Jul 17, 2020 By: audreywu
The Chinese-Jewish Conversation (CJC) held its fifth event, 鈥淣ew frontiers of Torah U-Madda: Chinese and Jewish Ecological Values,鈥 on March 3, 2020, with the support of the Katz School of Science and Health, the Provost鈥檚 Colloquium Initiative, and the Bernard Revel Graduate School of Jewish Studies. CJC director Prof. Mordechai Cohen opened with a discussion of the biblical precept of shmitta and the socio-ecological values it represents. Scientifically speaking, the obligation to let the land lie fallow every seventh year protects the environment, as it ensures the land鈥檚 continued fertility by preventing the depletion of its nutrients. But shmitta has other important features: on the seventh year all loans are forgiven. In effect, society re-boots: the land, the agricultural cycle, and commercial activity begin anew. After seven shmitta years, the fiftieth year is the Jubilee. The shofar is blown and 鈥渓iberty is proclaimed throughout the land鈥 (Leviticus 25:10, engraved on the Liberty Bell). In biblical times, impoverished people were sold into servitude to repay their debts. On the Jubilee year, these slaves go free, and are granted a new beginning. Land that had been sold reverts back to its original owners. As God says in Leviticus 25:23, 鈥淭he land must not be sold permanently, because the land is mine and you reside in my land as temporary dwellers.鈥 We never truly 鈥渙wn鈥 the land. We use it鈥攂ut it belongs to God. This provides a comprehensive explanation for the Jubilee and the shmitta. Those who hold financial power鈥攂e they slave owners (in ancient times) or lenders鈥攎ust understand that their wealth is entrusted to them by God and ultimately is temporary. It is their social responsibility to let others have the opportunity to advance. The shmitta requirement to let the land lie fallow, likewise, demonstrates that we do not own the land. Therefore we are not permitted to ruin it. We are entrusted with the land and may use it, but are obligated to preserve it for coming generations.
In ancient times Israel was an agrarian society. The Jewish people experienced and appreciated the natural landscape of the Land of Israel. All of this changed with the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE, when we were exiled from the land and essentially lost our physical connection with it. 鈥淭he Land of Israel鈥 (Eretz Yisrael) was primarily a spiritual ideal over the long exile. In the modern state of Israel, however, Jewish people have re-established their connection with the natural landscape. This is reflected in modern art and literature, as brought out in the next presentation, by Dr. Rachel Ofer, Professor of Literature at Efrata and Herzog Colleges in Israel. Deuteronomy 20:19 prohibits cutting down fruit-bearing trees during a siege, saying: 鈥淔or is the tree in the field a man, that would oppose you in battle?鈥 In the Bible, this is a rhetorical question, with the obvious answer: No! But, as Dr. Ofer noted, this verse is given new meaning by the modern Israeli poet Nathan Zach, in his Hebrew poem: Ki ha-Adam Etz ha-Sadeh (鈥淔or man is a tree in the field鈥), meaning that there are many points of similarity between man and the tree鈥攁n element of the natural world around us. This identification is also brought out by the modern Israeli artist Anna Ticho, who portrayed trees and plants expressing human emotions. Dr. Ofer concluded with the Israeli singer Shalom Hanokh鈥檚 rendition of 鈥.鈥
The main speaker of the evening, Daniel K. Gardner, Dwight W. Morrow Professor of History at Smith College, is a world-renowned expert on the Confucian tradition and its contemporary relevance. His current project, for which he was awarded an Andrew Carnegie Fellowship in 2016, is 鈥淚magining an 鈥楨cological Civilization鈥: China鈥檚 Environmental Turn in the 21st Century.鈥 Gardner was interviewed by Elena Peng, a co-author on Chinese environmental legislation since 2014, and now a consultant for the CJC. Referring to Gardner鈥檚 2018 book, Environmental Pollution in China: What Everyone Needs to Know, Peng remarked: 鈥淲hat I want to know is what motivated China now to adopt a new policy of environmental consciousness?