Intention and Action: A Text Study on Responding to Global Hunger
Leviticus 25:3-6
| Translation |
Original |
| Six years you may sow your field and six years you may prune your vineyard and gather in the yield. But in the seventh year the land shall have a Sabbath of complete rest, a sabbath of God: you shall not sow your field or prune your vineyard. You shall not reap the after growth of your harvest or gather the grapes of your untrimmed vines; it shall be a year of complete rest for the land. But you may eat whatever the land during its sabbath will produce -- you, your male and female slaves, the hired and bound laborers who live with you. [JPS translation] |
שֵׁשׁ שָׁנִים תִּזְרַע שָׂדֶךָ וְשֵׁשׁ שָׁנִים תִּזְמֹר כַּרְמֶךָ וְאָסַפְתָּ אֶת תְּבוּאָתָהּ: וּבַשָּׁנָה הַשְּׁבִיעִת שַׁבַּת שַׁבָּתוֹן יִהְיֶה לָאָרֶץ שַׁבָּת לַה' שָׂדְךָ לֹא תִזְרָע וְכַרְמְךָ לֹא תִזְמֹר: אֵת סְפִיחַ קְצִירְךָ לֹא תִקְצוֹר וְאֶת עִנְּבֵי נְזִירֶךָ לֹא תִבְצֹר שְׁנַת שַׁבָּתוֹן יִהְיֶה לָאָרֶץ: וְהָיְתָה שַׁבַּת הָאָרֶץ לָכֶם לְאָכְלָה לְךָ וּלְעַבְדְּךָ וְלַאֲמָתֶךָ וְלִשְׂכִירְךָ וּלְתוֹשָׁבְךָ הַגָּרִים עִמָּךְ:
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Suggested Discussion Questions
1. Who are the players in this text – seen and unseen?
2. What power dynamics are at play?
3. What social justice themes emerge from this text?
Leviticus 25:11-24
| Translation |
Original |
| That fiftieth year shall be a jubilee for you: you shall not sow, neither shall you reap the aftergrowth or harvest the untrimmed vines, for it is a jubilee. It shall be holy to you: you may only eat the growth direct from the field. In this year of jubilee, each of you shall return to his holding. When you sell property to your neighbor, or buy any from your neighbor, you shall not wrong one another. In buying from your neighbor, you shall deduct only for the number of years since the jubilee; and in selling to you, he shall charge you only for the remaining crop years: the more such years, the higher the price you pay; the fewer such years, the lower the price; for what he is selling you is a number of harvests. Do not wrong one another, but fear your God; for I the Lord and your God. [JPS translation] |
יוֹבֵל הִוא שְׁנַת הַחֲמִשִּׁים שָׁנָה תִּהְיֶה לָכֶם לֹא תִזְרָעוּ וְלֹא תִקְצְרוּ אֶת סְפִיחֶיהָ וְלֹא תִבְצְרוּ אֶת נְזִרֶיהָ: כִּי יוֹבֵל הִוא קֹדֶשׁ תִּהְיֶה לָכֶם מִן הַשָּׂדֶה תֹּאכְלוּ אֶת תְּבוּאָתָהּ: בִּשְׁנַת הַיּוֹבֵל הַזֹּאת תָּשֻׁבוּ אִישׁ אֶל אֲחֻזָּתוֹ: וְכִי תִמְכְּרוּ מִמְכָּר לַעֲמִיתֶךָ אוֹ קָנֹה מִיַּד עֲמִיתֶךָ אַל תּוֹנוּ אִישׁ אֶת אָחִיו: בְּמִסְפַּר שָׁנִים אַחַר הַיּוֹבֵל תִּקְנֶה מֵאֵת עֲמִיתֶךָ בְּמִסְפַּר שְׁנֵי תְבוּאֹת יִמְכָּר לָךְ: לְפִי רֹב הַשָּׁנִים תַּרְבֶּה מִקְנָתוֹ וּלְפִי מְעֹט הַשָּׁנִים תַּמְעִיט מִקְנָתוֹ כִּי מִסְפַּר תְּבוּאֹת הוּא מֹכֵר לָךְ: וְלֹא תוֹנוּ אִישׁ אֶת עֲמִיתוֹ וְיָרֵאתָ מֵאֱלֹהֶיךָ כִּי אֲנִי ה' אֱלֹהֵיכֶם: וַעֲשִׂיתֶם אֶת חֻקֹּתַי וְאֶת מִשְׁפָּטַי תִּשְׁמְרוּ וַעֲשִׂיתֶם אֹתָם וִישַׁבְתֶּם עַל הָאָרֶץ לָבֶטַח: וְנָתְנָה הָאָרֶץ פִּרְיָהּ וַאֲכַלְתֶּם לָשֹׂבַע וִישַׁבְתֶּם לָבֶטַח עָלֶיהָ: וְכִי תֹאמְרוּ מַה נֹּאכַל בַּשָּׁנָה הַשְּׁבִיעִת הֵן לֹא נִזְרָע וְלֹא נֶאֱסֹף אֶת תְּבוּאָתֵנוּ: וְצִוִּיתִי אֶת בִּרְכָתִי לָכֶם בַּשָּׁנָה הַשִּׁשִּׁית וְעָשָׂת אֶת הַתְּבוּאָה לִשְׁלֹשׁ הַשָּׁנִים: וּזְרַעְתֶּם אֵת הַשָּׁנָה הַשְּׁמִינִת וַאֲכַלְתֶּם מִן הַתְּבוּאָה יָשָׁן עַד הַשָּׁנָה הַתְּשִׁיעִת עַד בּוֹא תְּבוּאָתָהּ תֹּאכְלוּ יָשָׁן: וְהָאָרֶץ לֹא תִמָּכֵר לִצְמִתֻת כִּי לִי הָאָרֶץ כִּי גֵרִים וְתוֹשָׁבִים אַתֶּם עִמָּדִי: וּבְכֹל אֶרֶץ אֲחֻזַּתְכֶם גְּאֻלָּה תִּתְּנוּ לָאָרֶץ:
