Since I’m here in
Earth is a revelation of God and the sustainer of all life. We recognize that the exploitation and destruction of Earth’s air, water, soil and species is a sacrilege. We are committed to a spirituality of peacemaking which compels us to live in right relationship with the entire community of life. In this way, “we engage in the struggle against the reality of evil and continue the work of establishing God’s reign of justice and peace.” (Constitutions 2)
“Our history calls us to a special love of those who are poor.” (Constitutions 21)
In her own time, Margaret Anna Cusack (Mother Clare) made the connection between the devastation of earth and the victims of famine. Failure to care for creation also threatened family life, the wellbeing of women and children and was a cause of emigration. Recognizing the interdependence of all life, we count among those who are poor all Earth’s creatures whose lives are threatened or diminished. We experience a call to live our stance of contemplative, nonviolent peacemaking in regard to creation. It is faithfulness to this charism in our own time that compels us to respond to the crisis of climate change/global warming.
We believe in a sustainable world, yet we see Earth’s life-giving resources weakened by human choices and actions. Climate change, especially global warming, is already affecting peoples and biological systems throughout the world. War and nuclear proliferation pose a particular threat to the integrity of Earth.
4 comments:
I think nuns living in community have a unique opportunity to model this kind of life for the rest of us. Living in community cuts down the energy consumption of the individual. A number of convents have land on which they can grow their own vegetables, and maybe even erect a windmill.
This winter, my husband and kept the thermostat at 62. This summer we decided to use fans rather than window air conditioners. The high and low temperatures have given me a lot of practice in "offering it up" as a prayer for my family and the world.
Amen and amen.
You might enjoy this concise commentary on Genesis 1:26 and 1:28 about “humans’ dominion of earth.” http://bibletools.org/index.cfm/fuseaction/Bible.show/sVerseID/28/eVerseID/28
Here is a more traditional concise Jewish commentary: http://www.shemayisrael.co.il/publicat/hazon/tzedaka/limits.htm
Be well, take care, and enjoy the “Garden State” (a fortuitous sign of the rightness of the ecological concern?).
Thanks for sharing this. We have a Land Ethic, but it is nice to read what others are doing in similar areas.
Busted Halo (www.bustedhalo.com) is posting a series of excerpts from the book "50 Ways to Help Save the Earth: How You and Your Church Can Make a Difference." The book is available on their website at: http://www.bustedhalo.com/shop/product_info.php?products_id=137
Regards and best wishes to all-
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