animals.
From the Blogs
Leading US Animal Rights Activist Visiting Israel to Tell How His Holocaust Experiences Shaped His Activism
- April 29, 2015
Alex Hershaft, Ph.D., is coming to Israel from May 2 to May 13 to explain how his experiences in the Warsaw ghetto was a major factor in his becoming a leading animal rights activist. With the theme, "From surviving the Warsaw Ghetto to co-founding the U.S. Animal Rights movement,"Dr. Hershaft will be giving several talks and will meet with Jewish and Arab animal rights activists. In his lectures, Hershaft will discuss how dealing with the trauma and grief over the loss of his family during the Holocaust shaped his values and outlook on life, and increased his sense of ...
Vote for Green Israel in the WZC Election before April 30th!
- March 27, 2015
You can support the Israel you want to see. All American Jews can vote in the World Zionist Congress election going on right now. One of the most common questions, we get is why it costs $10 to vote. As Mirele Goldsmith, a Green Israel slate member answers: "The American Zionist Movement has contracted with an independent company to run the online election. This is to insure that the election is fair. The registration fee is being used exclusively to pay for the election. It is not a donation to the WZO. I wish there was no fee, but it is a small price to pay ...
Eden Village is hiring farm educator apprentices for 2015 growing season!
- January 26, 2015
Eden Village Camp is Hiring! Submit Your Application About Eden Village Camp: Eden Village Camp aims to be a living model of a thriving, sustainable Jewish community, grounded in social responsibility and inspired Jewish spiritual life. By bringing the wisdom of our tradition to the environmental, social, and personal issues important to today’s young people, we practice a Judaism that is substantive and relevant. Through our Jewish environmental and service-learning curricula, joyful Shabbat observance, pluralistic Jewish expression, and inspiring, diverse staff ...
Grow & Behold Kosher Pastured Meats
- January 16, 2015
Ordering Information Place your order online at www.growandbehold.com, where you can see what we currently have in stock, what we offer, and our prices. Or, give us a call at 888-790-5781 Mon - Thurs. from 9am-5pm EST and Fridays from 9am-12pm EST Any questions can also be sent to info@growandbehold.com Our Story While working on organic farms, we fell in love -- with each other, and with the work of feeding people good food produced by farmers who love the work and the land. We knew that the meat raised on pasture was not only of the highest quality ...
Review of “The Vision of Eden: Animal Welfare and Vegetarianism in Jewish Law and Mysticism, ” by Rabbi David Sears
- December 31, 2014
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David Sears. The Vision of Eden: Animal Welfare and Vegetarianism in Jewish Law and Mysticism, Create Space Independent Publishing Platform; 2nd edition (December 29, 2014), 400 pages Reviewed by Richard H. Schwartz, Ph.D. Currently most Jews eat meat and other animal products and relatively few Jews seem concerned about the cruel mistreatment of animals on factory farms and in other areas. However, David Sears landmark book, now in its just released second edition, with its many examples of Jewish teachings about compassion for animals, has the potential to change ...
Out of the ark and into the garden: The story of Noah in the Sabbatical year
- October 24, 2014
There are three places in the Torah which talk about human beings and the animals – including wild animals – sharing one food supply. In Eden, in the ark during the flood, and in the Sabbatical year or Shmita. There’s a lot more to these stories, but you don’t really need to know much more to understand the basic message of the Torah. We lived with the wild animals once, rather than carving out separate spaces for us and our domesticated fellow travelers. According to the Torah, that is the real truth, and all the owning and property and buying and selling is an ...
Religious Environmentalists
- October 14, 2014
- 1 comment
This month I want to highlight the various groups that continue to do amazing work throughout the various faith communities. Coming together as Jewish environmentalists to collaborate and share ideas is crucial, but I am also a strong believer in working with other faith communities, especially when it comes to advocacy. The following are several groups I think do fantastic work and can be excellent partners and/or resources in connection with environmental learning and activism: GreenFaith (http://greenfaith.org/): GreenFaith has an amazing fellowship program ...
Earth Etude for Elul 29- Shanah Tovah
- September 24, 2014
photos by Gabi Mezger text by Rabbi Katy Z. Allen May you find yourself in the new year constantly in motion... surrounded by love like a seal in water... reflecting light visible even in the light of those around you... moving slowly when necessary, yet always steadily... raging ferociously against the ills and injustices of the world... with unending energy, unceasing in your efforts like the constantly moving waves... zeroing in on what is most beautiful and most nourishing... &nb...
Earth Etude for Elul 17- Meditation on Elul
- September 11, 2014
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by Richard H. Schwartz Elul is here. It represents a chance for heightened introspection, an opportunity to do teshuva and improve our lives, before the “Days of Awe,” the days of judgment, the “High holidays” of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. The shofar is blown every morning (except on Shabbat) in synagogues during the month of Elul to awaken us from slumber, to remind us to consider where we are in our lives and to urge us to make positive changes. How should we respond to Elul today? How should we respond when we hear reports almost ...
Why Jewcology Matters
- September 10, 2014
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It feels good to be back blogging on Jewcology after a 6 month hiatus. During this period, my wife gave birth to a baby boy and we moved from NYC to Maryland. Although it has been a very hectic time, as those with children or nieces/nephews know, the birth of a child changes one's perspective on the world. I have been involved with Jewcology since its inception and think it serves a very important purpose. I am thrilled that a new group of individuals has become involved, breathing a new sense of energy into the movement, including the launching of the redesigned ...
