via d'amor

Sunday, November 4, 2007

are you green?

Due to the increased public awareness encouraged by celebrities, there is a "green trend" going on. Al Gore's documentary on global warming has turned the heads of the average American. Even the rich and the glamorous are driving hybrids or electric cars. Also these cars are awarded to use the carpool lane and to save $ on gas. The lastest magazines are encouraging readers to conserve practical and simple ways at home, work and travel.

Environmentalism... Not the most comfortable word to chew on. We all define the word that makes it convenient to our lifestyle. Yesterday, Sabbath school introduced what this word means to Adventists. We love the outdoors: hiking, Adventist campgrounds, etc. Most of us don't litter and we try to recycle. Sometimes we have a beach cleaning for our sabbath activity. Is that all the stewardship we hold of this Earth? How many of us fight to conserve national parks and marshes from becoming targets of a track home community? Do you even really care if the some random bird is endangered? Is it wrong to not respect my front yard landscaping? What do you pick and choose to preserve?

Furthermore, this comment in Sabbath School impacted me:
"does the way we treat creation show how we feel about the Creator?" I know for me, preserving the environment sounds like a really good idea, but an idea I put in the back of my head where it can be ignored. I don't know exactly how I am suppose to be more involved as a "good Christian." At the end of the discussion, Isaac brought up a really good point that God created this Earth for man and woman. He gave us a gift of life to enjoy. He would be sad to see if we rejected the gift and did not use it. However, there is a difference from use and abuse. I am eager to see how this discussion will flourish next week and inspire me to treat Mother Earth.

4 comments:

Calimesa Collegiate said...

Grace,
Good post! I am always impressed by thoughtful reflection on the relationship between faith and action - particularly concerning Creation Care. Speaking of which, there's a pretty good resource online - a group of Christians who have explored Creation Care from a biblical, Christian perspective.

http://www.creationcare.org/resources/declaration.php

Thanks for this thoughtful post!
-Jared

Mr. KIMP said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Mr. KIMP said...

Hi Grace,

I've written a brief blog entry about this post with a link to it over at Adventist Environmental Advocacy (adventist-environmental-advocacy.blogspot.com)

Thanks again for stimulating positive discussion!

Jeff said...

For the past few years, a small group of us have been on a journey of peace (definitely not a linear pathway). We want to live in right relationship with God, the earth, and each other. We want to help build a world that is full of social, economic and environmental justice (not that we each prioritize the list in the same way).

Early on it became clear that our lofty ideals were overwhelming; it was too much to take on at once. That’s when I put together this rough and inconsistent guide to sustainable living (www.freewebs.com/jjboyd_wow/sustainableliving.htm). We needed to break down life-style decisions into a process.

This list should be viewed as a non-judgmental, non-perfectionist, non-set-in-stone, step-by-stumbling-step guide to becoming more of what we want to be. Maybe it will be meaningful for some of your readers. Input is welcomed!

For a great sermon series on the environment (God is Green) go to http://www.marshill.org/teaching/series.php.