In this week’s episode we look at an excerpt from Maasechet Taanit about Rav Hunah and how he would ride around in his golden carriage identifying walls that were in danger of falling, notifying the owners, and requiring the walls to be repaired, either with the owner’s money or Rav Hunah’s (if the owner couldn’t afford repairs). We talk about how this story shows an early rabbinical form of regulating buildings, but also incentivizing their upgrades, and how building weatherization and energy efficiency are two ways we can act to slow climate change. We also talk about getting into climate action in one’s middle age, giving charity in a way that also fights climate change, and the importance of imagination in environmentalism. Follow along with the source sheet here: http://sefaria.org/sheets/642199

In this week’s episode (third installment in the Shmita series with guest Avi) we study another text from Mishna Sheviit talking about how Shmita, an exemplar of a traditional Jewish attitude towards the land, is also a remittance of all loans. How does a respect for the autonomy and sacredness of the land interact with our economic system? We discuss land as collateral, conflicts between helping the poor and protecting the environment, and instituting our own personal and communal commitments to the environment during the Shmita year. Follow along with the source sheet here: https://www.sefaria.org/sheets/615576

In this week’s special Shavuot episode of Honi’s Circle, we study a text from Leviticus and one from Ruth—first, in Leviticus, the commandment in the Torah to set aside a corner of your field for the poor to glean from; second, the story in Ruth, seeing gleaning in action. We speak about how Shavuot is a holiday of recommitment to the Torah, embodying loving-kindness and a system of laws that ask the community to sustain those without resources, and how developing a system to recommit to fighting climate change can keep us in action for years to come. Follow along with the source sheet here: www.sefaria.org/sheets/642207