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Reviews of 3 Climate Change Documentaries for Sharing in Your Church (Guest Post by Ryan O’Connor)

Nathan Aaberg —  February 28, 2021 — Leave a comment

I am happy to share another guest post by Ryan O’Connor. Ryan and his wife, Kara, live out Christian lives of love and compassion towards their neighbors and Creation in Wisconsin. It’s a blessing to know them. Ryan clearly has a calling for working within his church (and perhaps someday within other churches as well) to encourage believers to work together to cherish God’s earth. I’m grateful to him for this article and the one that will follow with tips on facilitating events in your church.

Several months ago, Nathan invited me to write a guest post for his blog about what I’ve learned about promoting creation care. One item that piqued the interest of readers was the idea of hosting a movie or documentary about specific issues. A movie or video showing is an easy, low-barrier event to host. They can also be great conversation starters, spark renewed interest in an adult education group, and educate others about your topic of choice. With this post, we begin an occasional series of reviews of videos and documentaries on specific topics.

Let’s start with documentaries on climate change: As the defining moral environmental issue of our time, there is no shortage of climate change documentaries to choose from. I have seen each of the three that I describe in this post used in public settings, including in churches. One (The Human Element) I used at my own church, and I attended a screening and discussion of another (Paris to Pittsburgh) at another church.

Below I provide a short review of their major themes. I also attempt to highlight their strengths, weaknesses, and ideas for best potential uses as a creation care teaching tool.

As with any event, set specific goals for what you want to accomplish through your film screening. Plan for a discussion immediately afterwards using questions carefully tailored to your goals.

A word of caution and of hope: Climate change has unfortunately been highly politized, sometimes with rhetoric echoing the increasing divisiveness of our country. It doesn’t have to be that way. It shouldn’t be that way, particularly among people of faith who believe in a good creator who made the world and put it under our care. As Pope Francis stated, being “protectors of God’s handiwork is essential to a life of virtue; it is not an optional or a secondary aspect of our Christian experience.” (Laudato Si, paragraph 216).

Anyone planning to host an event should first watch or listen to Katharine Hayhoe’s excellent TED talk, “The most important thing you can do to fight climate change: talk about it” (17 minutes), in which she emphasizes the idea of connecting over shared values: children or grandchildren, caring for the poor in developing countries, fishing, or even snow sports like ice fishing, downhill skiing, or sledding.

If we start with common values, we’ll set the stage for common ground solutions: Don’t skip this step of preparation. It’s the most important thing you can do. If you’re thinking about hosting a movie screening, be sure to start first by thinking about your goals within the context of the common values you and your fellow believers share.

As you read through the following summaries, keep those goals in mind as you work to select a film that right for your audience and objectives.

 

From Paris to Pittsburgh 

Summary: This documentary celebrates how Americans are demanding and developing real solutions in the face of climate change (released in 2018, 1 hour 17 minutes).

Strengths: The documentary provides a brief background of impacts, blending science with personal stories and compelling visualizations. It conveys the urgency of taking action now while also featuring a hopeful tone spotlighting local examples of energy efficiency and renewable energy from a rage of locales. In addition to highlighting Pittsburgh, the film takes viewers to America’s heartland, Puerto Rico, California, Florida, and New Jersey, spotlighting the cities, states, businesses and citizens taking action. The film conveys a sense of urgency without being alarmist and features both pragmatic action and common ground policy solutions.

Weaknesses: The film is highly critical of former President Trump’s decision to leave the Paris Climate Agreement and may not be well-received by people whose political leanings are right of center. The film takes its name from Trump’s statement in 2017 “I was elected to represent the citizens of Pittsburgh, not Paris”. As the film shows, however, many Americans are supportive of efforts to address climate change.

Best use: A church with a progressive-leaning membership could use the film as a springboard to think about their own ways to reduce their carbon footprint. This is especially important given the need to reduce emissions by 45% by 2030 in order to meet the Paris Agreement goal of keeping warming to 1.5 degrees C.

