Beth Shalom COEJL

Committee on the Environment and Jewish Law (COEJL)

The Congregation Beth Shalom COEJL Committee (Committee on the Environment and Jewish Law) has been meeting and working on environmental issues for the past 4 months. Though COEJL is a national movement , Beth Shalom's group works independently. It was organized and is led by Dr. Lewis Morrison, a congregant of Beth Shalom.

September was dedicated to the environment in area synagogues. Rabbi Chanan Markowitz of Beth Shalom in Clifton Park, Rabbi Linda Motzkin of Temple Sinai in Saratoga Springs, Rabbi King Tornberg of Congregation Beth Emeth in Albany and other rabbis in the Capital District each emphasized the traditional belief that Jews should perform Tikun Olam ( heal the world).

Mark Silverman guided the Religious School students at Congregation Beth Shalom in performing an energy audit of the synagogue. They replaced a 25watt bulb light bulb in the ark with an equivalent compact fluorescent light (cfl) which uses only 7 watts and made plans for more changes in energy efficiency.

Dr Morrison has also organized SCIEC (Saratoga County Interfaith Coalition) so that other groups, Jewish and non Jewish, in the community can participate. At the first meeting of SCIEC, Temple Sinai, of Saratoga Springs, Price of Peace Lutheran Church and St. George's Episcopal Church of Clifton Park and Congregation Beth Shalom were represented.
Dr. Steven Leibo of the Sage Colleges was also present. Dr. Leibo has given 43 lectures with Vice President Gore's film, An Inconvenient Truth. Plans are being made for Dr. Leibo to present a program in Clifton Park in conjunction with Focus the Nation Project . On January 31, 2008 over 1000 educational institutions will sponsoring Global Warming Education Day. (See www.focusthenation.org) For further information regarding COEJL or SCIEC, please contact Lisa Haun at 280-2442.