鈥 Gardner explained that it reflects the confluence of socio-economic and political-ideological factors. To begin with, pollution was causing increasingly visible hazards and dramatic threats to public health. Garbage was floating in the rivers, and city dwellers were choking on smog. China鈥檚 earlier policy to 鈥減ollute first and clean up later鈥 allowed for economic prosperity; but the cost was becoming too high. In combatting pollution, the Chinese Government turned to the Confucian tradition for inspiration鈥攎aking the vision of an ecological society a political goal. Speaking in ideological terms, Pan Yue, Vice Minister of Environmental Protection, wrote in 2011 that 鈥渇or the past century, China has studied the west and followed the western path of industrialization,鈥 but that now 鈥渋t should take time re-examine鈥 its own cultural traditions.鈥 As he continues: 鈥One of the core principles of traditional Chinese culture is that of harmony between humans and nature. Different philosophies all emphasize the political wisdom of a balanced environment. Whether it is the Confucian idea of humans and nature becoming one, the Daoist view of the Dao reflecting nature, or the Buddhist belief that all living things are equal, Chinese philosophy has helped our culture to survive for thousands of years. It can be a powerful weapon in preventing an environmental crisis and building a harmonious society.鈥 (Pan Yue, 鈥淓cological Wisdom of the Ages,鈥 2011 ).
Gardner cited sources for this from the Chinese classics. The ancient adage 鈥淗eaven and humankind are one鈥 (tian ren he yi) was explained in the Confucian tradition to mean that human beings and all of nature must exist in harmony. As the 16th century Neo-Confucian philosopher Wang Yangming explained: 鈥淭he great man regards heaven and earth and the myriad things as one body鈥 when we see plants broken and destroyed, we cannot help a feeling of pity. This shows that our humanity forms one body with plants. It may be said that plants are livings things as we are.鈥 The 11th century Neo-Confucian mystically-oriented philosopher wrote: 鈥淗eaven is my father and earth is my mother, and even such a small creature as I finds an intimate place in their midst. Therefore, that which fills the universe I regard as my body and that which directs the universe I consider as my nature. All people are my brothers and sisters, and all things are my companions.鈥
Wang鈥檚 words resonate with the aforementioned Jewish notion that 鈥渕an is a tree of the field鈥 and the identity between humanity and nature it implies. As Peng pointed out, the Chinese concept of heaven (tian) has been compared to the Judeo-Christian notion of God, and the Bible likewise says that man was formed in God鈥檚 image. Moreover, the Bible speaks of human beings metaphorically as 鈥渃hildren鈥 of God (Deuteronomy 14:1). And so, the Chinese notion that humanity and heaven are one has much in common with Jewish thought鈥攁nd the vision of the ecological society emanates from both traditions.
Peng asked, however: 鈥淒id Confucius say it? Did Confucius mean it?鈥 Can the modern value of environmental protection truly be traced to the classical Chinese sources? To this Gardner offered a twofold answer. He admitted, first of all, that he鈥檚 not sure if the modern concerns can be read into the ancient philosophical texts as their true intention. However, he went on to say that just like any religious tradition, the Confucian traditions must be re-interpreted to address the challenges of a modern world, and this gives the ancient texts new relevance. Professor Gardner鈥檚 own research into neo-Confucianism is a prime example. Much as Saadia Gaon and Maimonides interpreted the ancient Jewish texts philosophically in their Muslim cultural-intellectual context, Chinese scholars of the Song Dynasty (960-1279) reinterpreted the traditional Confucian texts in light of the metaphysical concerns of their time, spurred by the competing philosophies of Daoism and Buddhism. In a 1998 article, Gardner himself offered a comparison between Midrash and the modes of interpretation attested in the Confucian tradition. Both, he argues, respond to similar stimuli: to address new cultural and intellectual pressures and reaffirm the traditions of the past. As he writes: 鈥淎ny threat to the hegemony of the鈥 [sacred literary] canon and to the lived tradition that takes that canon as its inspiration incites commentarial activity and response.鈥 (See Daniel Gardner, 鈥淐onfucian Commentary and Chinese Intellectual History,鈥 The Journal of Asian Studies, Vol. 57, 2 (1998): 397鈥422.)