 

The Human Element

Summary: This documentary showcases the lives of everyday Americans on the front lines of climate change impacts. With rare compassion and heart, the film inspires us to reevaluate our relationship with the natural world (released in 2018, 1 hour 16 minutes).

Strengths: The film highlights the struggles of ordinary people in the U.S. struggling with current impacts of climate change, through the lens of the four traditional elements of nature. This includes fishermen on an island in Chesapeake Bay being lost to sea level rise (water), kids struggling with asthma due to pollution (air), communities in California dealing with wildfires (fire), and coal mining communities in Appalachia facing the collapse of their livelihood (earth). The film concludes with an inspiring message that we, as a new element of nature, have the power to create change. The filmmaker also has made available a discussion guide for use, and strongly encourages hosts to tailor questions towards your own goals.

Weaknesses: The film is strong on impacts but stops short regarding solutions. This enables the film to be used in for variety of purposes, including examining impacts in your own community. However, with all the focus on negative impacts, the tone can be a bit depressing at times. If you’re looking for examples of what you can do to help solve the problem, you’ll need to pair this film with other resources.

Best use: Communities of all stripes will find it a perfect introduction to climate impacts already being experienced right here in the U.S. The movie could also be used for initiating a discussion on how climate is impacting people in your own community. I like the fact that it is accessible to a broad background of regions, cultural backgrounds, and political stripes. It could also be used as a springboard for reinvigorating a creation care team and inspire your group to think about its next steps.

 

2040

Summary: The documentary 2040 envisions what life could be like 20 years in the future if we embraced creative solutions to environmental problems. Inspired by imagining the future for the filmmaker’s 4-year old daughter as well as her peers around the world, the film takes viewers on a global journey to examine the possibilities in energy, food, agriculture, aquaculture and education. Special effects are used to envision the transformation to a more just, environmentally thriving future (released in 2020, 1 hour 32 minutes).

Strengths: The film features a very hopeful tone and focuses on creative solutions, emphasizing we already have all of the technology and tools we need to solve ecological problems. The filmmaker also deftly weaves together interconnected problems like poverty and environmental degradation. According to social science research, people are more likely to take action when inspired by a positive message, rather than cajoled with a negative one. The film is built solidly on this premise, a rarity for climate change documentaries. The film has also received a rare 100% on Rotten Tomatoes as well as an endorsement by the popular parental movie guide Common Sense Media.

Weaknesses: The film’s optimistic views can sometimes feel futuristic and pie-in-the-sky, lacking a dose of reality. While some impacts and root causes of climate change are discussed, the film lacks the sense of urgency of other documentaries, in part because special effects make the impacts seem far-off and hypothetical. In addition, many of the solutions don’t feel like they are very actionable at a personal level, at least in 2021. However, that shouldn’t stop viewers from imagining how life could be different if we all made deliberate choices.

Best use: Congregations and community groups of any political persuasion will find 2040 refreshing for imaging a better future. The film could be used to jump start a discussion on shared values and a shared vision, as well as action steps for how to get there together. The broad age ranges of interviewees—including numerous children—as well as those from various cultural backgrounds and ethnicities make it very well-suited to younger generations, groups with a diverse audience, or those motivated by a concern for others around the world. There are also numerous resources available on the film’s website for follow-up education and action.

 

Interested in additional options? Check out short reviews of some of best documentaries featured in recent film festivals in this post by Yale Climate Connections. A nice summary of additional traditional documentaries has also been compiled by the sustainability-focused site YouMatter.

Does this post pique your curiosity or get your wheels turning about hosting an event for your group–virtual or otherwise? Stay tuned for an upcoming post on tips for hosting an event, including my own story of screening one of the films at my church.

