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TE Goes Green (or is at least trying)

“You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to desist from it “,Pirkei Avot 2:2

As Jews we are asked to live lives of responsibility, whether for our families, our business, our culture or our people. However, responsibility in current society has negative connotations. When something goes wrong, everyone looks for who is “Responsible”.  Responsibility has become a synonym for “guilt.” Whoever is responsible, is the one who is guilty. Yet this is not really what the term was designed for.

Alan Morinis points out in Everyday Holiness that there is debate among scholars whether the word achrayut  is derived from the Hebrew root achar, which means “after,” or “acher,” which means “other.” The essence of responsibility can be seen as being concerned about what comes after (i.e., the consequences of one’s actions) or being sensitive to the other (i.e., attending to the needs of the people around you).  Morinis describes responsibility as anticipating the outcome of what we do. The responsible person considers the likely outcome of his or her actions, or lack of action, and changes course accordingly. Responsibility creates an awareness that everything we do has consequences and that those outcomes really matter, whether they play out over time or in the lives of other people.

A low carbon economy is a world goal on a large scale that seems beyond our reach. But Genesis teaches that we are responsible for this earth, whether as rulers (Gen 1:28) or custodians (Gen 2:15). TE’s commitment to a lower-carbon “footprint” started this year with Bob Herrick and Jean Silk participating in the People’s Climate March in New York City on September 21, 2014. We started small by recycling and utilizing  re-usable utensils at Shabbat dinners all year. A more modest improvement is that the new building addition has plans for LED lighting and more energy-efficient heating.  Rise Siegel has met with a lighting specialist who will help us move from incandescent lighting to greener and brighter options in the Sanctuary building. An even larger scale project will be solar energy.  Steve Grodzinsky and Rise are helping to plan the addition of solar panels to the Sanctuary roof this Spring. An exciting development in our quest for solar energy  is that we have been approved by United Illuminating for a State program which will allow us to sell back energy credits to the network. This will greatly facilitate our ability to finance solar panels. Of course we are also going to need matching funds from the congregation to proceed. Do you have ideas, energy or enthusiasm for this important work? When we all are responsible and do what we are capable of doing, we repair the world and make living for all more bearable. Please call me or Jean Silk, chair of the Tikkun Olam Committee and get involved.