Richard Levy remembers well a conversation he had with a fellow student in
his first year of rabbinical school at Hebrew Union College-Jewish
Institute
of Religion. The two rabbis-to-be were discussing Jewish dietary
restrictions, and felt that Reform Jews should eat pork on principle.
But a funny thing happened on the way to the rabbinate: By the end of that
year, Levy stopped eating pork. Then, he stopped mixing milk and meat. And
eventually he adopted Judaism's dietary restrictions one by one, until he
found himself keeping kosher in his home.
"It's not that I was making decisions," he said. "I was being called to
act."
The Los Angeles-based rabbi recalled this story during a panel discussion
at
the annual gathering last month in Monterey of the Central Conference of
American Rabbis. The topic: where the Reform movement should go in terms
of
its dietary restrictions.
But what made this discussion unusual was, rather than adopting
recommendations that Reform events and conferences be kosher, the rabbis
on
the panel were mostly advocating that the movement encourage
vegetarianism.
[Please note that a shift toward vegetarianism would be a major step
toward
greater observance of the kosher laws.]
A resolution suggesting that vegetarianism is a Jewish value, encouraging
Jewish families to have vegetarian meals at their celebratory events and
calling upon the CCAR and Union of American Hebrew Congregations as well
as
Reform synagogues to reduce the amount of meat at their functions was
scheduled to be voted upon. However, due to lack of time it was tabled for
further discussion.
"Being Jewish reaches beyond the synagogue, " Levy explained. "What we eat
is
a religious question because the Torah makes it one."
Keeping kosher brings God into everyday life -- in the supermarket, in the
kitchen and in the home, he said.
Rabbi Barry Schwartz of Congregation Mkor Shalom in Cherry Hill, N.J.,
took
it a step further. Schwartz, who has been a vegetarian for more than 20
years, is the author of the resolution. Following Levy, he remarked that
talking about food is not easy.
"We eat three times a day; it's an important part of our life," he said.
"People are defensive and edgy about food because it's a lifestyle issue."
And while the issue of vegetarianism is hotly debated in the environmental
community, even there, he said, it is not too strongly pushed, because
environmentalists don't want to lose members over it.
His resolution does not call on the movement to be vegetarian -- "It
wouldn't get very far if it did," said Schwartz, who admitted that even as
written, its passage by the CCAR is a long shot.
But he said promoting a vegetarian diet could be considered a Jewish value
because of Judaism's prohibitions "against unnecessarily destroying
resources
and reverence for life."
Rabbi Everett Gendler of Great Barrington, Mass. posed the question, "What
is
the most appropriate way to relate in harmony to our fellow creatures?"
Gendler cited many reasons why vegetarianism should be considered,
including:
- Chickens raised specifically for farming must be declawed and
"debeaked" so they don't poke at each other.
- Sixteen pounds of grain are needed for one pound of beef, and three
pounds
of grain are needed for one pound of chicken -- the excess grain could be
used to feed hungry humans.
- Chicken feed lots pollute surrounding groundwater, and chicken farms
create problems of waste disposal.
- Working conditions are poor for the humans that must work in these
places.
It goes beyond dietary issues, said Gendler: "We still have a social
responsibility. Our soul cannot rest in harmonious repose without
addressing
all of these issues."
Rabbi Charles Kroloff of Westfield, N.J., the outgoing president of the
CCAR, has made wellness a key issue during his tenure. A vegetarian diet
should be considered for the benefits to one's health, he said.
"We're the only creatures who can think self-consciously about what we do.
Doesn't it make sense for us to exercise discipline in this?"