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Suggested Discussion Questions
1. Who are the players in this text – seen and unseen?
2. What power dynamics are at play?
3. What social justice themes emerge from this text?
Mishna, Pirkei Avot 3:20
| Translation |
Original |
| Without sustenance, there is no Torah; without Torah there is no sustenance. |
. אם אין קמח, אין תורה; אם אין תורה, אין קמח. |
This means that without food, there can be no education, no progress, no justice. The verse continues in the inverse: “Without Torah, there is no sustenance,” meaning, without justice, the world is not nourished. As Jews, we must address the injustice of hunger before we get to anything else because its resolution is a precondition for a moral Jewish life.
Yet, how do we make a difference in the lives of those who are vulnerable to hunger? Jewish tradition often explores the motivations of the giver when highlighting the moral imperative to help. Are our motivations and intentions to make a difference enough? Or, do we need a deeper guiding framework? The following text study will explore the role of intention in acts of tzedek—justice. We hope it will spark dialogue to guide your own action to address global hunger.
In the Torah, the motivation to help the poor is often connected to our identification with the stranger. The Talmud points out that the injunction to protect the stranger occurs more times in the Torah than the laws of Shabbat and kashrut , or even the commandment to love God (Bava Metzia 59b).
Exodus 23:6-9
| Translation |
Original |
| You shall not oppress a stranger, for you know the feelings of the stranger, having yourselves been strangers in the land of Egypt. [JPS translation] |
וְגֵר לֹא תִלְחָץ וְאַתֶּם יְדַעְתֶּם אֶת נֶפֶשׁ הַגֵּר כִּי גֵרִים הֱיִיתֶם בְּאֶרֶץ מִצְרָיִם:
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- What does this text identify as the motivation for protecting the stranger?
- What kind of relationship does this text set up between ourselves and the stranger? What is the nature of the power dynamic between the two?
Rabbi Emanuel Rackman, “Torah Concept of Empathic Justice Can Bring Peace,” The Jewish Week, (New York, 3 April 1977), p.19
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[Empathic justice] seeks to make people identify themselves with each other – with each other’s needs, with each other’s hopes and aspirations, with each other’s defeats and frustrations. Because Jews have known the distress of slaves and the loneliness of strangers, we are to project ourselves into their souls and make their plight our own
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- How does this text define empathy? How does this definition compare with your understanding of empathy?
- Do you think it is possible to identify with others based on a very ancient history of oppression? Should empathy be based on a different kind of connection?
