NOTE: This is the 5th in a series of posts linking social and environmental justice issues to the 7 sephirot of the Omer cycle. To read the past four posts, please visit our blog.
WEEK 5: Tiferet: Opening to Beauty & Brokenness
by Michelle Moskowitz Brown
The light of Tiferet is strong, demanding, radiant. Notice colors this week, the subtle and vibrant palates of nature. Notice your own being and the waves of emotion that move through you. Tiferet shows us the beauty and brokenness of the world and says Open to all of it, this is where you live. – Rabbi Yael Levy
In this season before the High Holy Days, it is an honor to have been asked to explore the relationship between the sephirah of Tiferet (beauty) and food justice. I believe that everyone has a right to food that meets their cultural needs and preferences. As a child I grew up poor in the housing projects of Canarsie, Brooklyn, without connection to the beauty and bounty of food. It is for this reason that when I first ate a raspberry from a community garden, it felt revolutionary.
There are three categories of repair related to food: Food security, food justice, and food sovereignty. One is not better than the other, rather they represent approaches to ensuring everyone has the food they need to eat well and feed their families. In our work at Local Matters our programs span all three: food security represented by providing free food at community centers; food justice enacted when we invest resources in bringing Veggie Van’s food retail and free delivery to neighborhoods affected by food apartheid; and food sovereignty when we help build capacity at neighborhood-based programs.
Tiferet asks us to be open and try to balance. When it comes to food justice, there are lots of ways that people set out to address equitable food access. There is no right way to do it, but all solutions should have the support and participation of those affected. For example, for some people, a community fridge might be a convenient way to access food. However, the approach will not be successful if it does not meet specific needs.
As we consider what actions we can take as individuals here are some questions we might ask:
How is this action considering the beneficiary of my support? For example, when I donate food, do I clean my cabinets of all the food my family was never going to eat or enjoy? Or do I consider donating food that would be a sacrifice for me, and perhaps of higher value to another?
When I want to help people experiencing food insecurity, do I only step in to volunteer for a day in a garden or at a food bank? Or do I couple that helpful gesture by educating myself about SNAP, and supporting organizations that are fighting to preserve and enhance the social safety net?
Do I use food charity as a simple way to do my part and feel good? Or do I also consider education and action about poverty, segregation, and people living without housing?
There can be no true change in food justice when it is viewed in isolation.
At the same time, getting back to the beauty of Tiferet, food is the perfect entry point to social and racial justice. What could be more beautiful than the vibrant color of a garden’s tomatoes, eggplant, corn, greens, squashes, and blueberries? These foods are whole, and they can remind us of the balance we seek to find in our lives and in our actions.
Here is to the beauty, joy, and celebration of the season, as we head to the fall harvest and the promise and reflection of a new year!
With love, Michelle