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On Grace, Joy, and Gay Marriage
Message - 7/20/08
Digest Letter - August
Message - 8/3/08
Message - 8/10/08
Message - 8/17/08
Message - 8/24/08 |
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The creation stories in Genesis tell us something about our relationship to God, our relationship to each other, and our relationship to the natural world around us. Nature itself can also provide a window for understanding how the world works. I have planted many new trees and perennial plants and shrubs in my backyard this year. Since then, a number of the plants have been attacked by the rabbits that have found safe haven under my neighbor's shed. I actually like rabbits and hope that, in future years, they will continue to be around. But many of the plants I have placed are rather small, since I purchased them at native plant sales or nurseries rather than at a regular nursery. When these plants get bigger, they will be able to withstand the browsing by rabbits, but right now such browsing threatens the very life of the plants. What raises my curiosity the most, however, are two instances where the rabbits simply nipped a plant off without bothering to eat any of it after having done so. It almost strikes me as rabbit vandalism - random destruction for the sake of destruction, not for the sake of food. When you think about it, much of life brings us similar experiences. Some of those experiences also directly involve nature, such as the excessive rains and flood that now plague the Midwest. Some involve what often seems to be a random attack of various diseases. Heart attacks, cancer, and many other conditions remain quite unpredictable, even though we have learned much about what causes them. And, of course, the ultimate source of random adversity is humanity itself. There is so much that we do that just doesn't make sense in the larger picture of things. We have long valued our freedom to waste natural resources, if we so choose, more than we have valued conserving those resources. So now we have $4 a gallon gasoline, and we really have no one to blame but ourselves. We just can't seem to get motivated to do what is right until it is a crisis. If we don't pay better attention to the use and quality of our water than we did to our use of oil, the day may come when the only drinkable water will carry a similar price tag. So while the rabbits in my backyard seem to have a need to nip off plants that they don't plan to eat, I can't be too critical of them because, at times, my own lifestyle can seem just as random and pointless. Rather than living as Jesus suggested, with as much concern for the well-being of others as for my own, I fight a strong tendency to satisfy my own desires without even considering the potential cost to the rest of the world. It seems to me that we deal with enough random concerns that threaten to diminish our lives. So it only makes sense that we should make the best choices we can when the evidence clearly indicates what the best choices are! It has to do with what we eat, what we drink, what we drive, how we drive, and so many other choices which we make daily, often from habit and without putting much thought into them. If we are not willing to give serious thought to the faithfulness of our lifestyles, then perhaps we deserve whatever we get. I'm plotting and planning to plant some things in my backyard just for the rabbits. Hopefully, they will then leave the other plants alone. But I want to give similar time and effort into finding ways to live a more responsible life when it comes to the world's natural resources and to my own health. Hopefully, if I manage to minimize the risk factors to the environment and to my health, I can enjoy a longer and more satisfying life. We may never fully escape the random events which threaten to reduce the quality of our lives, but we may at least be able to eliminate those things we bring on ourselves. |
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