- What role does empathy play in your own acts of tzedek?
| Political Scientist Uday Singh Mehta, discussing the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein1 |
| [Wittgenstein refers to the] condition of not "finding your feet" in a strange country or among strange traditions, and he accepts that condition as a bittersweet feature of what it means to be human under conditions of pluralism. In the face of this pluralism [we can articulate] the conditions, really the attitude, for what amounts to a conversation across boundaries of strangeness. I have described this attitude as a posture of imaginative humility, for it accepts that there is no shortcut around the messiness of communication, no immanent truth on which words can fix, no easy glossary of translation; instead, just the richness or paucity of the vocabularies we use to describe ourselves and those we are trying to understand. |
- What is “imaginative humility”? What is the relationship between “empathic justice” and “imaginative humility”?
- What kind of relationship does “imaginative humility” set up between ourselves and strangers?
- Can “imaginative humility” provide an alternative framework for tzedek to “empathic justice”?
Jewish tradition emphasizes identification with the stranger as the basis for tzedek. Many scholars and philosophers have weighed in on the challenge of identifying with strangers.
1. Mehta, Uday Singh. Liberalism and Empire . Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1999: 216.
Conclusion
Mishna, Pirkei Avot 4:1
| Translation |
Original |
| Ben Zoma said: Who is he that is wise? He who learns from every man, as it is said: From all have I gained understanding. [AJWS translation] |
בן זומא אומר איזהו חכם הלומד מכל אדם שנאמר (תהלים קי"ט) מכל מלמדי השכלתי.
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The Rockefeller Foundation set out to transform agricultural production without first developing a relationship with those most intimately connected to agriculture in India—the farmers themselves. The impact of development will be felt most deeply by those at the frontlines, and they stand to lose when development projects don’t respond to their needs. As American Jews, we often do not have the opportunity to visit directly with those facing poverty and hunger in developing countries to build a relationship with them. How can we, as philanthropists and activists, model our own acts of tzedek to best serve their needs?
We can begin by acknowledging that knowing the heart of the stranger is not a given, but requires learning, listening and “imaginative humility.” Most of us do not know what it means to be food insecure and hungry. We certainly cannot know what kinds of solutions will be best for those living in places where we do not live. Yet, across developing
countries, those facing hunger are raising their voices and creating solutions for their communities. We must seek out opportunities to learn about their work and support their efforts.
Conclusion
Mishna, Pirkei Avot 4:1
| Translation |
Original |
| Ben Zoma said: Who is he that is wise? He who learns from every man, as it is said: From all have I gained understanding. [AJWS translation] |
בן זומא אומר איזהו חכם הלומד מכל אדם שנאמר (תהלים קי"ט) מכל מלמדי השכלתי.
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The Rockefeller Foundation set out to transform agricultural production without first developing a relationship with those most intimately connected to agriculture in India—the farmers themselves. The impact of development will be felt most deeply by those at the frontlines, and they stand to lose when development projects don’t respond to their needs. As American Jews, we often do not have the opportunity to visit directly with those facing poverty and hunger in developing countries to build a relationship with them. How can we, as philanthropists and activists, model our own acts of tzedek to best serve their needs?
We can begin by acknowledging that knowing the heart of the stranger is not a given, but requires learning, listening and “imaginative humility.” Most of us do not know what it means to be food insecure and hungry. We certainly cannot know what kinds of solutions will be best for those living in places where we do not live. Yet, across developing
countries, those facing hunger are raising their voices and creating solutions for their communities. We must seek out opportunities to learn about their work and support their efforts.
Conclusion
Mishna, Pirkei Avot 4:1
| Translation |
Original |
| Ben Zoma said: Who is he that is wise? He who learns from every man, as it is said: From all have I gained understanding. [AJWS translation] |
בן זומא אומר איזהו חכם הלומד מכל אדם שנאמר (תהלים קי"ט) מכל מלמדי השכלתי.
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The Rockefeller Foundation set out to transform agricultural production without first developing a relationship with those most intimately connected to agriculture in India—the farmers themselves. The impact of development will be felt most deeply by those at the frontlines, and they stand to lose when development projects don’t respond to their needs. As American Jews, we often do not have the opportunity to visit directly with those facing poverty and hunger in developing countries to build a relationship with them. How can we, as philanthropists and activists, model our own acts of tzedek to best serve their needs?
We can begin by acknowledging that knowing the heart of the stranger is not a given, but requires learning, listening and “imaginative humility.” Most of us do not know what it means to be food insecure and hungry. We certainly cannot know what kinds of solutions will be best for those living in places where we do not live. Yet, across developing
countries, those facing hunger are raising their voices and creating solutions for their communities. We must seek out opportunities to learn about their work and support their efforts.
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