What is ShalomVeg?ShalomVeg is the first non-denominational resource site and online community for Jewish vegans, vegetarians, activists and curious omnivores. Features include learning pages, profiles, networking tools, recipes and activism. -Read More
Quick Quote
“The Holy One, Blessed be He, said to Moses: Eating meat is not essential to one’s nutrition; rather, it is a matter of gluttony, of filling one’s belly and of increasing one's lust. Meat also gives rise in human beings to a cruel and evil temperament..therefore the Holy One, blessed be He, did not tell Moses that He would give the Israelites meat, rather bread, which is a fitting food and essential for the human temperament. ” Don Isaac Abarbanel (1437-1508), commentary on Exodus 16:4
Spread the Word!
Help ShalomVeg grow by spreading the word! Print out these flyers, and leave them at your synagogue, community center or other places where you think there might be people interested in the site. (The flyers are in PDF format) Download large flyers here . Download small flyers here .
Who's Online
We have 9 guests online
Number of Visitors Since 11/2007
Visitors: 2261073
|
 A VEG GUIDE TO JERUSALEM - Visiting Jerusalem and want to eat vegan? This holy city has more than just falafel. We have reviewed the best places to eat and shop, and will even tell you how to say vegetarian in Hebrew.  ARTICLES AND ESSAYS - Learn about Jewish views of animals, eating and ethics from our growing article collection. You can also submit your own articles and essays to the site and have your writing published.  WE NEED RECIPES! - We have a growing database of recipes- from classic Jewish dishes made veggie, to tasty vegan treats. Add your own favorite to the collection, or comment on those you have tried.  MAKE A FRIEND - Create a profile on ShalomVeg and search for other Jewish vegetarians in your area using our networking features, including instant messaging and bookmarking. Registration is free and completely private.  FORUMS - Have a question to ask? Want to share your opinion on a current event or issue? In the ShalomVeg forums, you can participate in discussions on various topics and learn along with the community.  MULTIMEDIA - Visit the multimedia section of ShalomVeg to see our selection of videos and audio including the new Jewish Vegetarians of North America documentary, A Sacred Duty.  NEW VEGETARIAN OR VEGAN? ShalomVeg has a collection of articles covering the basics of veg*n and animal rights issues. Learn about modern farming methods, animal rights philosophy, vegetarian health and activism tips.  QUICK QUOTES - Visit our quotes collection to see what classic Jewish texts, rabbis and modern thinkers have to say about our relationship to animals, the environment, and health.
|
|
Wednesday, 28 March 2012 |
|
Passover and Vegetarianism By Richard SchwartzPassover and vegetarianism? Can the two be related? After all, what is a seder without gefilte fish, chicken soup, chopped liver, chicken, and other meats? And what about the shankbone to commemorate the paschal sacrifice. And doesn't Jewish law mandate that Jews eat meat to rejoice on Passover and other Jewish festivals?
An increasing number of Jews are turning to vegetarianism and they are finding ways to celebrate vegetarian Passovers while being consistent with Jewish teachings. For many years, Jonathan Wolf, a Jewish vegetarian activist, has had up to 50 people at his Manhattan apartment for completely vegetarian seders. This year the Jewish environmental group Shomrei Adamah ("Guardians of the Earth") has scheduled a vegetarian seder.
Contrary to a common perception, Jews are not required to eat meat at the Passover seder or any other time. According to the Talmud (Pesachim 109a), since the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem, Jews need not eat meat to celebrate Jewish festivals. In recent scholarly articles by Rabbi Albert Cohen in the Journal of Halacha and Contemporary Society and Rabbi J. David Bleich in Tradition magazine, this concept is reinforced. Also, Israeli chief rabbis, including Rabbi Shlomo Goren, former Ashkenazic Chief Rabbi of Israel and Rabbi Sha'ar Yashuv Cohen, Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi of Haifa, were or are strict vegetarians.
The use of the shankbone originated in the time of the Talmud as a means of commemorating the paschal lamb. However, since the talmudic scholar, Rabbi Huna, states that a beet can be used for this purpose (Pesachim), many Jewish vegetarians substitute a beet for the shankbone. The important point is that the shankbone is a symbol and no meat need be eaten at the seder.