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Creation Care in Churches: What I’ve Learned (Guest Post by Ryan O’Connor)

Nathan Aaberg —  July 26, 2020 — 4 Comments

I first connected with Ryan O’Connor through farmers Jen and Bryce Riemer. They are friends of both Ryan and I, and they introduced Ryan to this blog. When I read a sample of his writing and talked with him by phone, I quickly realized I had found a kindred spirit. What struck me most was how filled with a whole, Spirit-led faith he and his family were. The way they live, think, and orient themselves towards God in all they do is beautiful.

Ryan has put down deep roots in his church and has worked to help his fellow believers to integrate their common life with the commons of God’s Creation. I’m very grateful that Ryan has taken the time to share lessons and insights he has gained from this experience. I know you’ll be inspired.

Ryan O'Connor in the outdoors

Ryan O’Connor

I often get asked “How can I start a Creation care group at my church?” or “What can I do to expand our small team into something larger and more vibrant?”

Each situation is unique, but the following are a few lessons I’ve picked up along the way. I have led and participated in faith-based Creation care activities for 20 years, combining my professional training as an ecologist with my personal passion for others to see God in His Creation and care for what He has made.

I’ve also learned many lessons from other people. Others I’ve learned by accident. But wherever you are in your efforts, I hope they will encourage and perhaps inspire you to try something new.

1. Don’t be afraid to approach your pastor.

When I wanted to start the Creation care team at my church, I wasn’t sure what my pastor would think. I’d never heard him talk about Creation care, and it was hard to imagine him seeing it as a priority. However, I arranged for a meeting and pitched the idea of forming a team. I was surprised to hear how enthusiastic he was. He shared how he had experienced first-hand the environmental degradation and water pollution in coastal cities around the world during his time with the Navy.

Never assume your pastor is a barrier. He or she might be your strongest advocate.

2. Find common ground

Katherine Hayhoe, a climate scientist, Christian and one of Time Magazine’s top 100 most influential “people of the year” (2014), points out that every human person—and certainly every Christian—already has the values they need to care for the earth. We just need to connect through shared values – whether those are saving money through increased energy efficiency or rooftop solar; beautifying our homes, towns, and churchscapes with native plants or community gardens; or reducing the effect of pollution on the unborn and most vulnerable in our society.

This principle applies to your congregation as a whole and to your conversations with your pastor and elders. They might take some convincing, but if you can highlight the common ground of your shared values, you’ll likely have success.

3. Involve and empower others

Our goal should be to strengthen relationships with people in addition to our relationship with Creation. That means being a facilitator rather than a dictator. Find out what excites other people and help them do it.

In my church, I recently tried two approaches to forming a team, almost by accident. The first was oriented around a specific goal of exploring the possibility of installing solar panels on the church grounds. With the support of the pastor we recruited team members and got a dream team including several experts in renewable energy. After several months of progress, we ran into a snag: the roof was aging and was scheduled for replacement in a few years. It made no sense to put panels with a 30-year lifespan on a roof that would be torn off in three. Our team needed to pivot to other projects, but it was full of solar enthusiasts. Participation fizzled.

Later that year, with a skeleton crew, we managed to host a movie and discussion and used it in part as a recruiting tool. Several new people joined the group. When we met again as a reinvigorated team, I presented a range of options for our next projects. I then asked people what they were interested in. I followed that up by asking what they would be willing to lead.

The response was tremendous. We went from planning one initiative per year to five. More importantly, people felt empowered and recognized the critical role they could play.

4. Start with an event

Plan a one-time event that is educational and fun and use it to launch your group and recruit new members, as described above. Hosting a screening of a documentary and discussion is a low-barrier option that you can pull off with just a couple of people. Numerous popular titles are available. Some are even free from the producers.

Another option is hosting a presentation given by a local expert on your topic of choice from the church, community, or local university. You might even consider a screening of a TED Talk available on the Internet.

Remember that your choice of topic will influence who attends, so orient your event around a subject you want your group to tackle. Be sure to screen your movie, TED Talk or presentation slides beforehand and plan thoughtful discussion questions.