After the event, many in the audience noted that the evening brought out the ideals of Torah U-Madda in exciting new ways. As one observer remarked, 鈥淭his interface of ideas and cultures is what a university is about! Comparisons between Jewish and Confucian interpretations; mix of the ancient and modern; shmitta and environmental protection; modern Israeli, song, art and literature illustrating the Chinese idea that man and heaven are one.鈥
The event was recorded and is on the Revel and CJC YouTube channel:
by Mordechai Cohen
by Rachel Ofer
by Daniel K. Gardner, interviewed by Elena Peng
Photo and video credits: Imagination Creations
In ancient times Israel was an agrarian society. The Jewish people experienced and appreciated the natural landscape of the Land of Israel. All of this changed with the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE, when we were exiled from the land and essentially lost our physical connection with it. 鈥淭he Land of Israel鈥 (Eretz Yisrael) was primarily a spiritual ideal over the long exile. In the modern state of Israel, however, Jewish people have re-established their connection with the natural landscape. This is reflected in modern art and literature, as brought out in the next presentation, by Dr. Rachel Ofer, Professor of Literature at Efrata and Herzog Colleges in Israel. Deuteronomy 20:19 prohibits cutting down fruit-bearing trees during a siege, saying: 鈥淔or is the tree in the field a man, that would oppose you in battle?鈥 In the Bible, this is a rhetorical question, with the obvious answer: No! But, as Dr. Ofer noted, this verse is given new meaning by the modern Israeli poet Nathan Zach, in his Hebrew poem: Ki ha-Adam Etz ha-Sadeh (鈥淔or man is a tree in the field鈥), meaning that there are many points of similarity between man and the tree鈥攁n element of the natural world around us. This identification is also brought out by the modern Israeli artist Anna Ticho, who portrayed trees and plants expressing human emotions. Dr. Ofer concluded with the Israeli singer Shalom Hanokh鈥檚 rendition of 鈥.鈥
The main speaker of the evening, Daniel K. Gardner, Dwight W. Morrow Professor of History at Smith College, is a world-renowned expert on the Confucian tradition and its contemporary relevance. His current project, for which he was awarded an Andrew Carnegie Fellowship in 2016, is 鈥淚magining an 鈥楨cological Civilization鈥: China鈥檚 Environmental Turn in the 21st Century.鈥 Gardner was interviewed by Elena Peng, a co-author on Chinese environmental legislation since 2014, and now a consultant for the CJC. Referring to Gardner鈥檚 2018 book, Environmental Pollution in China: What Everyone Needs to Know, Peng remarked: 鈥淲hat I want to know is what motivated China now to adopt a new policy of environmental consciousness?鈥 Gardner explained that it reflects the confluence of socio-economic and political-ideological factors. To begin with, pollution was causing increasingly visible hazards and dramatic threats to public health. Garbage was floating in the rivers, and city dwellers were choking on smog. China鈥檚 earlier policy to 鈥減ollute first and clean up later鈥 allowed for economic prosperity; but the cost was becoming too high. In combatting pollution, the Chinese Government turned to the Confucian tradition for inspiration鈥攎aking the vision of an ecological society a political goal. Speaking in ideological terms, Pan Yue, Vice Minister of Environmental Protection, wrote in 2011 that 鈥渇or the past century, China has studied the west and followed the western path of industrialization,鈥 but that now 鈥渋t should take time re-examine鈥 its own cultural traditions.鈥 As he continues: 鈥One of the core principles of traditional Chinese culture is that of harmony between humans and nature. Different philosophies all emphasize the political wisdom of a balanced environment. Whether it is the Confucian idea of humans and nature becoming one, the Daoist view of the Dao reflecting nature, or the Buddhist belief that all living things are equal, Chinese philosophy has helped our culture to survive for thousands of years. It can be a powerful weapon in preventing an environmental crisis and building a harmonious society.鈥 (Pan Yue, 鈥淓cological Wisdom of the Ages,鈥 2011 ).
