Tikkun Olam translates to “repairing the world”. Through our Tikkun Olam activities, Congregation Beth Shalom members step into every human’s role of creating the compassionate world with peace and understanding that we all seek. We claim our own divine power to continue to shape and create the future of our community and our existence.
In his book: The Sacred Art of Lovingkindness, Rabbi Rami Shapiro teaches us about being created in the image and likeness of God: We are born in the image of God.
Just as a wave is the ocean extended in time and space, so each one of us is God made manifest, extended in time and space. What does it mean though to be in the likeness of God? Being in the likeness of God means that we have the potential to act in a creative, compassionate, Godly manner. It means that we can, regardless of our ideology, theology, and politics, engage each moment and each living being with loving kindness. It means we can step aside from our idolatry of an unsatisfying reality, and engage our higher voices to continue creation, and be part of the change we wish to see. We are born in the image of God, but living out the likeness of God is a choice.