OPINION: How Tzedek heeds Isaiah’s wise words
By Adam Francies 
“It is to share your bread with the hungry, And to take the wretched poor into your home; When you see the naked, to clothe him, And not to ignore your own kin.” Isaiah 58:7
With these words, Isaiah demands that when we fast we do not ignore those around us, that we face the issues prevalent in our society. And what’s more, that it is our Jewish responsibility to tackle these issues.
Last Yom Kippur, I sat there, reading these words, and it really gave me pause for thought during my fast. Why am I depriving myself of food? And for what purpose?
At Limmud Conference 2014, the annual group study publication team focused on the subject of food. Of food and ritual, and prayer and hunger. And it was here that I first came across Robert Herrick’s A True Lent.
Herrick – a Christian poet writing in the 17th century – talks about the experience of fasting at Lent, and the comparisons are striking.
He muses on the reasons why we fast and what relevance it should have on our lives. And just as Isaiah says, it is not so we can focus on prayer, or our stomachs.
Instead, fasting gives us a chance to take action; to do something.
Each April, Tzedek asks people to ‘Live Below the Line’: To live on £1 a day for food and drink for five days. This is not to mimic poverty – which the World Bank sets as living on under $1.25 a day – or so we can know what it is like to be hungry.
Rather, this is an interesting chance to think about our relationship with food as consumers. It is a chance to have a conversation about what you’re having for lunch and why.
It is a chance to see what 500 pennies really feels like in a shopping basket, and the choices and questions that come with that. Are you going to buy free-range eggs or none at all? Organic chicken or go without?
As Isaiah says, we have an obligation to help those around the world in need.
Through Tzedek partners, the UK Jewish community has lifted 1,500 people out of poverty this past year.
• Adam Francies is the education programme manager at Tzedek, the Jewish community’s response to extreme poverty.
You can sign up now to Live Below The Line with Tzedek. To learn more visit www.tzedek.org.uk
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
