EvolvingWorld

Last week John Ortberg gave a really amazing sermon at MPPC on the topic Is God Green? I found this really inspirational because it was original, profound, and well connected two areas of thought which often are quite separate: Christianity and Environmentalism.  You might even say that in popular culture they’re often opposed.  A lot of conservatives, who claim to be religious, tend to reflexively oppose any efforts to protect the Environment, for these interfere with their worship of the almighty $$$.  A lot of Environmentalists  are fairly derisive of religion, viewing it as opposed to science and progress.  Exemplifying this dichotomy, John by starting his sermon with pointing to an influential paper published in the sixties arguing that Christianity created a historical break in the thinking of man’s place in nature in that it argued that God had created the earth primarily for the benefit of people, and that therefore it only existed to be exploited by people, and had no other value.

John then proceeded to give a fascinating tour through the bible illustrated with many quotes showing that this is a quite incorrect interpretation. In fact in many places the Bible clearly states that the entire universe is the work of God, and belongs to God, and that therefore it’s the responsability of humans to take care of it. In fact, the special role of humans as those creatures made in God’s image is in fact to be stewards of God’s creation.  I found that to be quite an inspiring insight.  That being a good Christian requires us to be a good Environmentalist and vice-versa.

It made me think that one of the bad habits of our society is that we create false dichotomies and false conflicts, because there are those who try to profit from creating conflict, whether economically or politically.  Why do we always have to choose one or the other? In particular, it’s more and more clear to me that the word of the Bible is in very close accord with every other objective view of the universe. Recent historical and archeological work have more and more confirmed the fairly impressive accuracy of much of the old testament as a historic document. When you look closely at the findings of modern Science, and the ethical implications of science, it also is in close accord with the Biblical message.  Some say that creation and evolution are in opposition. But how so? Aren’t all the natural laws simply proof of the work God in all places and times? What we call Science is nothing but our observation of the continuous presence of God’s work around us. And in that sense too the Environmentalist’s dedication to the planet is not, or should not, be some act of pagan worship, but really a manifestation of respect and care for God’s creation. So we shouldn’t let ourselves be distracted by false divisions, but keep focused on the ONE thing.

I just read the most amazing book, Whole Earth Discipline: An Ecopragmatist Manifesto by Stewart Brand. Truly one of the most eye-opening things I’ve read in a while. He gleefully points out that our partisan loyalties of various kinds make us quite blind to what’s really going on around us. The earth and society continue to evolve at a breath taking pace, and our conceptualizations don’t quite keep up. Fascinating is his analysis of how the movement of the poor from the countryside to the city is actually an amazing piece of economic and environmental progress, freeing people to new levels of prosperity and freedom, while simultaneously removing much of the load on the countryside. A number of yesterday’s problems are becoming non-problems, with the earth’s population growth stalling and getting to a point of falling vastly sooner than anyone had expected, and the forrest growing back much faster than it’s being cut down. Meanwhile technology keeps shifting, with immense progress and promise in harnessing the ability of life to swap genes back and forth, creating new opportunities to feed the poor. While we face giant problems in the decades to come, there are also amazing opportunities out there, for anyone willing to seize them. The key challenge is to see beyond our nose – go beyond our prejudices of what a conservative, a liberal, an American city dweller, or whatever, should see and think, to see what’s really out there. Being honest and open, and thinking globally is critical right now. Even while our own society seems mired in doldrums, the planet keeps changing. Tapping into that change is what will get us out of this calm spot. Read this book and think!