Finally, keep in mind your own objectives for the event. Since a key objective is to attract ongoing engagement, pass around a sign-up sheet with a checkbox for participants to indicate if they are interested in joining your team. Orient your discussion questions around your objectives, too. If you want to know what issues members of your church are concerned about, make that a question during the discussion and find someone to take notes on their responses.

Gallery View of Zoom Meeting Organized by Ryan O'Connor for his church

Gallery view of a study event Ryan recently organized via Zoom for his church.

5. Approach others from a place of great enthusiasm and great need

Nothing is more attractive than hopeful, passionate enthusiasm. But people sometimes can feel that help isn’t wanted or needed if someone looks like they already have all the answers or there isn’t room for their ideas. A pitch that’s grounded in both your passion as well as why others have a critical role to play creates a more inviting space for others. Articulating why “now” is an important moment of opportunity also creates a positive energy that draws people in to your cause.

Remember to pitch a positive, hopeful message. Fear, anger, and frustration don’t motivate. They usually drive people away.

6. Inspire and encourage personal action

During the COVID-19 pandemic, my team needed to quickly change gears from an in-person study we had planned. Instead we went virtual, and the response was overwhelming. We had more people from outside the church than current members. These new participants included eight enthusiastic women from a rural parish an hour away, a leader from Texas, and a woman in Canada.

At the end of the four-week study, we asked people to make a commitment on at least one thing they would change about their habits, or take a step toward something they had been putting off. The response from participants was incredible. Commitments included looking into electric vehicles, calling contractors about roof-top solar, eating more vegetarian meals, buying only sustainably-raised meat, and engaging friends and family in conversations about Creation care.

Gently asking people to make a verbal or written commitment is a simple but powerful way of encouraging action. When done in the presence of others in a supportive community, such as at the end of a group study, you leverage social norms (i.e., everyone else is doing it too). There is also an implied sense of accountability. When I was first asked do to this in a study, I felt deep inside that I needed to follow through, because I made a commitment to others.

7. Educate, serve, AND advocate

Most church groups focus either on either educational or service events, but mature, effective groups also advocate for systemic change as a component of their mission. We are called to be salt and light to the world, not just to our church. We are to go into all the world and proclaim the Good News. This could be either working within your faith denomination or working with local, state, and national leaders to promote policies that are more just for vulnerable people and better for creation.

Bob Lindmeier, longtime meteorologist in the Madison, Wisconsin area, has been an outspoken advocate for common ground action on climate change. He’s also been active in getting not only his Lutheran church to go green by installing solar panels, but was also instrumental in getting the ELCA South-Central Synod of Wisconsin to endorse a specific policy to address climate change, something organizers call a “grasstops” effort.

This type of advocacy involves working with church, civic, and business community leaders. While it takes a bit of work, it can lead to bigger and more systemic change. Getting local leaders on board with your cause can also carry more weight with agencies and politicians if laws or policies need to be changed.

Whenever you engage in advocacy, it can be helpful to work with other groups who are already organized, have developed effective messaging, and whose mission and approach aligns with your values. I’ve volunteered for a number of years with Citizens Climate Lobby, a bipartisan grassroots group with hundreds of chapters around the nation and world. I like them because they are highly strategic in both their solution and approaches and are fully committed to respectful dialog. Their main objective is to solve the climate crisis. But their secondary objective, and one of their main strategies, is to build positive long-term relationships with everyone they talk to, whether a prospective member or a skeptical member of Congress.

8. Include Food

Never underestimate the power of the plate in bringing people together! Incorporating a meal or snacks into your group gathering builds a sense of community among your creation care team and participants at an event.

Making different food choices is also one of the most tangible and accessible steps most people can take to reduce their environmental footprint. Your group can model putting faith into action by using fair-trade coffee, local produce, grass-fed meat or a vegetarian entrée, for example.

