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LEARNING FROM EXPERIENCE

Jun26

My last blog shared insights about saving species: that a key factor is to think ecosystems rather than merely focus Earth-Hands-imageon isolated species — even though they are easier to image and more likely to motivate us to action. We need to develop the consistent ability to “see” interconnections and protect entire habitats.

Thomas Berry always said that nothing is itself without everything else. This might be especially pertinent when thinking about the species closest to our hearts: the one containing human hearts. Thomas also said that reinventing the human was part of the Great Work of our time. Pope Francis’ recent statements seem to agree.

Eco Catholic blog 

100_0022-2Sharon Abercrombie’s 6/24/14 blog on the National Catholic Reporter (NCR) site (http://ncronline.org/node/80236) caught my attention. Small wonder. Here’s how she begins:

True or false? Our current ecological crisis is a completely new development in the history of humankind — a situation only 200 years old, a nasty byproduct of progress fostered by the Industrial Revolution. 

If you voted “true,” that’s just a bit false. It’s not the whole story.

To get the full picture, take a gigantic leap back into time beginning with the Old Stone Age. Those ancestors content to kill just two mammoths instead of one were still behaving sustainably. But the ones who took the shortcut approach by driving entire herds over a cliff, were eventually defeated by their own “progress,” running out of a major food source for their lunches.

Sharon continues with insights from “Surviving Progress [1]”: a 2011 film directed by Mathieu Roy and Harold Crooks, and with Martin Scorcese among its executive producers. “Surviving Progress” tells us where we’ve been and where we are going ecologically as a species. It warns that the outcome for us and the rest of the planet will be disastrous unless we melt down the edges of our Ice Age mentalities with an expanded, inclusive moral consciousness. I highly recommend this powerful documentary for summer spiritual televiewing (A complete transcript [2] is also available on the film’s website).

I like to imagine the interconnections of the various individuals within these civilizations rather than thinking solely about the humans (in a lump sum) and their accomplishments. The facts and theories are the same, but new light is shed when we remember how interconnected each human was with everything and everyone else within its biosystem: from microorganisms to other humans, from soil to water to air, from climate to lifestyles . . . .

Extinct Civilizations

Recent reports about climate change impel responsible humans to consider prayerfully the implications of global ecosystemolmec-civilization-disappeared collapse and the fact that it could imperil all species as well as the future evolution of planet Earth.

At least ten, probably more, thriving civilizations have disappeared from various locations on Earth, many prior to the Christian Era (BCE). One wonders what individuals in these civilizations thought as their ecosystem became threatened. Denial? Trust in the gods? Futile blame-games? Resignation? 

Top theories for extinctions of civilizations include invasion and ecological causes like volcanic eruptions, climate changes leading to drought, and over farming or over hunting causing starvation. Extinction won. This need not happen again if we learn from the past.

“Surviving Progress”

NCR has graciously allowed me to reprint Sharon’s blog, and the rest is hers:

“Surviving Progress” features authors, environmentalists, historians and economists and includes such notables as David Suzuki, Ronald Wright, Margaret Atwood, Jane Goodall and Stephen Hawking. Activists from the Congo, Canada and the United State complete the cast.

Viewers will come away with their own particular memories, but one of mine was the realization that ancient Rome became an early prototype for our current economic system — the wealthy minority at the top of the pyramid versus the rest.

In those days, it was the custom for Sumer, Babylonia, Egypt and other countries to occasionally cancel their debts when they became too unwieldy. This policy created a clean slate so that societies could start afresh.

imagesRome, however, did not approve of such mercies, instead waging war with kings unable to pay their debts, explained economist Michael Hudson. Like plagues of locusts, Roman legions stole gold from the temples and public buildings, stripped cities of their waterworks, and created a desert from the land.

“A debt is a debt,” became the Roman calling card. Egalitarian lands, where peasants formerly had access to public land, were taken over by the lords and generals. This move helped to create widespread homelessness, the creation of slums and ecological problems.

Canadian author Ronald Wright, whose book A Short History of Progress inspired the film, explained that erosion became a serious problem, “so bad that some of the Roman ports silted up with all the topsoil that got washed down from the fields into the river.”

Archeologists in Italy have been able to measure the degradation caused by Rome’s fall, said Wright, adding that they also discovered “how it took a thousand years of much reduced population during the Middle Ages for fertility in Italy to rebuild.”

