4A a - iA INN Come Celebrate Our 22nd Anniversary! Monday, August 23, 2010 Starting at 6:30 PM Temple Shir Shalom's FOOD FUN AND FIREWORKS FESTIVAL begins with an evening loaded with family fun, food tastings and games, and ends with a spectacular fireworks display! TORAH PORTION Save The Trees By Recycling Parshat Shoftim: - Deuteronomy 16:18-21:9; Isaiah 51:12-52:12. I To tempt your palate, some of the area's most popular restaurants will be on hand to help us celebrate: Bacco Ristorante • D'Pauli's • CPK Loccino's Italian Grill & Bar • RJ's Market Square Of Bloomfield Original Romano's • Rusty Bucket Hogan's • George's Honey Tree Little Daddy's • Brooklyn Bagel The Village Palace • Italia Fresca Bonefish Grill • Dairy Fresh Foods Achatz Pie Company • Phoenicia Uptown Parthenon • Goin' Postal Cutting Edge Cuisine • Bellacino's Hong Hua • Canape Cart • Beau Jacks Zoe's House of Pancakes • The Lodge Quarton Catering • Tomatoes A Pizza George's Senate Coney Island • Outback Maggie's Chocolate Fountain • Starbucks Achatz Catering and Soup • Uptown Grille Farmington Coney Island • The Franklin Grill The Vineyards/Bloom Catering Looking To Join Temple Shir Shalom? Bring The Whole Family Call Temple Shir Shalom's office to arrange for your complimentary tickets. Come get to know us! 248-737-8700 $20 per adult/$25 at the door • $10 per child/$15 at the door Contact Temple Shir Shalom's Office at 248-737-8700 To Purchase Tickets 42 August 12 • 2010 grew up in a family that always By the writing of the Sefer saw recycling as an important Ha-Hinukh (13th Century explana- way to give back to the earth and tion and discussion of each of the thereby say thank you to the Creator 613 commandments), the concept for that gift. Newspapers went to a of bal tashchit had been expanded neighborhood collection, glass jars into a more universal and positive were re-used around the message. "The purpose of house and egg cartons held this mitzvah is to teach little toys. us to love that which is I continue this family good and worthwhile and tradition. My commit- to cling to it, so that good ment to the earth includes becomes a part of us and thinking about the future we will avoid all that is evil recycling of the packaging and destructive' before I purchase a prod- So the simple act of car- uct and carrying my cloth ing about what happens to bags to the grocery and a newspaper or glass jar Target. Cantor Kat may represent how each Recycling is truly a Hastings individual feels about their Jewish commandment, and Special to the fellow human beings, and the proof text for it comes Jewish News in fact, all of our natural from this week's Torah resources. portion Shoftim. The portion dis- In this world where we look around cusses justice, courts of law and the and wonder how we can make a dif- rules of warfare. ference if at all, this commandment However, Deuteronomy 20:19 says we can. Midrash Sifre says, "if does not talk about how one should not for the trees, human life could treat the enemy, it talks about how not exist." So we need to save the to treat the trees: "When in your war trees to save ourselves. against a city you have to besiege it a Take care of the earth by recycling long time in order to capture it, you paper and anything else you can We must not destroy its trees, wielding need to protect the trees, and make the ax against them. You may eat of sure they are here for future genera- them, but you must not cut them tions. It's a mitzvah. 0 down. Are trees of the field human to withdraw before you into the Cantor Kat Hastings serves the Jewish besieged city?" community as a clergy member/chaplain According to the Etz Chaim Torah and is clergy-in-residence for the Grosse commentary, it was common prac- Pointe Jewish Council. tice in ancient warfare to destroy the enemy's fruit trees and fields. This type of attack took away a source of Conversations sustenance, which added pressure on 1)Why do you think Moses tells the besieged city to surrender. But the Israelites not to cut down Moses told the Israelites they were the fruit trees of the enemy? not to touch the fruit trees. The rab- bis expanded this teaching into the 2) Why and how did our parents commandment of bal tashchit, do and grandparents recycle? not waste or wantonly destroy any- thing. This is not just to be applied to 3) What can you do each day war times, but all times. We should to fulfill the mitzvah of bal not smash, break or tear apart any- tashchit? thing that can be useful or vital to sustain life.