Jewish vegetarians see vegetarian values reinforced by several Passover themes:
1. At the seder, Jews say, "Let all who are hungry come and eat". As on other occasions, at the conclusion of the meal, bircat hamazone is recited to thank God for providing food for the world's people. This seems inconsistent with the consumption of animal-centered diets which involves the feeding of 70% of the grain grown in the United States and two-thirds of the grain that we export to animals destined for slaughter and the importing of beef from other countries, while 20 million of the world's people die of hunger and its effects annually.
Although he is not a vegetarian, Rabbi Jay Marcus, Spiritual Leader of the Young Israel of Staten Island, saw a connection between simpler diets and helping hungry people. He commented on the fact that "karpas" (eating of greens) comes immediately before "yahatz" (the breaking of the middle matzah for later use as the "afikomen" (desert) in the seder service. He concluded that those who live on simpler foods (greens, for example) will more readily divide their possesions and share with others.
Many Jewish vegetarians see connections between the oppression that their ancestors suffered and the current plight of the billions of people who presently lack sufficient food and other essential resources. Vegetarian diets require far less land, water, gasoline, pesticides, fertilizer, and other resources, and thus enable the better sharing of God's abundant resources, which can help reduce global hunger and poverty.
2. The main Passover theme is freedom. While relating the story of our ancestors' slavery in Egypt and their redemption through God's power and beneficence, many Jewish vegetarians also consider the "slavery" of animals on modern "factory farms". Contrary to Jewish teachings of "tsa'ar ba'alei chayim" (the Torah mandate not to cause unnecessary "pain to a living creature"), animals are raised for food today under cruel conditions in crowded confined spaces, where they are denied fresh air, sunlight, a chance to exercise, and the fukfillment of their natural instincts. In this connection, it is significant to consider that according to the Jewish tradition, Moses, Judaism's greatest leader, teacher, and prophet, was chosen to lead the Israelites out of Egypt because as a shepherd he showed great compassion to a lamb (Exodus Rabbah 2:2).
3. Many Jewish vegetarians advocate that we commemorate the redemption of our ancestors from slavery by ending the current slavery to harmful eating habits through the adoption of vegetarian diets.
4. Passover is the holiday of springtime, a time of nature's renewal. It also commemmorates God's supremacy over the forces of nature. In contrast, modern intensive livestock agriculture and animal-centered diets have many negative effects on the environment, including air and water pollution, soil erosion and depletion, the destruction of tropical rain forests and other habitats, and contributions to global warming.
Jewish vegetarians view their diet as a practical way to put Jewish values into practice. They believe that Jewish mandates to show compassion to animals, take care of our health, protect the environment, conserve resources, and share with hungry people, and the negative effects that animal-centered diets have in each of these areas, point to vegetarianism as the ideal diet for Jews (and others) today.
Sources for further information on connections between Judaism and vegetarianism include:
1. The Jewish Vegetarians of North America; 6938 Reliance Road, Federalsburg, Maryland 21632; (410) 754-5550.
2. The International Jewish Vegetarian Society; 855 Finchley Road, London NW 11, England.
3. Micah Publications; the source for books on Judaism and vegetarianism and related issues; 255 Humphrey Street, Marblehead, Massachusetts 01945;
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
or
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
(www.micahbooks.com).They have published vegetarian-friendly haggadahs, "Haggadah for the Liberated Lamb" and "Haggadah for the Vegetarian Family", bothby Roberta Kalechofsky, founder and director of Jews for Animal Rights (JAR) and Micah Publications, which contains traditional and new material for a vegetarian seder, including recipes, songs, notes, readings, and a bibliography, and "The Jewish Vegetarian Year Cookbook" by Roberta Kalechofsky and Rosa Rasiel, which includes many recipes suitable for Passover. They also have a video casette that describes a vegetarian seder.
Other books that have vegetarian recipes appropriate for Passover include "No Cholesterol Passover Recipes" by Debra Wasserman and Charles Stahler (Vegetarian Resource Group, P. O. Box 1463, Baltimore, MD 21203) and "Jewish Vegetarian Cooking" (the official cookbook of the International Jewish Vegetarian Society) by Rose Friedman (Thorsons Publishers).
|
|
Current News
Pass it On!Like ShalomVeg? Recommend the site to a friend--Click Here
Watch A Sacred Duty online!Click here to watch the new JVNA film.
|