Gardner cited sources for this from the Chinese classics. The ancient adage 鈥淗eaven and humankind are one鈥 (tian ren he yi) was explained in the Confucian tradition to mean that human beings and all of nature must exist in harmony. As the 16th century Neo-Confucian philosopher Wang Yangming explained: 鈥淭he great man regards heaven and earth and the myriad things as one body鈥 when we see plants broken and destroyed, we cannot help a feeling of pity. This shows that our humanity forms one body with plants. It may be said that plants are livings things as we are.鈥 The 11th century Neo-Confucian mystically-oriented philosopher wrote: 鈥淗eaven is my father and earth is my mother, and even such a small creature as I finds an intimate place in their midst. Therefore, that which fills the universe I regard as my body and that which directs the universe I consider as my nature. All people are my brothers and sisters, and all things are my companions.鈥
Wang鈥檚 words resonate with the aforementioned Jewish notion that 鈥渕an is a tree of the field鈥 and the identity between humanity and nature it implies. As Peng pointed out, the Chinese concept of heaven (tian) has been compared to the Judeo-Christian notion of God, and the Bible likewise says that man was formed in God鈥檚 image. Moreover, the Bible speaks of human beings metaphorically as 鈥渃hildren鈥 of God (Deuteronomy 14:1). And so, the Chinese notion that humanity and heaven are one has much in common with Jewish thought鈥攁nd the vision of the ecological society emanates from both traditions.
Peng asked, however: 鈥淒id Confucius say it? Did Confucius mean it?鈥 Can the modern value of environmental protection truly be traced to the classical Chinese sources? To this Gardner offered a twofold answer. He admitted, first of all, that he鈥檚 not sure if the modern concerns can be read into the ancient philosophical texts as their true intention. However, he went on to say that just like any religious tradition, the Confucian traditions must be re-interpreted to address the challenges of a modern world, and this gives the ancient texts new relevance. Professor Gardner鈥檚 own research into neo-Confucianism is a prime example. Much as Saadia Gaon and Maimonides interpreted the ancient Jewish texts philosophically in their Muslim cultural-intellectual context, Chinese scholars of the Song Dynasty (960-1279) reinterpreted the traditional Confucian texts in light of the metaphysical concerns of their time, spurred by the competing philosophies of Daoism and Buddhism. In a 1998 article, Gardner himself offered a comparison between Midrash and the modes of interpretation attested in the Confucian tradition. Both, he argues, respond to similar stimuli: to address new cultural and intellectual pressures and reaffirm the traditions of the past. As he writes: 鈥淎ny threat to the hegemony of the鈥 [sacred literary] canon and to the lived tradition that takes that canon as its inspiration incites commentarial activity and response.鈥 (See Daniel Gardner, 鈥淐onfucian Commentary and Chinese Intellectual History,鈥 The Journal of Asian Studies, Vol. 57, 2 (1998): 397鈥422.)
After the event, many in the audience noted that the evening brought out the ideals of Torah U-Madda in exciting new ways. As one observer remarked, 鈥淭his interface of ideas and cultures is what a university is about! Comparisons between Jewish and Confucian interpretations; mix of the ancient and modern; shmitta and environmental protection; modern Israeli, song, art and literature illustrating the Chinese idea that man and heaven are one.鈥
The event was recorded and is on the Revel and CJC YouTube channel:
by Mordechai Cohen
by Rachel Ofer
by Daniel K. Gardner, interviewed by Elena Peng
Photo and video credits: Imagination Creations
