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St. AUGUSTINE'S CHURCH NEWSLETTER
Summer 2009 No 74
GREEN AND PLEASANT LAND
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A few weeks ago I attended our Diocesan clergy
conference in Swanwick, Derbyshire, a long way to go for a couple of days, but
not without its attractions, not least the beautiful countryside. During a gap
in the conference program a friend took me for a drive through the nearby
rolling dales, the road passed rocky hillsides too, and rushing torrents of
water, as we headed for Matlock Baths, a Victorian spa town. No wonder Blake
wrote of England as this ‘green and pleasant land’, in his famous hymn,
‘Jerusalem’. However, as I reminded myself, this part of the country was very
much at the heart of what we call the Industrial Revolution, and was home to
those ‘dark satanic mills’, also mentioned by him!
‘Green and pleasant land’ was very much our focus at the
conference, one of the main speakers being Sir Ghillean Prance, scientific
director of the Eden Project in Cornwall. Just as the Industrial Revolution
created great blots on the landscape and damaged the environment too, he
reminded us, we go on damaging the environment and creating our own blots,
despite the dire warnings given to us, not least global warming!
Whereas most of the damage caused by the Industrial
Revolution has now been put right, that will sadly not be the case if we go on
treating our planet as we do. It will now be almost impossible for us to avoid
the dramatic consequences of climate change, caused by our continued abuse of
the earth’s rich resources. May be its too late, but people like Sir Ghillean
are not without hope. ‘Its time for us to remake our world from top to
bottom,’ he said, ‘its not just a question of finding scientific or technical
solutions’, but rather rediscovering ‘a reverence for life, a respect for each
other and a commitment to responsible stewardship of the earth.’
Sir Ghillean is a Christian, not only does he believe God
made humankind responsible for the planet he also sent his son to redeem us
and the whole of the creation, the KOSMOS. God is on our side, he wants us to
share in his work of redemption. Christians can’t ignore environmental issues;
the creation is not just going to get better on its own and adapt itself, the
‘Gaia Theory’ propounded by some. As Sir Ghillean warned us, we have taken the
planet far beyond what it can adjust to, we need to act now. He urged on us
the need to think globally and act locally, we might feel helpless but all the
things we do and all the choices we make, make a difference not just to where
we live but to the world as a whole. You or I can’t save the world on our own,
but there ia an interconnectedness in our actions, all the small things count,
we are all involved in the stewardship of creation. A stewardship that is not
about domination, plundering the earth of all its resources, but rather about
care, we are said Sir Ghillean, ‘the earth keepers’. Sir Ghillean pursued his
chosen career because he was inspired by the beauty of God’s creation, its many
wonders and marvellous works. The rich and powerful nations might be making
the right ‘environmental noises’, but we are still ignoring all the warnings
the planet is giving us, the clock is, as they say, at one to midnight!
Plenty to think about as I returned home on those crowded
motorways, which cut through and spoil vast swathes of beautiful countryside;
the cars and lorries filling the air with carbon emissions and the giant
metallic birds soaring overhead, discharging their noxious vapour trails!
Your friend and priest
Father Keith
LOOKING BACK
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