Whether you’re in the early stages of starting a Creation care group or part of a well-oiled team looking for fresh ideas, we all have room to grow. While these are a few things I’ve learned, your wisdom is welcome, too. Feel free to share your own tips and lessons learned in the comments below. Finally, all of us would do well to continually ask for a fresh outpouring from the Holy Spirit of the knowledge and wisdom of what we’re being called to next and for the courage to take the first steps.

 

Ryan O’Connor works as an ecologist in the Great Lakes region, combining faith and science to help serve, protect, and restore God’s earth. He has been involved in Creation care in churches for over 20 years. He currently leads the Creation care team at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church in Madison, Wisconsin, where he attends with his wife and daughter. His written work has appeared in the online and print journal, EcoTheoReview, including a reflection on The Beautiful, the Good, and the True: Through the Eyes of Lapland Azalea, about climate change, the fate of a rare cliff-dwelling plant, and the theological virtues of sharing a small closet.

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How to Live Right with God’s Earth – Part 3

Nathan Aaberg —  January 22, 2020 — 2 Comments

This wraps up my three-part series about how to live rightly on and with God’s earth. The first part focused on how to live within the context of your life and your family’s life. The second part pointed towards engagement in community and civic life. This third part goes in an unexpected direction. It goes inside. To your heart.

Start with the Heart

I am convinced that the core reason we don’t progress in living ever more holy, courageous, and loving ways towards other people and God’s earth is that we haven’t given our hearts fully to God. In other words, we haven’t allowed God’s Spirit to work with us to make our hearts new.

Are you thinking, “Why would my emotions have anything to do with the state of the world?” If so, then we need to take a step back.

In the Bible, the heart is the center of not only our emotions but also our will and even thoughts. The Bible sees them as a whole unit.

This is why Proverbs 4:23 is the epitomy of wisdom. There we read, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.”

This parallels what Jesus said about our actions in the world being the fruit of who we are deep inside. In Matthew 12:34-35 we hear Jesus saying:

...For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things. And an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.

And this is the way Peter Kreeft puts it in Prayer: The Great Conversation:“The heart is what wills, what loves. Purity of heart is to will only what God wills.”

I’ve come to believe that the Good News of the Christian faith is that by believing in Jesus we are made right before God and a door is opened that allows God to begin to reshape our whole inner being. And this reshaping begins to align our everyday lives with God’s ways. That, in turn, will bring forth good things, good fruit. Our eternal life begins right then.

If our hearts are in the process of being transformed in this way, then we will be on the way to compassion, mercy, and the courage. We will perceive the world as God perceives it. Through God’s wisdom, we will then be able to bravely apply God’s love in the right ways in this world.

This is why, I believe, in John 3:16 God’s love of this whole world is connected with individual people coming to ongoing belief in Jesus. Believing people will have pure hearts that generate good actions that will radiate out, bringing goodness to all of Creation.

Christians have recognized this. William Penn wrote, “True godliness does not turn people out of the world, but enables them to live better in it and excites their endeavors to mend it.”

When we are new creations through grace and God’s work in us, we will literally not be able to turn on loving kindness in some situations and turn it off in other others.

And when we do things counter to God’s shalom way of living, our hearts will tell us and unsettle us. This will shape how we treat people. This will also be the case for how we treat God’s earth.

Grow Your Heart

So how do you allow your heart to be filled with God’s love?

The following are my suggestions from what I currently know and have experienced. I am still growing in these areas.

Worship Jesus and study his life: Fully giving of ourselves to authentic worship is not just something we offer Jesus. It also immerses us in the true reality of life in which we are humble being, overwhelmed by God’s love and majesty. Studying the life and words of Jesus has a powerful and complementary impact as well.

Pray: Pray daily. And make it a habit to make much of your prayer listening to God and being aware of what is happening in your heart. I’d suggest praying in the morning and then doing a prayer review at night about your day. What were the blessings of the day? The challenges? Where do you need forgiveness? Where do you need a changed heart and new patterns of living? Start focusing on specific aspects of the way you live and interact. Are you too quick to anger or are you too slow to speak up for your boundaries or God’s?

