TBA will join members of Temple Shalom for a joint Tu B’Shevat program at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, February 8, at the Salem synagogue.

Come for pizza and drinks and the planting of bean seeds for Temple Shalom’s brand-new
community garden, Gan Rut (see below).

Rabbi Adler and Leora Mallach from Beantown Jewish Gardens will teach about the holiday of Tu B’Shevat, a celebration of trees, nature and spring. David Gass of the Highland Coalition in Lynn will talk about how to leverage a garden to create community.

The program is free. Bring your children! RSVP to Rabbi Adler, so they know how much pizza to order.

Gan Rut – Ruth’s Garden at Temple Shalom

The Torah teaches us that we are to share the bounty of our land with those less fortunate. It is incumbent upon us to use our property not only for ourselves but also for the benefit of others.

Leviticus 23:22: And when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap the corners of your fields, nor shall you gather the gleaning of your harvest; you shall leave them for the poor, and for the stranger. I am the Lord your God.

Ruth, the grandmother of King David, was among those who benefited from this obligation. Ruth 2:2: And Ruth the Moabitess said to Naomi, “Let me go to the fields and pick up the leftover grain behind anyone in whose eyes I find favor.” Naomi said to her, “Go ahead, my daughter.”

Temple Shalom expects that the harvest from Ruth’s Garden will be shared with the families of the Little Beginnings Pre-School and, if there is enough, with others in need in the Salem community. We have so much; it is our obligation to give back.