Blog Post
A H Harry Oussoren • Oct 08, 2020
Living with Respect in and for Creation
A reflection by A H Harry Oussoren from Where the Spirit Dwells - Lenten Reflections on Home by Glenys M Huws, pp. 92-93. Permission to republish here given b the publisher, The United Church Publishing House. First published in 2007. [] bracketed items reflect current edits.]
When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established; what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them?
As people who know that our earth home is finite and rapidly running the risk of environmental ruin and ecological disaster, Christians are rediscovering themselves as stewards. Because of our relationship with God, we understand that we have responsibility for the earth’s well-being. Most of us will never have the international impact of a David Suzuki or an Al Gore, and we won’t [like Megan Leslie] lead the World Wildlife Fund, but we can speak up for them and lend them our support.
We can also take responsibility for our own impact on creation, in a land like Canada, there are so many places where creation points to the glory of God and God’s mysterious creative love. Usually the most moving of these sacred spaces are natural wonders where human “improvements” are not necessary.
Closer to home, though, it is a different story. Each of us can be good stewards of the two “sacred spaces” for which we have particular responsibility: the home we live in and the church building where we gather with other Christians. Strengthened by our longing to live with greater respect in God’s creation, we can “green” these sacred spaces.
Start by getting an expert to assess these spaces for energy efficiency; this will provide the information you need to take the next steps. While it will likely be beyond the means of most householders and church trustees to do a total makeover all at once, the efficiency of individual homes and church buildings could be steadily improved through several manageable projects per year. There may be motivated individuals or groups in your congregation ready to contribute financially to making their church home greener!
“Greening” our homes is no particular virtue. It is simply the stewardship the earth deserves and God expected long before our political leaders got on the bandwagon [or not!]. We need to connect faithfulness with respectful living so that earth’s abundance will be there for our children, their children, and their grandchildren, as well as for the other creatures that share in God’s generosity.
PRAYER
You have created the earth and generously allowed us to be part of its beauty and abundance. We have taken so much more than we really need. Awaken us to the need to protect, replenish, and restore. By your Spirit, deepen in us respect for your creation and a new way of understanding our place in it.
Amen
Pilgrim Praxis
The genocide in apartheid and settler colonial Palestine urgently calls for urgent discernment and action. Could the ongoing rounds of blood letting and destruction finally end to begin a journey toward truth, and justice-based peace? I hope so for the sake of all who dwell in this (un)Holy Land.