Above all, ask God to fill your heart, to align your will with God’s.

Do spiritual disciplines: I’d encourage you to read The Spirit of the Disciplines by Dallas Willard. This has deep insights. He highlights, for example, disciplines of abstinence (like solitude, silence, fasting, frugality, and sacrifice) and disciplines of engagement (like Bible study, worship, and prayer). Begin to grow your heart and the heart of your family by beginning to adopt further disciplines into your life.

Be with people with transformed hearts: The people we are with often shape who we are and who we become. Find people whose hearts and minds have been transformed as a result of their faith. Sometimes you will find them in churches. Sometimes you will find them in other places. Purposefully reach out to them. Spend time with them. Learn about their paths and their habits.

Be attentive: Mary Oliver wrote, “Attention is the beginning of devotion.” Being attentive to Creation around you in heart-centered way can grow your devotion to God. So become more alert to the trees, birds, insects, and other life around you. Learn about them and their patterns. Be open to their poetry, too. Like the way a toad hops or the pleasing texture and shape of an acorn. Make time to get out in the midst of the natural world as often and as long as possible.

Be attentive, too, to the Creation element that runs through the Bible. Memorize verses that relate to Creation.

In this wonderful essay Norman Wirzba made me think gardening might be another spiritual discipline of attentiveness.

Do right things: Interestingly enough, we can also grow our hearts by consciously living out wisdom and love in the world around us. In other words, by consciously choosing to do the right things we also shape patterns of will and being in our heart. This is, I’ve found, especially the case when doing the right thing is hard and even countercultural. That is when we most put our faith in Jesus.

Heart Renewal Emboldens

Don’t think of your heart’s renewal as the process of becoming quiet, passive, and powerless.

A Spirit-filled heart will give us peace but also lead us to act with bravery and strenuous commitment for what is right in God’s eyes, for building God’s kingdom.

Robert Alter’s striking translation of Psalm 27:14 reads: “Hope for the LORD! Let your heart be firm and bold, and hope for the LORD.” From the tenacity of the prophets to the lives of Jesus, Paul, and the apostles, we see God-filled people living bold, resolute lives in the face of danger and opposition.

We also see the boldness and resolutness of a God-filled heart in the life of Martin Luther King, Jr.  We hear his faith, wisdom, and pain in his letter from a Birmingham jail.

You’ll know you’ve allowed God’s Spirit to begin transforming your heart when you begin to have the fruits of the spirit in combination with fortitude and creativity in doing right.

You’ll have strong love and love-filled strength. You will do good and bold things for others and for God’s earth.

 

To summarize this three-part series, may we all:

Actively seek to have God’s Spirit fill and transform our hearts.

Live out love towards God’s earth in every way we can in our lives and our families’ lives.

Speak out and act courageously in the wider world for God’s earth out of God-filled hearts

 

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How to Live Rightly with God’s Earth – Part 2

Nathan Aaberg —  December 3, 2019 — Leave a comment

My first blog post on how to live rightly with Gods’ earth focused on habits and choices in our personal lives.

If Christians around the world lived out their faith in those ways, ripples would radiate outward in cumulatively world-changing ways.

But actions at the personal and family level only go so far.

Slavery wouldn’t have ended, for example, if Christians and others had only committed themselves to not having slaves themselves.

Beyond the family at every level – church, neighborhood, town, city, state, nation – systems are in place and decisions are made that have wide implications for our neighbors and God’s earth. We cannot leave our morality at home and just go along for the ride. We need to be voices for God’s kingdom in the wider world.

In this post, I share ideas on ways you can have influence in building God’s kingdom beyond yourself and your family as it relates to God’s earth.

