I am sitting in a coffee shop, a Starbucks. One of three “coffees” of the day. (OK, now I am sitting at Calibre watching the snow fall. It’s beautiful but not spring.)

Tonight is the holiday of Tu B’shevat, the new year of the trees, the 15th of the month of Shevat. The moon seemed full last night. The snow sparkled in the moon light and I was reminded again of the story of the Wise Men of Chelm who wanted to collect all the diamonds that fell from heaven. More snow will fall later today. But half way around the globe, the sun is shining and it is starting to warm up. The Almond trees are starting to bloom and we pause to celebrate earliest spring, our relationship to the earth and our responsibility to care for it.

My congregation celebrated early. Last Friday night, as we combined Kabbalat Shabbat services with a Tu B’shevat seder. We sang, we read poetry about trees and we had four cups of wine from winter white to full bodied harvest red. We sampled fruits and nuts. Some with no protective covering but an inside pit. Some with a hard outer shell and completely edible inside. Some that are completely edible. Each type represents a different kind of person. Some have a hard inner piece that is difficult to crack, to get to know. Some are hard to crack and are soft inside. Some are completely transparent. Some have good deeds and Torah learning. Some have one or the other.

This service is always meaningful. There is something magical about turning the wine from white to red and thinking about the seasons. Some people think this is a new service. And in the United States it has increased in popularity in the last couple of decades. So for some it is new. In actuality it was first written by the Kabbalist rabbis in Tzefat (Safed) in the 1600s. They understood the connection to the land as they would go out to the fields and greet Shabbat in their white clothes. They gave us the Kabbalat Shabbat service, Lecha Dodi and the Tu B’shevat seder. It is quite a legacy.

These days Tu B’shevat has become the Jewish environmental holiday. It is more than buying a tree to plant in Israel by the Jewish National Fund—although we still do that. This year it is also a shmita year. Typically called the Sabbatical year, the word actually means release. Hazon has a wonderful resource guide about Shmita.

So as I sit here sipping my coffee I wonder about ethically sourcing our coffee and our chocolate. (and our tea–now I am sipping Moroccan Mint tea).

Starbucks is committed to using fair trade coffee, but they said to me that some of the fair trade coffees don’t sell as well. All of Starbucks coffee is kosher. Much of it right now is certified Kosher for Passover as well. At Blue Box Café they only use fair trade coffee supplied by Metropolis. The coffee at Calibre is also fair trade from Metropolis. I love using local merchants and small batch roasted coffee.

In my office we only serve fair trade coffee although the Hershey’s syrup I keep in the refrigerator is not fair trade. This bothers me.

On the other hand, I am a big supporter of Equal Exchange, one of my pet organizations. Started by my mother’s best friend from 3rd grade, Jean Mason, it provides opportunities to buy fair trade coffee, chocolate, tea and gifts. They also provide opportunities for non-profit organizations to fundraise responsibly. I dream of using them extensively for the synagogue’s needs.

Our gift shop buys lots of Judaica that is fair trade. One other source is Fair Trade Judaica. I am proud to be sitting here wearing my Guatemalan made kippah that I bought at Congregation Kneseth Israel during my demo weekend.

But I am not sure I have made the case yet. Why is this a Jewish issue? Because Judaism talks about protecting the rights of the widow, the orphan, the stranger, the most marginalized amongst us. Because Judaism teaches us how to leave the corners of the land for those who are hungry. Because Judaism requires us to feed the hungry. Because Judaism teaches that the highest form of tzedakah is to give anonymously or to help someone become self-sufficient. It is the “Give a man a fish and he eats for a day. Teach a man to fish and he eats for a lifetime.” That’s why microfinancing makes sense. That’s why buying fair trade makes sense. It is good economically. It is good for raising people out of poverty. It is good at reducing violence world-wide. These are all Jewish values. Torah values put into action today.

I am a proud member of T’ruah, Rabbis for Human Rights North America. It is a network of 1800 rabbis spanning the diversity of Judaism. Amongst the issues it works diligently on includes preventing trafficking, human issues around the globe, race relations and providing living wages for even those in this country who pick our fruits and vegetables. Together with the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, they have worked with McDonalds, Trader Joe’s and others to raise the price per pound on tomatoes. It amounts to a penny more a pound. Wendy’s remains the largest hold-out. Truah asks:

“Who picks the food that you eat? How much are they paid? Would you pay a penny more for better wages for the workers who pick your food? Every year, from September until May, millions of tomatoes are harvested by farm-workers in Florida and shipped all around the country. But their earnings have not changed in 30 years. As Gerardo Reyes, a member of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers, told T’ruah rabbis: “We want dignity. We want the ability to feed our families and not rely on handouts.””

But Truah also works on issues in Israel as well. Israel is complicated. Israel is important. Let’s revisit those principles. Feed the hungry. Take care of the widow, the orphan, the stranger. Justice, Justice shall you pursue. Seek peace and pursue it. And as it relates to trees, we learn the principle of bal taschit, you shall not destroy. “When you besiege a city a long time, in making war against it to take it, you shall not destroy the trees by wielding an axe against them” (Deuteronomy 20:19).

I would say that one of the problems in Israel and the West Bank is cutting down trees (clearly against the prohibition in Deuteronomy) of Palestinian families. Tru’ah has a program unique for Tu B’shevat that helps restore these trees, both in Israel and on the West Bank. This may not be popular given ongoing tensions in Israel and the Palestinian Authorities. However, we as Jews are commanded to be hopeful. We are commanded to seek peace and pursue it. As Rabbi Amy Eilberg in her book, From Enemy to Friend, points out that the two verbs, seek and pursue, are necessary because we need to seek in our place and pursue it in another. “The two verbs, they suggest, convey different elements of the command: seek peace when conflict comes to your doorstep, but do not stop there. You must vigorously pursue opportunities to practice peace, near and far. We must reach beyond our homes and comfort zones, relentlessly seeking opportunities to pursue peace. For it is the work that God commands of us.”

This past weekend I read a poem in honor of the Israeli soldiers that were killed last week keeping Israel safe. It begins, the young soldiers do not speak. It ends pleading that we are the ones to give their deaths meaning. 33 years ago that same day I lost someone very dear to me, another Israeli solider fighting to keep Israel safe. For 33 years I have been a peacenik. I cannot, after that loss, be anything else.

But this year is a shmita year, so we don’t plant in Israel. We take care of the land. We let it rest. We release people and debts. Maybe it is a way of making peace. Tr’uah has found just such a way. By planting and replacing olives trees in the West Bank and by planting seeds of justice in Israel itself. By teaching rabbinical students exactly how to do this. This year, for Tu B’shevat,  I will donate to Truah. It will keep Yuval’s memory alive. It will give meaning to all those recent deaths.

So on this Tu B’shevat, I will drink four cups of wine. I will buy fair trade coffee and chocolate. And I will plant peace and justice. Peace, I pray in Israel and a justice in the form of a tree on the West Bank. In that way I will fulfill the command to bal tashchit, to not destroy. In that way I will protect this glorious world, G-d’s amazing Creation. I urge you to do likewise.