Of the saddest portions of the documentary are scenes from the Brazilian rain forest, burned and clear cut by logging companies. At one point, the camera closes in on a half standing tree, with a lone dying insect, struggling to hang on, trembling, shaking and trying to figure out what has just befallen it.

Meanwhile, back at the lumber mill, families speak of the necessity of such work in order to feed themselves and their 1384791420-rise-in-deforestation-in-the-amazon-rainforest-_418266children. Viewers might wonder why these poor people have their backs against this kind of destructive employment wall, and why no other jobs are available to nourish both humans and their rain forest home.

Economist Michael Hudson states that rain forest destruction is directly tied into the Wall Street and London financial sectors. When Latin American countries in the early 1980s could no longer pay their debts, the International Monetary Fund advised them to sell off their water and oil rights, forests and subsoil mineral resources.

The tragedy of these policies are ongoing — and not only in Latin America — and have led to widespread poverty, hungry families, polluted water and joblessness.

David Suzuki, the Canadian geneticist, blasts this kind of economic system, saying it is “not based in anything like the real world.” Rather, he says, “it’s life, the web of life that filters water in the hydrologic cycle, it’s microorganisms in the soil that create the soil that we grow our food in. Economists call these externalities … that’s nuts!”

My television had barely cooled down from playing this film when the press reported Pope Francis addressing some of these terrible disparities during his mid-June interview [3] with the Spanish daily, La Vangardia.

Pope Francis Delivers His Urbi et Orbi Blessing“The economy is moved by the ambition of having more,” he told the newspaper. The pontiff also observed “we are in a world economic system that isn’t good … we have fallen into a sin of idolatry, the idolatry of money.”

Francis also spoke of “discarding an entire generation to maintain an economic system that can’t hold up anymore,” ones which “sacrifice man at the feet of the idol of money.”

As I read the pope’s words, and thought back to scenes from “Surviving Progress” one of Pete Seeger’s songs, “Where have all the flowers gone?” surfaced in my heart.

“Oh, when will they ever learn?” goes the refrain.

Francis and the producers of “Surviving Progress” are singing the same refrain.

The author Wright adds his voice to their chorus, when he faces the camera and reflects:

“I think what we’re up again here is human nature, we have to reform ourselves, remake ourselves in a way that cuts against the grain of our, our inner animal nature and transcend that Ice Age hunter, that all of us are, if you strip off the thin layer of civilization.”

He concluded: “It’s up to us to prove nature wrong, in a sense, to show that we can take control of our own destinies and behave in a wise way that will ensure the continuation of the experiment of civilization.”

Source URL (retrieved on 06/24/2014 – 16:22): http://ncronline.org/blogs/eco-catholic/documentary-explores-historical-costs-surviving-progress

Links:
[1] http://www.survivingprogress.com/
[2] http://survivingprogress.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/SP_transcription.pdf
[3] http://larouchepac.com/node/31061

 

EXTINCTIONS

Jun14

That we are heading into, or are already well inside, Earth’s Sixth Great Extinction is probably not news to readers of this blog. It’s sadly certain. I had considered focusing a Lent reflection on extinction of species sometime in the future. In the three-year liturgical timetable that my reflections follow, Lent 2015 would be Air’s turn. I figured I could update Lent 2012 for use in 2015 and think about species for another time.

100_0751However, people in various groups that had used Air in 2012 asked what else I would offer. I decided to let the Scripture reading make the decision. Turns out that next Lent’s First Sunday readings include God’s covenant with all creation. That settled it, and I started writing.

Lent 2015

As usual, I began with our place in the Universe Story, the sacredness of all life, our interconnectedness and interdependence. I continued with information about species: numbers suffering extinctions and threats, causes and solutions. I included prayers of grieving and actions to continue efforts to improve present reality. I recommended videos of fish, birds, and mammals, plus heroes who worked to save them.

I finished Creation Covenant: Reflections on Fish, Birds, and Mammals for Lent 2015. My various proofers did their thing —bless them and their giftedness! — but I had a nagging feeling that I’d missed something.

Well, I found it, and I think it’s worth a blog.

Endangered Species Act

My Aha! came when I read key parts of the 1993 Endangered Species Act (ESA). imagesYou might be surprised to know that the act’s first purpose is not to save species! That goal follows from the first:

“The purposes of this Act are to provide a means whereby the ecosystems upon which endangered species and threatened species depend may be conserved, [italics mine], to provide a program for the conservation of such endangered species and threatened species, and to take such steps as may be appropriate to achieve the purposes of the treaties and conventions set forth in subsection (a) of this section.”

