Social Justice
צדק צדק תרדף
Justice, justice, you shall pursue.
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Social justice and community service are embedded in the vision and mission of Ma’yan Tikvah, and we regularly build into our events and in other ways create opportunities for adults and children to make the world a better place through social action and community service. Through this work, we are strengthening relationships within Ma’yan Tikvah and are nurturing meaningful relationships in the wider and global communities. We welcome new ideas, new participants, and new suggestions. If you have an issue you would like to address or if you would like to be involved in growing our social justice and community service work, please reach out to us via email. Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai taught a parable: Men were on a ship. One of them took a drill and started drilling underneath him. The others said to him: What are you sitting and doing?! He replied: What do you care? Is this not underneath my area that I am drilling?! They said to him: But the water will rise and flood us all on this ship. This is as Job said (Job 19:4): "If indeed I have erred, my error remains with me." But his friends said to him (Job 34:37): "He adds transgression to his sin; he extends it among us." [The men on the ship said]: You extend your sins among us. (Midrash Vayikra Rabbah 4:6)
Our recent and current projects include:
Food Insecurity
“Let all who are hungry come and eat.” (Passover Haggadah)
Many people within our communities and beyond lack sufficient food to feed themselves and their families. We have a long-standing relationship with the Framingham Community Farm, which donates all of its food to local food pantries, primarily A Place to Turn in Natick. Adults and children work together in the gardens every spring and fall and informally stop by to help with harvesting during the summer. Some students have put in regular hours at the farm for their b’mitzvah community service project.
We are regular participants in JLOFT’s annual MLK Day of Service in January, helping to fight food insecurity and meet home furnishing needs for the more vulnerable in our midst.
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Welcoming Strangers
“You too must befriend the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.” (Deuteronomy 10.19)
Through partnerships with Jewish Family Service, support for refugees is ongoing and has included those fleeing Afghanistan, Ukraine, and Haiti. We have provided clothing, household goods, and gift cards to numerous families new to our communities. Ma’yan Tikvah was acknowledged and honored for our work by Catholic Charities.
If you or someone you know has an apartment coming up for rent, an in-law apartment available for rent, a house for rent, etc. please reach out to us. The apartment/housing stock is very tight and to find great places, we need the help of the community. Click here for other ways you can assist with these important, life-changing efforts.
Climate Justice
“See to it that you do not spoil and destroy My world; for if you do, there will be no one else to repair it.” (Midrash Ecclesiastes Rabbah 7:13)
Every spring we work to pull out unwanted plants that are driving out the autochthons, species that are native to the area. Our climate justice work overlaps with our advocacy efforts, in particular with education and advocacy around specific climate justice issues.
The Ma’yan Tikvah Green Team works to reduce our carbon footprint both at events and in our households.
Advocacy
“All who can protest against something wrong that one of their family is doing and does not, is accountable together with their family. All who can protest against something wrong that a citizen of their city is doing and does not protest is accountable together with all citizens of the city. All who can protest against something wrong that is being done in the whole world is accountable together with all citizens of the world.” (Babylonian Talmud Shabbat 54b)
People young and old have written letters and postcards to our state representatives on issues related to climate justice, food insecurity, preserving open spaces, and more.