Was idly watching Al Jezeera last week-end, and was drawn into a report on walrusses... yep... those seriously ugly, blobby, smelly (I am sure) things with big tusks that don't seem to do much except eat, fight and mate. For the first time ever they have left the Arctic ice-pack and swum to land in Alaska, as the ice-pack has melted to its smallest level ever recorded. The real concern of scientists is that there is not enough food in Hudson Bay to enable even half to stay alive. The only hope is that this winter is vrek cold, and the ice returns close enough to the land to entice them back to where they belong.
Last week TIME Magazine reported, in a little throw-away note, that scientists are really concerned that the dwarf seahorse endemic to the Gulf of Mexico (hippocampus zosterae) is about to go extinct from the BP oil-well blow.
Maybe its because the walrusses and the seahorsie are a visible witness to the statistics. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature have stated quite strongly that within the next 10 years 1/4 of all mammals will be extinct [1]. Maybe its because other citizens on this planet being wiped out is an offense to the God who created, and continues to create. Perhaps it is because I know I'm partly to blame for what is happening to these ugly monsters and cute fishies. Most probably all three.
Ignoring the statistics. Its easy to think things are not too bad when the weather isn't totally screwed up (yet!?) and none of the cool animals are in real danger of disappearing. I mean, does it really matter whether the Madagascan moon moth or Gulf of Mexico dwarf seahorse become extinct? The chances are pretty good that I would never have seen one anyway (and certainly won't now!).
But it does matter... it matters because every time a moth or a frog or a gorilla (or a walrus) disappears the sacred eco-system that gives us all life is messed up, and it will eventually reach a point where it cannot make up for the imbalance we are forcing on it. The walrusses needing to give up their natural home is a sign as to how far out of balance the system is becoming in places.
We can't ignore the stats... this planet will not allow us to do so for too much longer.
An offense to God. "The earth is the LORD's, and everything that is alive upon it" says the psalmist [2]. This is why the natural world reflects God in so many ways each day - from a magnificient sun-set to a butterfly lighting up the garden to the cry of a fish eagle over a river. And how does God feel, knowing that the divine creation is being killed off by the arrogance, greed and stupidity of only one species?
And especially seeing as, according to both the creation-stories in Genesis, we are here to live in relationship with God and one another, and to care for this world that we have been given. The greatest command may be to "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, your soul, your mind, and your strength... and to love your neighbour as you love yourself" [3], but the first command in Scripture is to "Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground." [4] [5]. While this verse has been used to justify wrecking the planet and destroying whole species, the Hebrew root of "rule" is mishpat = "justice". In the Church (quite rightly) stressing "justice for all", I wonder why we've never included the Nigerian Cross-River Gorilla (fewer than 300 left) in the "all"!
May God forgive us humans for the crime we are committing against our planet... and the sin this is against our God!
Because I know I'm to blame. Now we get to the real issue! While I consider myself reasonably "green", I know my hands are not that clean. I do recycle... save electricity and water where I can... walk whenever I can... and every little bit helps (I read somewhere that is all Americans unplugged cellphone chargers when they were not in use they could mothball three powerstations!). But the real issue is the lifestyle of the community that gives my life meaning and identity. The cars we drive... security lights on all night... for me (and here it gets really personal), my racing car!
"Lord, please forgive me for, and set me free from, all I do that contributes to the killing of Your planet."
But I think the thing that saddens me the most is that the wider church is incredibly silent on this matter. And when it does pontificate the hot air produced only adds to global warming, as the words are seldom accompanied by action [6].
Sorry this is so introspec and depressive. At least they caught the rhino poachers!
[1] “The New age of Extinction”, Brian Walsh, TIME, April 13, 2009.
[2] Psalm 24:1
[3] Mark 12:28-34
[4] Genesis 1:28]
[5] While ignoring the second part of this command, our species has certainly got the first part right! And its killing our world... and us.
[6] http://www.creationcare.org.za/ is the attempt of one Church to make a difference. Unfortunately we have struggled to find someone who can keep our website updated... but its coming...
