[Dialogue] {Disarmed} Fw: Eco-Justice Notes: Beyond Denial and Despair

[Charles or Doris Hahn]

--- RICHARD HOWIE <rhowie3 at verizon.net> wrote:

> Dear Janice et al,
> In the spirit of your email and the quote from
> Walter Bruggemann, I  
> continue to look forward to being part of our
> ICA:USA Living Legacy  
> team and discerning the eventfulness for 2007.
> Grace & Peace, Ellen
> On Oct 29, 2006, at 9:47 PM, Janice Ulangca wrote:
> 
> > From a Presbyterian Eco-Justice source.  The key,
> he says, is  
> > imagining that something different is possible. 
> Reminds me of what  
> > Richard Rohr, of the Contemplation and Action
> center in  
> > Albuquerque, said at D.C. conference on Politics
> and Spirituality  
> > last January.  Rohr started with story of Moses,
> expanded into  
> > kinds of slavery where liberation is needed, and
> said, "If you  
> > cannot imagine anything different than the way
> things are, then you  
> > are enslaved to the status quo."  Perhaps a word
> needed now by  
> > those who care about ICA, as well as those who
> experience despair  
> > about the U.S. and the world.
> > Janice Ulangca
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: Peter Sawtell
> > Sent: Friday, October 27, 2006 2:40 PM
> > Subject: Eco-Justice Notes: Beyond Denial and
> Despair
> >
> >
> > ***	Please feel free to forward this message to
> others.
> > ***	This article, and all back copies of
> Eco-Justice Notes, is  
> > archived on our website.
> >
> >
> > Beyond Denial and Despair
> > Copyright © 2006 - Eco-Justice Ministries
> >
> >
> > There is a familiar story in Matthew, Mark and
> Luke about a rich  
> > young ruler who came to talk with Jesus. He's a
> perfect example of  
> > what many of us are facing today.
> >
> > This earnest young man asks, "Tell me, Jesus, what
> do I have to  
> > do?" The first answer from Jesus is routine:
> follow the law and the  
> > commandments. "Aha!" says the young man. "I've
> done that all my life."
> >
> > Well, then, says Jesus, give all of your wealth to
> the poor.
> >
> > The young man despairs when he hears this new and
> challenging  
> > instruction. He walks away, because he can't
> imagine -- literally  
> > cannot imagine -- living without his wealth. This
> rich young man  
> > was not able to conceive of himself as a poor
> young man. So he  
> > despaired, and walked away from the salvation he
> desired.
> >
> >
> > +     +     +     +     +
> >
> > An Inconvenient Truth has been shown in thousands
> of US  
> > congregations in the last month. In that film, Al
> Gore explains the  
> > science of global warming -- the truth of what is
> happening now,  
> > and what is likely to happen soon. He asks us to
> break out of  
> > ignorance and denial, and accept this frightening
> new reality. But  
> > all of that science is background.
> >
> > The core of the movie is where Mr. Gore talks
> about climate change  
> > as a moral issue. He calls us to consider the
> choices that we must  
> > make about how to live in relation to the global
> community of life.  
> > He's absolutely right about the need to raise
> these moral  
> > questions. That is why it is so appropriate that
> the topic is being  
> > addressed in churches. But raising the right moral
> questions  
> > doesn't mean we'll do the right things.
> >
> > Mr. Gore also speaks about despair. He laments
> that so many people,  
> > when brought face-to-face with the reality of
> global climate  
> > change, move quickly from denial to despair. They
> ignore the  
> > possibility of acting. They don't attempt personal
> and societal  
> > changes.
> >
> > The story of the rich young man explains that jump
> into despair.  
> > The Bible story opens fresh understandings about
> what is needed if  
> > we are to address this global catastrophe.
> >
> > The man in the Bible story was given a moral
> choice, and had clear  
> > instructions about a specific action that he could
> take to live out  
> > his decisions. But he still despaired. Yes, giving
> people a list of  
> > things to do, a set of instructions about how to
> act on moral  
> > choices, is important. Those practical steps,
> though, may not be  
> > enough.
> >
> > The things that we need to do about global warming
> are big and  
> > difficult. Despite the upbeat list at the end of
> the film of steps  
> > about the steps which can be taken, making
> significant reductions  
> > in our carbon emissions will be a huge shock to
> our economy and to  
> > our culture. We have an extensive and practical
> list of things that  
> > will cut greenhouse gasses. For many people,
> though -- whether  
> > leaders of business and politics, or folk on the
> street and in the  
> > pew -- that depth of change is the cause for our
> despair.
> >
> > Like the man in the Bible, many of us cannot
> imagine -- literally  
> > cannot imagine -- living without the comfort and
> wealth and  
> > privilege that we get from consuming vast
> quantities of fossil  
> > fuels. We find it almost inconceivable that
> another way of living  
> > is possible, let alone desirable.
> >
> > We're not bad people. Like the rich young ruler,
> we want to be good  
> > and responsible. We're more than happy to do the
> basics -- to  
> > change some light bulbs, insulate the attic, nudge
> the thermostat  
> > by a couple of degrees.
> >
> > But the US needs to cut its carbon emissions by
> 30%, or 50%, or  
> > 80%, and that's very hard. We need to structure
> our lives and our  
> > society in ways that won't look very much like
> what we know and  
> > love. To make real and significant cuts in our
> carbon emissions  
> > means that we have to stop being who we think we
> are. And because  
> > we literally cannot imagine that it is possible to
> live  
> > differently, many people despair of healing the
> climate.
> >
> > This is where I think churches are important. Our
> moral expertise  
> > isn't needed to declare the ethical no-brainer
> that cooking the  
> > planet is wrong. What we can and must do is take a
> message to our  
> > members, our neighbors, and our leaders that it is
> possible for us  
> > to live in a different way. We can proclaim the
> good news that it  
> > really is possible to live fulfilling, satisfying,
> joyous lives  
> > without poisoning the earth's climate.
> >
> > I've written before about the wonderful book, The
> Prophetic  
> > Imagination, by Walter Brueggemann. The message of
> the book is that  
> > the biblical prophets not only point out what is
> wrong 
=== message truncated ===>
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