You and I do not have unlimited resources of time and money. Nor is our sphere of influence infinite. Nor is the careful shepherding of Creation the only moral issue to be attentive to. But if you read this, it’s clear that you care. So inaction is not an option.

My advice is to focus your energies. Find a few things to do in your wider sphere of influence that move your heart and pour your energies into them. 

A Vast Choir of Life

Earlier in November my younger son and I finished reading Psalms together as we continue our journey through the Bible. One of the many verses that resonated with me was Psalm 150:6 – “Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD.”

We are part of a vast choir of life that is sustained by God. When we worship God we are joining the rest of Creation in doing so in some mysterious, ineffable way.

It follows that the way we live as communities and as a society should minimize any harm to the other people and other living things that are part of that choir.

In his book The Marvelous Pigness of Pigs, Christian farmer Joel Salatin writes:

Christians who preach and believe that food and life are fundamentally biological rather than mechanical garner consistent credibility when preaching God’s specialness. In order for our faith message to resonate and carry weight, others must see us promoting a consistent view toward life in general. If God is the ultimate giver of life, Christians should be the ultimate defenders of that life.

Unfortunately, there is much that we do as communities and as a society that harms and even needlessly destroys members, and even whole sections, of the choir around us. There are specific decisions that do this. There are systems of laws and policies that promote and permit this.

So what can Christians like you and I to do about it on this larger scale?

#1: Pay attention to God’s earth and how we treat it

You cannot be part of efforts to protect and restore God’s Creation if you aren’t aware of how God’s earth works.

So begin with having eyes that see and ears that hear how the ecological systems of God’s earth work when they are allowed to work. Read. Attend lectures. Listen to podcasts. Study online. Get outside and observe. Learn to identify trees or flowers or birds. Restore a plot of land to natural habitat.

One of the benefits of paying attention to the systems of God’s earth is to grow in appreciation for our Creator God and to learn to think more holistically. This is a joy and a way of worshipping God.

Pay attention, too, to where the marvelous workings of those systems are being marred and disrupted by human systems and activities at all scales. Pay attention with your mind and your heart.

You should work to understand the decisions people and communiites make on they treat God’s earth. On a large scale, you’ll want to think about our systems that shape and influence how God’s people and earth are treated. Economic systems. Political systems. Culture. You must then question whether those systems as they are applied are compatible with the values we see in the Bible. Compare them with what we see in Jesus and in the principles behind the laws God gave to the people of Israel.

At the local level, you’ll want to be aware of what your county, town, or city are doing as it relates to God’d earth. Do they exhibit good, thoughtful stewardship? Are they allowing factory farms to be built? Does your town have a strategic plan? Does that plan consider and seek to protect the life of the land and water within its boundaries?  Is your town having beavers trapped and killed when there are wise alternatives?

#2: Be a voice and leader where you are

We all have a voice. We are all in a position to lead, whether it is nationally or at a very local level. Whether we are speaking of our neighborhood, town, workplace, or church, we are all in a place where we can have impact.

There are, of course, many aspects of our world that are broken. People and Creation suffer in a multitude of ways. We cannot respond and tackle every element of brokenness while still living our everyday lives. We must trust at times that others of faith are also working.

But if you are reading this, then you likely already feel a tugging on your heart about Creation. That is a holy tugging.

Here are examples of how you can be a voice and leader:

Call for your church to pay attention to Creation in all it does. Change, for example, the food it eats for major church-wide events. If your church has land not used for anything, consider making it available for local food farming or turn it into a beautiful garden that also functions as bird habitat.

Be a voice at work for sustainability, whether that means thoughtful materials sourcing or deciding against seeking certain projects that would worsen the health of Creation.

Speak up at a town, county, province, or prefecture meeting about an issue related to God’s earth. Even at a dinner party.

Write letters to your representatives about environmental issues

Create art, whether that be books or music or paintings, around your faith and God’s earth

Start up new things, like a farm to table program at your children’s school or even a non-profit

Join a protest

Organize a clean-up or lead volunteers in the restoration of a natural area

Consider Creation when thinking about who to vote for.

