Wanted: A Christian response to the oil spill

Reprinted with permission from www.joshuacase.net

The other night while watching the show Life I was amazed. There were these ants that would eat these mushrooms and then rush off to die under trees where new mushrooms would sprout from their dead heads. I mean, when it comes to tv, this is serious stuff. So serious in fact, that it seems odd that you could call it anything but natural. I mean lets face it, although it is somewhat mysterious that the ants love to eat the plants which drive them crazy, it really is just a natural cycle of a natural creation. It is life.

What is happening in the Gulf of Mexico this week as a result of BP Chemical’s failure to make good on its promise to protect the wildlife of the world’s oceans while extracting oil to be used for cars is not something to marvel at. Species of fish, pelican, squid, duck, and who knows what else are all being swallowed up into the black gulf of oil which will not only limit their capacity to fly or swim, but will inevitably be the cause of much death. Death that is both unnatural and preventable!

Preventable or not, the disaster is here. The question I have is: where are all the Christians? I mean honestly, here you have an example of humans exacting a kind of injustice on the creation that they claim to be responsible for stewarding, and there has been no effort to try to help or to mobilize (at least from what I can find) people as good stewards to action. And whereas many Christians in the empire were more than ready to suggest that drilling for oil was Biblically justified on a stewardship basis, few are coming forward to take up responsibility for clean up or care.

I have to admit that as I write I am more than a little bummed that if you Google “Christian oil spill volunteers,” you actually find an Atheist organization recruiting volunteers to help with clean up before you find Christians. Now this isn’t to say they are not out there, only to say they are not activating their bases, they’re not stepping in and saying “we love to drive our cars with our fish on them, and so we too are kind of responsible for this mess.” They are not even saying that the oil clean up is part of their responsibility as people of faith in the public square.

But shouldn’t a Christian response to this crisis be equally as measured as a response to other tragedies like hurricanes and earthquakes? Or, in some classic sense, do most Christians still fundamentally believe that God only cares about human life and human surviving? Is there a way in which this oil spill, like the slowness of Christian response to HIV/AIDS in the early years of the pandemic, will be the beginning of breaking of this kind of disconnect? Maybe, but maybe not.

Maybe response really depends on how one views God’s relationship to Creation. If one views God as completely other and distant then it makes sense why caring for the animals about to be destroyed would matter less. And if you buy the Left Behind logic, it matters even less as everything is going burn.

But what if Sallie McFague was right when she suggested thinking about the relationship between the world and God this way: “the world is God’s body?” Would our response be different? Would we be quicker to help if we experienced the violence against the earth as violence against the goodness of God?

McFague’s understanding of the world as God’s body challenges and calls disciples of Jesus to re-imagine the doctrine of creation not merely as God’s acting upon the world, but as God “sharing” divine power with humans that all of creation may flourish. In McFague’s articulation, not only does God meet with humanity in the “intrinsic and intimate” details of their lives, but in the everyday experiences of life at home in planet earth. With this vision of earth as home, McFague hopes to inspire humans to not only be planted as good stewards of the earth (as God’s body) but also to bear witness to the goodness and sustainability of creation in God. (Some might even argue, that it is this way of understanding God/World that allows Christians to challenge the injustices they experience under any political system.)

Might not this view call more Christians to a sharing in clean up? Might not this view make for a kind of green revolution necessary for sustainable life on earth for all that share it?

You may remember that Glenn Beck infuriated Christians all across the US just a few short weeks ago by suggesting that people should report their pastors for using any kind of social justice language in the church. Beck’s point at the time was that these pastors were just buying into a liberal socialist agenda of the Obama administration and that Jesus’ movement had nothing to do with it. Well, on this point, maybe Beck will have nothing to worry about. For it seems to me that the Church is still very much behind the times with regards to creation care. Or, maybe I’m wrong! Let’s give Beck something to talk about and let Rush know that though he may wish to blame ‘the environmentalists’ for this tragedy, its everyone in the empire who is to blame!

I’m convinced that there is a huge need for Christians to wake up and to respond to this crisis as good stewards of a good creation. As people who ought to be working already to participate in the healing of the world, it is our duty! I’ve started rallying my circles and my networks to mobilize people towards action. Won’t you join me?!

Do Justice!
Joshua

Joshua Case is a blogger (http://www.joshuacase.net/), podcaster (http://www.thenickandjoshpodcast.com/), and activist. As a co-facilitator of the Atlanta Emergent cohort, he has blogged and podcasted on matters related to Christianity in the emerging culture for a number of years. Joshua is the chair of the Candler Social Concerns Network and is a third year MDIV student at the Candler School of Theology. He has led a roundtable discussion via podcast about the Christian response to the oil spill, which can be found HERE.

Go outside and play!

North Chickamauga Greenway, Hixson

Studies show that experiencing nature is an important ingredient for a child's physical, academic, emotional, and spiritual growth. But statistics show that children are six times more likely to play a video game indoors than to ride a bike outside, and older children spend an average of 6.5 hours per day in front of some sort of electronic screen.

Here are some ideas for getting the whole family outside ...

• Hiking is a recreational activity that works for the entire family, and Chattanooga is full of great local trails. (Check Hiking Chattanooga for all types of hikes.) Hiking is great exercise, it's free, it can be done almost year-round, and it requires very little equipment. Even young children can participate as long as you start slowly and consider the terrain. Remember the sunscreen and water!
• Camping is a great way to spend quality time with your family outdoors, but it does require some extra preparation. Try to avoid long car rides, and find out ahead of time whether the campgrounds are kid-friendly. Help children take part in everything from pitching the tent to making dinner (with close supervision, of course!).
• Outdoors at home. Don't neglect the simple pleasures of being together in your own back yard. Chasing fireflies, family sunset-watching, looking for four-leaf clovers, and raking/jumping in leaves are all no-cost family activities that children will remember for a lifetime!
• Astronomy. The night-time sky can be magical. Do some research on the Internet or in the library to help define your local night sky, and then lie on your back on a clear night to watch the show God puts on every night. (This is fun for preschoolers, who often enjoy the extra "treat" of getting to stay up a bit later.)

