Being Green and The Concept of “Sustainability”

Happy Earth Day!

As a resident of the San Francisco Bay Area Earth Day is a pretty big deal. It’s almost like another New Years except all the resolutions have to do with recycling, composting, driving less, or at least doing it in a vehicle that doesn’t use fossil fuels. And, like New Years, most of these resolutions will vaporize…. but leave no carbon footprint

I am actually more of an environmentalist than many in the church. Regrettably, both the American church and taking care of our environment have been so politicized to opposite ends of the spectrum that too many people viscerally feel they can’t go together. Too bad, particularly because Genesis so clearly says that it’s man’s responsibility to care for the earth. Of course it also says it’s ours to use and enjoy, something which you’d swear some “environmentalists” think is a sin! It’s this polarization that’s a problem. But it’s not the heart of the problem.

As I was hearing an Earth Day presentation today I noticed and thought about a word I’ve heard countless times before around the topic of environmental concerns, but I’ve never really thought about it. That term is “sustainability.” The concept of course is that mankind should live in such a way that we keep the earth a sustainable place — that we don’t use it up. What occurred to me today is that the problem with this idea is that it places the responsibility for sustaining the earth on man. This is something we simply aren’t qualified or remotely capable of doing. Read Psalm 104. This is not an admonition for man to sustain the earth, rather it poetically observes that GOD does this. And He does so with so much more beauty and grace than we ever could.

As a Christian, I absolutely believe that we need to be responsible about the resources we use, the junk we create, the animals and plants we harm, and try to make our place on the earth as good or better than we found it. But I don’t believe for a minute that the Earth will be used up or become uninhabitable one minute before God intends that to happen. HE sustains the earth and everything in it. From the water we drink to the air we breathe to the blood coursing through our veins.

Happy Earth Day. And THANK GOD for this beautiful place He’s given us to live, play, and share His love with others.

What Exactly Is Emerging from the “Emergent Reformation?"

What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun.
— Ecclesiastes 1:9

I’m encountering references to “the emergent church” and variations on the theme more and more in books, blogs and other media and I’m curious about it. I’ve even seen this called the emergent “reformation.” That is a big label to live up to!

I’ve done a little reading on the subject, but not a lot. One source I’ve gone to is Wikipedia. I must admit to being a wiki-skeptic in most cases because of the fact it’s basically built on the concept that what most people think is true probably is. That’s a fallacy in my opinion. But in the case of ideas that are just beginning to to shape, I actually think it’s a reasonable place to reference. So as of this writing, the emergent church is described as a “movement whose participants seek to engage postmodern people, especially the unchurched and post-churched.” Regardless of how you describe people, if this is seeking to engage more people in Christianity I’m all for it — regardless of their stage of “churchedness.” The next part of the definition I found a little troubling.

“Emerging Christians deconstruct and reconstruct Christian beliefs, certain culture norms, and methods in ways which will accommodate postmodern culture.”

Whenever I hear people talk about trying to find ways to adjust theology to accommodate culture I start to get very nervous. What comes to mind is something a theology teacher said in class one day, “be very cautious about new ideas in theology.” I don’t think he intended to say new ideas were impossible, only that they would ultimately have to be rooted in the unchanging foundation of The Bible. This also brings to mind Ecclesiastes 1:9 (quoted above) andHebrews 13:8, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” God does not change. And neither do we, essentially. At a heart level the things that make us tick haven’t changed since we were initially designed in God’s image. Obviously, what does change is the way we live and interact in the world around us. The things we make, the way we organize ourselves into semi-sustainable units, governments, economies, even religions, change. In that, there is certainly room for new things to “emerge.” But since God, who does not change; has revealed Himself to us, who do not change; through His Word and the Holy Spirit, which does not change; what’s left? As I see it, all that’s left is religious practice. In that I think God gives us guidelines, but a lot of latitude.

You “emergents,” if you’re there. What do you think?