Earth Etude for Elul 9 – A Cry in the Night: My Decision not to Consume Dairy
- September 3, 2014
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by Diana G. A memory: Our newborn is up again. I turn to the clock. It’s 4:25 am. Less than three hours since she last awoke. My husband and I are exhausted, and we lie quietly for a few moments, willing our daughter back to sleep. But her cries are persistent. Who knows if she’s hungry, cold, or simply distressed and looking for comfort? Regardless, we’ve reached our “give-her-a-moment” limit; there’s only so long one can ignore an infant baby’s cries. My husband grabs for his glasses, makes his way to the nursery, and returns ...
Why I Will Always Be a Vegan
- August 13, 2014
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I will always be a vegan because the vegan diet is the diet most consistent with Jewish teachings on preserving human health, treating animals with compassion, protecting the environment, conserving natural resources, helping hungry people, and pursuing peace. I will always be a vegan because animal-based diets contribute significantly to heart disease, several forms of cancer, diabetes, and other killer diseases. I will always be a vegan because animal-based agriculture is a major contributor to climate change, deforestation, soil erosion, deforestation, ...
Freeing Ourselves at Passover From Diets That Harm Us and Our Planet
- April 1, 2014
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Some Jews commendably go to extraordinary lengths before and during Passover to avoid certain foods, in keeping with Torah mitzvot. But at the same time, many continue eating other foods that, by Torah standards, are hardly ideal. On Passover, Jews are prohibited from eating, owning, or otherwise benefiting from chometz, foods such as breads, cakes, and cereals, that are made from one of the five grains (wheat, barley, rye, spelt, and oats) that ferment from contact with liquid. These prohibitions are based on several Torah verses and are observed with great care by ...
A Jewish Vegetarian Response to Efforts to Ban Shechita
- March 16, 2014
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As president emeritus of Jewish Vegetarians of North America, I would like to address the many recent efforts in several countries to ban shechita (Jewish ritual slaughter). First, although JVNA believes that every person should be a vegan and that there should be NO slaughter of animals at all, we also oppose efforts to single out shechita for special criticism. There are many factors in the shechita process designed to minimize pain. Animals are to be killed by a shochet (ritual slaughterer), a religious Jew who is especially trained and certified. He ideally ...
Frequently Asked Questions About Animal Sacrifices
- March 9, 2014
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1. If God wanted us to have vegetarian diets and not harm animals, why were the Biblical sacrificial services established? During the time of Moses, it was the general practice among all nations to worship by means of sacrifice. There were many associated idolatrous practices. The great Jewish philosopher Maimonides stated that God did not command the Israelites to give up and discontinue all these manners of service because "to obey such a commandment would have been contrary to the nature of man, who generally cleaves to that to which he is used to." For this reason, ...
Purim and Vegetarianism
- March 5, 2014
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There are many connections between vegetarianism and the Jewish festival of Purim: 1. According to the Talmud, Queen Esther, the heroine of the Purim story, was a vegetarian while she lived in the palace of King Achashverus. She was thus able to avoid violating the kosher dietary laws while keeping her Jewish identity secret. 2. During Purim it is a mitzvah to give "mat'not evyonim" (added charity to poor and hungry people). In contrast to these acts of sharing and compassion, animal-based diets involve the feeding of over 70 percent of the grain in the United States ...
Why Jews Should Oppose Ag-Gag Laws
- January 23, 2014
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The current widespread mistreatment of animals in the food industry, especially on factory farms, is inconsistent with Judaism’s ethic of compassion for animals. Nevertheless, most Jews are eating foods that entail animal abuse in almost all major phases of animal agriculture. In addition to institutionalized abuses that are integral to the raising of animals for food, many undercover videos have revealed sadistic mistreatment of animals by workers. But instead of taking the necessary steps to put an end to such abuses, the animal food industries would rather cover ...
Book Review of “A Plate of Resistance: Vegetarianism as a Response to World Violence”
- January 23, 2014
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A Plate of Resistance: Vegetarianism as a Response to World Violence By Helene Defossez; translated from the French by Katie Chabriere: illustrated by Marc Defossez; New York: Lantern Books, 2014 Reviewed by Richard H. Schwartz, Ph.D. A Plate of Resistance is a very welcome addition to the rapidly growing number of books on vegetarianism and veganism. The book is relatively slim – only 141 pages, including a foreword, preface, bibliography, notes, and a list of background resources - and it does not aim to present a comprehensive coverage of all aspects of ...
Creating a Jewish Vegetarian Consciousness
- December 24, 2013
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Based on my over 30 years of promoting vegetarianism and veganism in the Jewish community and beyond, I believe that it is essential that there be a major shift to plant-based diets to help shift our imperiled planet onto a sustainable path. Jews can and should play a major role in accomplishing this goal. As indicated in my article below, a major societal shift by Jews (and others) to veg diets is essential to efforts to avert a looming climate catastrophe, major food, water, and energy scarcities, and other potential environmental disasters. "Environmental Catastro...
Is Fur a Jewish Issue?
- December 10, 2013
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Jewish worshipers chant every Sabbath morning, "The soul of every living being shall praise God’s name" (Nishmat kol chai t’varech et shim’chah). Yet, some come to synagogue during winter months wearing coats that required the cruel treatment of some of those living beings whose souls, we declare, praise God. Should Jews wear fur? Several factors should be considered: 1. What does the Jewish tradition teach about the treatment of animals? 2. How much suffering do animals who are raised or trapped for their fur experience? 3. Does the wearing of fur coats have ...
