CCAR RESPONSA
New American Reform Responsa
55. Synagogue and the Planting of Trees
QUESTION: Should certain species of trees be prohibited on synagogue grounds as the Bible prohibits worshipping under trees? (Nathan Trachtenberg, Dallas TX)ANSWER: The Biblical statement in Deuteronomy (16.21) demanded: “You shall not plant for yourself an Asherah of any kind of tree aside the altar of the Lord your God which you shall make for yourself.” This law has been fully developed in later Jewish tradition by Maimonides (Yad Hil Akum 6.9), who stated that no shade or fruit tree could be planted in the temple sanctuary near the altar and in the courtyards of the sanctuary, although there was some debate about the latter. However, this applied only to the Temple in Jerusalem, and later tradition did not connect this with any prohibition against plantings outside the synagogue. We know, for example, that the ancient synagogues at Arsinoe and Palermo had gardens (1. Kraus Synagogale Altertümer p 315). In fact, we find no objection until Moses Schick who, in 1870, prohibited such plantings by reasoning that the synagogue is analogous to the temple (Responsa Orah Hayim #78, #79). Although this objection was widely discussed, it was not accepted by most authorities who cited Yomtov Lippman Heller’s comment to the Mishnah (Midot 2.6) as well as other scholars who felt that his reasoning was faulty. Nothing would have prohibited planting trees even in the court of Israel in the Temple of Jerusalem. Some historic Haggadah illustrations which depicted the temple show it surrounded by plantings of shrubbery. The great modern authority, Shalom Mordecai Schwadron (Responsa Vol I #127; Vol Vi #17), specifically stated that the objection to trees in the Temple of Jerusalem did not apply to synagogues, and only cautioned individuals who decorated their synagogues in this way to make sure that the planting would be somewhat different from that of neighboring churches. He quoted Joseph ben Moses Trani, a sixteenth century scholar (Responsa Yoreh Deah #4), who reported that gardens and plantings around synagogues were widespread during his lifetime. There is no analogy between worship of an Asherah, a form of ancient idolatry of which we know virtually nothing, and our worship. We need not be concerned with this Biblical prohibition. There is, therefore, no reason to be careful about the planting of trees or any other kind of greenery around the synagogue. We should be guided by the concern of Exodus for the beauty of the sanctuary. That thought was continued in the Temple of Solomon (I Kings 6 ff). We should follow the ideal of hidur mitzvah in all ceremonial objects as well as the synagogue building itself. Circumstances have often forced us to use humble buildings as synagogues, but when it was possible to build more grandly we did so. From the nineteenth century onward when our synagogues were recognized and protected by the secular authorities; we no longer hid them behind a neutral facade, but provided them with a decorative exterior which often included plantings (Harold Hammer-Schenk Synagogen in Deutschland; Rachel Wischnitzer The Architecture of the European Synagogue). There would be no reason to exclude trees or shrubs from the grounds of the synagogue.January 1990
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