Spending unstructured time outdoors - without the distractions of screens and chores that often take priority inside the home - is a wonderful way to connect with children through meaningful conversations. Since a language-rich family environment is an indicator of school achievement, these ideas for unstructured family time may help you discover ways to improve your family's physical and academic health at the same time!

(Sources: Creative Discovery Museum, U.S. Dept. of Health & Human Services, and Harvard Education Letter.)

Warner Park recycling center to close temporarily

from recycleright.org

Due to construction on property adjacent to the Warner Park Recycle Center, the Center will close for approximately one month beginning May 17, 2010. Citizens are encouraged to take their recyclables to one of Chattanooga's other four recycle centers until the project is completed.
Chattanooga convenience center locations:

• Access Road at DuPont Parkway, 4500 Access Rd., with the Residential Refuse Collection Center, 37415
• John A. Patten Recreation Center, 3202 Kelly's Ferry Rd., 37419
• East Brainerd Baseball Complex, end of Batter's Place Road, 37421
• Brainerd Recycle Center, 5955 Brainerd Rd., 37411

The convenience centers are open seven days a week, operating under the following schedule:

• Mondays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Sundays, 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.

In addition to everything that is recyclable through curbside collection - cardboard, newspaper, all paper grades, plastic #1 and #2 bottles with a neck, aluminum and rinsed out steel cans - Chattanooga's recycling convenience centers accept wet and dry cell batteries, small electronics (no TVs or microwaves), shredded paper, glass bottles (brown, green and clear), motor oil, compact fluorescent bulbs and tubular fluorescent bulbs.

Citizens may recycle their computer monitors at Orange Grove's Industrial Training Center, 720 Arlington Avenue in Chattanooga. A $10 fee applies.

Recycling the right way in Chattanooga is easy. Clear guidelines for both curbside recycling and recycling at convenience centers are available at www.recycleright.org. The Web site also offers online subscription for curbside recycling, calendars for curbside collection days and answers to frequently asked questions.


The Warner Park Recycle Center is located at 1250 East Third St., in downtown Chattanooga.

Did you know?

If you were at the April 21 evening meal at Christ Church, you might have noticed the slideshow going on in the background. If not ... check it out here!

Green Facts

(You may have to manually scroll through each side by clicking on the right arrow.)

Earth Day freebie!

To celebrate Earth Day, ReusableBags.com is offering its top-selling reusable bag for FREE! The Acme Ultra-Compact Tote is made of 100 percent recycled fabric and plastics (no petroleum). When not in use, the bag folds up into a tiny sack (the sack is built into the seam); when fully opened, the bag holds 25 pounds. The tote also comes with Acme Bags' lifetime guarantee!

There's no minimum purchase required to get the free bag; however, you must pay shipping costs (approx. $5). This special offer expires at midnight tonight (4/22/10), so hurry! When checking out, use offer code EDAYFREE in order to get the discount.

How you can help

Last year was the first year of Christ Church's Gardening for God, an on-site organic vegetable garden.

Want to get involved in something "green" but don't quite know where to start? The answer is as close as Christ Church! CUMC's Gardening for God ministry needs summer volunteers to help water the garden and harvest the vegetables once they start ripening.

Here's a message from Gardening for God coordinator Emily Dykstra:

I want to thank all of you who signed up to help with the garden this summer. You do not know how much your help will make a difference in so many people's lives.


There are two ways that we need help: One is harvesting; the other is watering. We are more in need of water volunteers than harvesting volunteers, but if you would like to do both, please feel free to do so.


Harvesting is done twice a week -- Wednesday mornings at 10 and Sunday evenings at 7. Harvesting usually takes about 30 minutes and is a great time to fellowship with other church members and see the fruits of our labors. If you decide this is how you want to help, all you have to do is sign up for one of the harvesting days and show up with a bucket and pick ripe vegetables. We have two volunteers who will be delivering the vegetables to people who need them.


If you want to water, all you need to do is sign up for one week this summer and go to the garden twice that week to water. We need volunteers to water from May through September. Only two weeks have been taken for this summer, and they are the weeks of June 6th and June 27th. The sooner you sign up for your week, the better chance you have of getting the week you want.


This Sunday at 2:00 pm (April 25th) we will finish planting the last of the seeds in the garden and will have sign-up sheets for harvesting and watering. At this time I will also do a run through of how to water the garden and show you where the hoses are. If you want to water this summer, please make every effort to attend this meeting. I will also have another watering demonstration next Sunday at 4:00 on May 2nd for those who cannot make it this Sunday.
Hope to see you all Sunday. Earth Week is this week, and WE ARE MAKING A DIFFERENCE.

If you're interested in helping out or just want to learn more, stop by the Gardening for God info table in the atrium at tonight's church dinner, or call Emily at 933-4440. What a great way to celebrate Earth Week - by serving God, meeting new Christian friends, and learning a little about gardening!

Weekend plans??

Doesn't this look like a gorgeous place to spend a beautiful spring weekend? Well, it's never been easier (or cheaper!) to enjoy such an amazing setting. Come enjoy the Chattanooga Nature Center, which - in honor of Earth Day 2010 - is offering free admission Saturday, April 24, and Sunday, April 25!

For directions to the nature center, click here.

Photo courtsey of Hope Alexander, Chattanooga Nature Center