Tenth International Conference on Religion & Spirituality in Society

Abstract

At the dawn of the anthropocene, the epoch in which humans have become the most impactful force shaping the Earth, anthropogenic climate change and other forms of environmental destruction may be the biggest challenge ever faced by humanity–a “planetary emergency.” How are we to transition from our present society of over-consumption and over-pollution to a new era of sustainability? Perhaps since the sources of the problem are complex and varied, such as capitalism, population growth, and technology, the sources of the solution also must be complex and varied. And given that the vast majority of people on Earth have a religious affiliation, one might widen one’s perspective to look toward religious concepts for how we can help inspire a sustainability transition. One such concept is the practice of shmita (alternatively spelled shemitah, shemitta, or shmitah), Judaism’s sabbatical year, as delineated in the Hebrew Bible. In this paper, I intend to explore shmita as emblematic of our modern notion of sustainability, encompassing conservation, environmentalism and stewardship. Just as other Jewish concepts such as Shabbat, the sabbath, have inspired much of the world, shmita too may inspire others to embrace sustainability. Shmita is part of an as-of-yet-unrealized biblical vision for a sustainable future for humanity, a vision that can transcend religious boundaries and, despite being thousands of years old, may be the inspiration that we need most now at the dawn of the anthropocene.