Five reasons why climate change is an essential issue for Jewish families

As hard as it can be to keep up with the news when you have young kids, you’ve probably noticed that climate change is here and it’s real.

If the constant, dire warnings from scientists weren’t enough to pique your concern, the global mega-storms and bushfires of the past year – plus a certain global pandemic, with similar causes and effects to climate change – have gotten pretty much everyone’s attention.

So whether you schlep your family around in an SUV, in a hybrid, on a bike, or on public transport, it’s time for all parents – and, needless to say, that includes us Jewish parents – to stand up for our children and take action to confront the climate crisis.

Still, you may be wondering: What’s Jewish about climate change? And what do Jewish parents have to offer the effort to confront it? The answer to both is: a lot! Here are the five main reasons why Jewish parents can and should be at the forefront of climate action.

1. From one generation to the next

We Jews are proud of our kids, and nothing should make us prouder than seeing them stand up for their future by confronting climate change. In Australia, our young community is leading the way through youth groups Habonim Dror, Hashomer Hatzair and Netzer. Now, wouldn’t you love to be involved, too? The truth is our children are already leading the way on climate – the most inspirational climate leaders are young people – so our job is to follow their lead!

2. Justice, justice you shall pursue

We Jews love justice, and climate intersects with just about every justice issue there is – from racial justice to economic justice to immigration to public health disparities. There’s no way to confront climate change without combating the injustices tied to it, and vice versa. As Jews, it is impossible to follow the Torah’s commandment to pursue justice without joining the climate movement. That means listening to the voices of those most impacted and following their lead – they’ll benefit now but we’ll all benefit later. You can teach your kids first-hand about the Jewish commitment to justice by joining the fight for climate justice … and bringing them along.

3. Kids and the great outdoors

The Jewish people have a close connection to nature. Our children, like all other children, are encouraged to play outdoors, go to nature camps, attend youth movement camps in the school holidays and enjoy our great Australian climate. Some of our most impactful Jewish experiences happen outdoors. We all want our kids to experience this, too – but that’s only possible if our natural habitats aren’t threatened so much by logging, destructive invasive species, and deadly bushfires. Just why do the outdoors lead to such deep Jewish experiences? It’s not coincidental. The created world is where we experience ourselves as part of something larger. It’s where we get perspective, where we renew. When we are in nature, we can hear that still small voice inside us telling us that the world is filled with holiness and we are part of that, inseparable from it, and obligated to preserve it. Let’s listen to that voice, so our kids can hear it, too.

4. No Judaism without the natural world

There would be no Torah, no Shabbat, no Judaism without the inspiration that the natural world provides. Think of the majestic description of a world created in harmonious perfection in the Creation story in the opening chapter of Genesis. Psalms – which fill our prayer books – are full of natural imagery, including trees and mountains and rivers that celebrate being alive with us. And the principal Jewish holidays laid out in the Torah – Passover, Shavuot and Succot – are all agricultural festivals, carefully attuned to the seasons. Shabbat is the day that God stopped working to just enjoy the beauty of creation – and that’s why the Torah wants us to continue to observe Shabbat, as a “remembrance of the work of creation”. In short, there would be no Judaism without the natural world. We wouldn’t be setting a great example for our kids if we didn’t do everything we can to protect the very source of our lives and our tradition.

5. We want a future for our children

No one has ever accused Jewish parents of not doing the utmost for our kids and trying to secure the best future for them possible, right? Well, nowadays, that means making sure their generation has a future at all. As climate-fuelled disasters strike close to home – from floods to bushfires, storms to rising sea levels – you might be asking yourself what else may be coming around the corner. Scientists say we have less than a decade to turn the ship if we are to avoid immense human suffering and the destruction of earth’s life-support systems. What we do in the next two years to get on track matters. Young climate activists are constantly telling us this is an existential issue for their generation. As youth climate leader Greta Thunberg urges us: “I want you to act as if our house is on fire. Because it is.”

Be the change. We all want to pass on our precious Jewish traditions and our precious world to our children and their children. There is no continuity of the Jewish people and our beautiful Jewish families without human continuity. The most important way to ensure continuity is to fight for the future, and the most important time to do it is now.

This article was originally written by Rabbi Josh Weisman and published on Kveller. Rabbi Josh Weisman is a dad and a co-founder of the Big Bold Jewish Climate Festival and JTree in America. He writes, speaks, and teaches on climate and Judaism. He is currently the Senior Jewish Educator at Hillel at the University of Washington and is a past Jewish Emergent Network Rabbinic Fellow.