For the Beauty of the Earth
- stillhotundertheco
- Aug 24, 2020
- 3 min read
August 24, 2020
Seattle, WA
“Climate change is a global emergency.” So begins the portion of the 2020 Democratic platform entitled: Combating the Climate Crisis and Pursuing Environmental Justice.[1] It’s a lengthy and important portion of the platform and what I chose to consider on this first day of the Republican National Convention. In order to offer equal representation, I would also be glad to consider the Republican platform, but there is not one. (For more on that see my previous post here: https://www.stillhotunderthecollar.com/post/on-the-eve-of-everything
The 2020 Democratic platform outlines clearly and decisively the immediate steps needed to stem the steamrolling environmental disaster and return the United States of America to the global table where, working together, we can restore Creation. The steps enumerated are lengthy and show forethought and courage. They include restoring many of the protections the Trump administration has rolled back in order to benefit big businesses and the wealthy people who run them.
In my ongoing attempt to look for a Republican position, I turned to the 2016 RNC platform, which was not endorsed by any candidate. In it, the Republic position is: “Poverty, not wealth, is the gravest threat to the environment”.[2] Not only does the Republican position deny the critical nature of our present state, it blames it on the poor.
I live in one of the most stunning places in this nation. A short drive in any direction yields breathtaking beauty. Still, much of what exists here in the Pacific Northwest is endangered by the pursuit of power and money.
My energies on this day were offered to efforts to restore the Lower Snake River by removing its four dams. In doing so, salmon will be saved, orcas will have food, and the people and ecosystems who benefit from the river will have those benefits restored. The minimal energy generated by the dams (4%) can be replaced with clean, renewable forms of energy.
Earth Ministry supports the conversation between the tribes, commercial and sport fisherfolk, farmers, river users, scientists, environmental advocates, and local communities to understand how this transition needs to happen and the impact it will have.
To sign a letter in support of this action and to make a donation, please visit www.earthministry.org.
But more than this, find out what is happening where you live. My Beloved and I spent the afternoon watching the magnificent Snoqualmie Falls, an area sacred to the Snoqualmie tribe. We pondered what those waters have meant throughout the centuries. We wondered if one every became accustomed to their crashing sound.
My theological reflection today was the refrain “And God saw that it was good” from the Creation story in Genesis. The text tells us that God charged human kind with stewarding Creation….caring for it….participating in the gift of life with it. And we have failed miserably.
Yet, all is not lost; we have a limited window to cooperate with Creation once again. And it is our choice. Who will we trust to put into place a plan for the good of the earth, that creation might once again sing instead of groan?
Let all things now living a song of thanksgiving
To God the creator triumphantly raise,
Who fashioned and made us, protected and stayed us,
Who still guides us on to the end of our days.
God’s banners are o’er us,
God’s light goes before us,
A pillar of fire shining forth in the night,
Till shadows have vanished and darkness is banished,
As forward we travel from light into light.
God rules all the forces: the stars in their courses
And sun in its orbit obediently shine;
The hills and the mountains, the rivers and fountains,
The deeps of the ocean proclaim God divine.
We too should be voicing our love and rejoicing;
With glad adoration a song let us raise
Till all things now living unite in thanksgiving:
“To God in the highest, hosanna and praise!”
-ELW #881
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