Ecosystems

The ESA’s authors realized that the primary way to preserve species is to conserve their habitats: the complex of climate, food resources and multiple species that evolved interdependently over millions of years in each of the various bioregions of Earth.

Planet Earth is itself one inclusive ecosystem of which the human species is a part. Our species is totally dependent upon the rest. If we destroy our habitat, where can we go to survive?

marine_ecosystemsWe’ve all heard about the butterfly wings flapping in one place that cause weather changes someplace else. Ecosystems affect one another. That level of interactivity cannot easily be visualized. Nor can we see essential components of local ecosystems in a photo or watch the slow evolution happening even as an image is taken.

We cannot see a species’ preferred climate, its predators or what it consumes to keep the ecosystem in balance. We cannot see soil quality or water salinity, all the other living organisms, and the chemical and other factors that have developed together to provide a home in which the various species can thrive. It’s the whole that needs primary care. God’s covenant was not with species, but with creation.

Habitat Loss

Yet I, and many others, have been focusing on species. Images of a given endangered species — like the polar bear here — get-attachmentimmediately reach open hearts. We can relate to a given fish, bird, animal, plant. It’s way harder to image an ecosystem. Might seem like the chicken and egg question, but the ESA — and logic, after some reflection — is clear: start with the ecosystem. That change in attitude is now required. 

Scientists agree that habitat loss is the greatest cause of extinctions. The Endangered Species Act confirms that conserving specific habitats is the primary issue needed to save species. Save the ecosystem, and we save everything living within it and dependent upon it. As Thomas Berry often repeated, “Nothing is itself without everything else.” (True for humans, too.)

Attitude (and Punctuation) Shift

This highlights an evolution needed in our brains. We’ve evolved in recent centuries to think of ourselves and items in the rest of nature as individuals. This awareness was important, a beginning, but now it’s time to become more aware of how these individuals inter-exist. (C.f., https://ecospiritualityresources.com/2013/10/20/stages-of-cosmic-consciousness/.) The pyramid structure — God on top, then men, then women, etc. down the line — didn’t include a spot for ecosystems, and we are now challenged not just to include ecosystems, but to place everything– including ourselves — within that context. That’s reality! We rarely perceive the interaction in an ecosystem, but that’s a skill every human needs to develop.

So I shall revise Lent 2015. One example: I had written “The reasons for species extinctions include these: habitat loss, global warming, pollution, deforestation, land development, habitat fragmentation . . . .”

I’ll make this change: “The primary reason for species extinction is alteration of ecosystems. [full stop] This happens through climate change, pollution, deforestation, land development, habitat fragmentation . . . . .”

Local Ecosystems

Brian Swimme, in The Hidden Heart of the Cosmos (1996) invites readers to take the “local universe test”: imagine inviting someone “to visit you who lives at least twenty miles away and who has never visited you before . . . . In your directions you images-1may refer to anything but human artifice . . . hills, trees, constellations of the night sky, the lakes or ocean shores or caves, . . . any ponds, trails or prairies, the Sun and Moon . . . .” and so on. But nothing human-made.

What trees, flowers, and birds are native to your area, having evolved over centuries? Where does the water come from and go to? Is anything endangered for any reason? What do you know about the millions-of-years evolution of your area? How does it change with the seasons? Have you had, or can you imagine others having had, awe-inspiring experiences here?

Perhaps if we were more conscious that we are co-creating our ecosystems, we would be more eager “to provide a means whereby the ecosystems upon which endangered species and threatened species depend may be conserved.” This awareness might also help us realize how the health of individual bioregions is essential to the health of the entire planet, our precious home. May we recognize its sacredness and respond to its needs.

 

 

Capturing the Depth

May17

Capturing the Depth

Brian Swimme notes that “Life created the human to capture the depth of things.” To capture: interesting choice of verb. How do we capture the depth of things?

Enduring Depth

6039037-fish-bread-and-wine-as-symbols-of-jesus-lifeJesus came that we might have life, abundant life (John 10:10). His hearers had to discover new ways to integrate what they always believed with the new depth that Jesus offered: the Life he said he was. People then and now sometimes had/have major challenges capturing Jesus’ message of love and forgiveness, inclusion and self-giving.

Believers listen to the still small voice of God within, the voice of our souls, the whispers of our hearts. We earnestly listen to the signs of the times to direct our ministry. We’ve done it for decades, but many now feel the need to update our methods in light of the new stories from science. Are these new revelations calling us to develop new ways of capturing previously unguessed depths?

