TEMPLE BETH HA TEPHILA
Preserving Our Planet
Mission Statement

We are told in Genesis that it was a commandment to Adam and Eve to serve and protect the Garden of Eden.  Many mitzvot found in the Bible and laws found in the Talmud instruct us to protect what the Jewish tradition views as “God’s creation”– the totality of the physical world in which we live.

• Judaism teaches that the earth is God\'s creation and that we are to be partners and co-workers with God in protecting the environment.
• Judaism stresses that we are not to waste or unnecessarily destroy anything of value.
• Judaism asserts that a wise person considers the long-range consequences of
  one’s actions and that we must plan for future generations.

For Jews, the environmental crisis is a religious challenge. As heirs to a tradition of stewardship that goes back to Genesis and that teaches us to be partners in the ongoing work of creation, we cannot accept the escalating destruction of our environment and its effect on human health and livelihood. Where we are despoiling our air, land, and water, it is our sacred duty as Jews to acknowledge our God-given responsibility and take action to alleviate environmental degradation and the pain and suffering that it causes. We must reaffirm and bequeath the tradition we have inherited which calls upon us to safeguard humanity’s home.

The mission statement for the congregation-wide project, Preserving Our Planet, is to:
Learn about the local, national, and international issues of earth stewardship and to engage in individual and collective behaviors that fulfill our religious and moral responsibility to model the behavior and reap both the financial and moral benefits, of creating a sustainable environment and ensure the survival of the planet.