Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaledition.com/i/898573
16 November 9 • 2017 jn I nspired by their faith's inter- pretation of the Creation story to lead a greener life, a group of panelists representing Judaism, Christianity, Islam and Hinduism will share environmental les- sons taken from humanity's first story and how they bring them to action in "Creation Stories & Our Environment: Christian, Hindu, Jewish & Muslim Teachings on Environmentally Conscious Living" Sunday, Nov. 12, at Temple Beth El in Bloomfield Township. The diverse panel includes insights from Rabbi Ariana Silverman of the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue; Juhi Parekh, a Hindi high school senior at Bloomfield Hills High School who started an environmental club; and Dr. Ventra Asana, a retired elder clergy of the Fourth Episcopal District of the African Methodist Episcopal Church who has served on the board of environ- mental religious group Michigan Interfaith Power and Light. Temple Kol Ami's Rabbi Brent Gutmann will serve as mod- erator. He was involved with ecological inter- faith work when he was a rabbi in Auckland, New Zealand, and con- tinues his green quest here in Detroit by inviting his congregation's youngest members and their families to get out and explore Judaism through a nature hiking program called Forest Kol Ami Tots (KATs). Gutmann said there are deep con- nections between one's spirituality and taking care of the Earth. "Right from Chapter 2 of Genesis, we learn the primary purpose of humanity is to be caretakers of the Earth," Gutmann said. "In Jewish prayer and ritual, such as recit- ing the "Yotzer Ohr" prayer (which gives appreciation to the sun and other celestial bodies) and bless- ing the Shabbat wine each week with the Kiddush (which includes a paragraph from Genesis), we come back to the story of Creation and learn that every day God continually renews Creation and every moment humans have a new opportunity to fulfill the obligations we have to tak- ing care of the world." When Silverman, rabbi of the Isaac Agree Downtown Synagogue (IADS) in Detroit, graduated from college, she started her professional career as an advocate for Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life, and then for the Sierra Club. When she left Washington, D.C., to go to rabbinical school after spending three years teaching children, Jewish congregants and then members of Congress how to be better stewards of the Earth, her commitment to lead and teach others the importance of living a greener life carried through. "I believe that life on Earth is sacred," Silverman stated in a synagogue newsletter ahead of the event, which coincides with IADS' Green Shabbat Nov. 10-13. "We have a sacred obligation to protect it. Perhaps more than ever, we have to recommit ourselves to our sacred obligation to be good stewards to our planet." The event is sponsored by the Interfaith Leadership Council of Metropolitan Detroit. It runs from 3-6 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 12, at Temple Beth El in Bloomfield Township. The cost is $10, payable at the door. The second part in the Creation series will be from 1:45-4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 3, at the Detroit Institute of Arts. A free docent-led tour will look at pieces that examine the natural world and the human place within the world from African, Islamic, European and American traditions. Gather at Prentis Court; adv ance registration by Nov. 30 is appreciated for the second event. Call (313) 338-9777 ext. 0. • Creation Series What the world's religions have to say about living green. Rabbi Brent Gutmann STACY GITTLEMAN CONTRIBUTING WRITER jews d in the Rabbi Ariana Silverman JOHN HARDWICK JOHN HARDWICK S T O N E ' S J E W E L R Y 6881 Orchard Lake Rd. on the Boardwalk (248) 851-5030 stonesfi nejewelry@gmail.com Open During Construction New Merchandise Arriving Daily "A FAMILY TRADITION" 248-626-8261 14 Mile Rd. and Franklin Rd. HOURS: Open Daily 7am-6:30pm Weekends 8am-6:30pm Thanksgiving Day 8am-4pm Last Day of Season, Sunday, November 26th NOW OPEN! Franklin Cider Mill 2121840