I think it’s safe to say that those interested in ecospirituality (by whatever name) are eager to deepen their understanding of the depths: not just of the Universe, but of its Source, enlivening Power, Creator, Mystery (again, by whatever name). We also want to capture how Jesus fits into the new story.

About Receptors

Thinking about the way things are captured reminds me of three recent experiences:

A while ago I watched Barry Kibrick, host of PBS’ Between the Lines, interview UnknownGerald Schroeder, author of Genesis and the Big Bang,  Science of God, and Hidden Face of God. Gerald  was explaining why, if a tree fell in the forest, there would be no sound. The energy waves exist, but something or someone with the physical equipment to receive (capture) the waves is required to make noise possible. As would be expected considering the titles of his books, the interview continued with his insights about the big questions of personal consciousness, God, and death. But he had me with capturing sound.

images-1More recently I was rereading sections of Mary Jean Irion’s She-Fire, A Safari Into the Human Spirit. Her book has treasures of several types, and I always gain from perusing the many pages I have dog-eared. This time I stayed with her reflection on the blue sky she saw in Kenya. Mary Jean writes: Blue is not a thing in itself. It does not exist. It happens only in the relationship of matter, light, and cones in the eye. Take away dust in the air, or take away light, or take away eyes — and there is no color. Yet there it is: who cannot see it? The sky, so help me, is blue today. Like Gerald Schroeder, Mary Jean goes on to explore thoughts about God. But she had me at capturing blue.

One more: Jacob Berkowitz’ The Stardust Revolution recounts the recent discoveries images-2concerning our origin in the stars. Essentially connected are the stories of the prescient scientists who developed the tools that made possible these discoveries. Whereas the equipment to catch sound waves and to see color came without human help, learning about the stars required patient human perseverance. Thanks to these scientists, we can now “catch” information unknown and probably unguessed until our time.

Praying Attention

Like many who are transitioning from prayers to a God-out-there and who have dealt with changing and always inadequate images of God, my journey in prayer has taken various paths. We live in a worldview that past mystics might have intuited, but which none knew scientifically. With no clear road from the past (and perhaps reluctance of some to share too honestly how they now travel) we are the generation making the prayer path. Rarely does this challenge — How do I pray? — not come up when faith-filled individuals transition from the Genesis Story to the Universe Story.

M. Basil Pennington, in his classic Centering Prayer in 1962, said: Our practice, our prayer, must be a response to reality, to what truly is. Well, think of all we’ve learned about reality since 1962! Think how Earth’s travails, and our awareness of them, have deepened since 1962! Think what we’re learning about the unity of all life! Can we capture the new depths when our minds have not yet had time to evolve ways to grasp these new realities?

Might prayer in our time require evolving new receptors so we can better “tune in” to the Universe — where the Transcendent lives and acts? Every religious insight and major figure, including Jesus, is part of that primary story and cannot be adequately known divorced from it, yet no religious founder knew it. Might dedicated pray-ers be called to evolve adequate receptors simply by their persevering efforts to stretch their minds and hearts and lifestyles?

 

New Depths from Science

Exploring and relating to the depth of the Mystery we call God is different now that we’re aware of being interconnected with the consciousness and totality of the Cosmos, aware of contributing to its evolution, aware of the inadequacy of any image to capture that reality. We know about energy popping in and out, fluctuating between waves and particles; we are learning about exoplanets and cosmic kin. We try to grow our Christian beliefs in this new soil, but no wonder we sometimes feel inadequate!

For example, even Rev. Cynthia Bourgeault acknowledges that her brilliant The Holy Trinityimages and the Law of Three will be challenging. Her description of the ternary principle  and its applications to theology force a forging of new brain paths. Yet how worth the effort to follow her journey into a new model for God and its more spacious container for the rich mythological and personal language of traditional Christian understanding. Hinting at what’s coming, she says: . . . most of the paradigm distress besetting contemporary trinitarian theology has arisen out of trying to bottle into particle format what is intrinsically a wave. How shall we capture these depths?

 

Our Part

I like thinking that my/our loving and persevering (and oftentimes tedious and confusing) efforts to capture the depths of things never before known will contribute to the evolution of new receptors. Isn’t this sure to happen? We do influence evolution, we do alter cosmic consciousness, we do create morphogenic fields. Our efforts contribute to easing the task of future generations to comprehend theological insights as evolution progresses to the Omega Point.