Be brave in anything you do. You will not always be understood.

Be discerning, too. The larger the issue the more complex. Know the complexities. Speak truth in love. Don’t allow your passion to push you into simplistic or hateful messages.

Find renewal for your energies and efforts through prayer and friends who share your convictions.

#3: Support people & organizations who are leading

For voices and leaders to have impact, they need people who follow and support. You can make a difference by supporting those who lead and whose voices are prophetic.

The story of Nehemiah and the rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem is a great example. Nehemiah led this effort but he could not do it alone. The third chapter of Nehemiah is an interesting one. We read of the people and groups that helped with the larger effort of renewing a whole encircling wall by rebuilding particular sections. Clearly there was an appeal that went out from Nehemiah. People responded in a focused way.

Who are the Nehemiahs today who are speaking and acting for God’s earth?

Sometimes they are individuals, iike Katharine Hayhoe, a Christian climate scientist.

Katharine Hayhoe image from her website

Katharine Hayhoe is an example of a Christian leading efforts to preserve and renew God’s earth. (Image from her website)

Oftentimes, local, regional, national, and international non-profit organizations lead the way in protecting and renewing God’s earth. Generously support those whose work and approach resonate with you. Think of these organizations as extensions of yourself. I’d be happy to communicate with you about how to choose good organizations and to how to plan your giving in this area.

When you know an individual speaking and acting for God’s earth, encourage them and support them as tangibly as possible.

Speaking for God’s earth and the vulnerable lpeople who most depend on forests and oceans can be very challenging. In some places, it is a calling that puts your life at risk. When a particular leader, even at the most local level, steps forward to do what is right, they need real support.

Good friends of mine have, out of their faith convictions, started a farm that is raising animals in humane ways that build the life of the soil and produce healthy, nutritious meat. At fairs and other places, there are many people who encourage them and express their admiration for them. But then, in the next moment, walk away without ever actually buying the meat they are selling. Don’t be that kind of person. If you believe in what leaders and advocates are doing, do something tangible to support them.

#4: Be open to the Spirit moving you or a loved one to a life calling of earth stewardship ministry

If you are young and choosing a major or getting ready to launch into your professional life, be open to a tugging at your heart from the Spirit.

Be prudent and discerning in responding to a call. It is definitely possible to learn what you need to learn by doing. But you can sometimes make more significant impact in the long-term if you’ve already developed skills going into that calling. A non-profit leader for an environmental group I’ve gotten to know recently, for example, recently earned an MBA. This is enabling him to think more strategically and to manage the organization’s structure more effectively.

If you are mid-career and feeling called to apply your skills in a way that benefit God’s earth, be open to that call. Ideally, that call or that purpose will build on some of the skills you have and connections you’ve already made.

If you are nearing retirement and want to continue to have purpose and meaning after you leave your professional life, explore getting involved with the defense and renewal of God’s earth.

Remember, too, that you don’t necessarily need to have skills related to plants, animals, and ecology to be useful. Much of the future of Creation rests on what happens within human society and its built environment, where Creation and human activity meet. We need Creation-minded farmers. We need engineers who care about God’s earth. We need storytellers and artists. We need nutritionists who pay attention to the connection between farming methods and the quality of food people we eat. We need educators and teachers. We need entrepreneurs who can create businesses that create value in ways that renew the earth rather than depleting it.

And when your child shows an interest in nature and wants to be a scientist or get involved with an environmental club or be an advocate of some sort, support that calling.

God bless you and guide you as you act bravely and follow God’s ways in all dimensions of your life.

 

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Living Rightly with God’s Earth – Part 1

Nathan Aaberg —  October 3, 2019 — Leave a comment

When I spoke to the North Suburban Mennonite Church earlier this summer, I joked that I had been tempted to shared a list of 700 ways for living rightly on God’s earth. 

Surprisingly enough, several members said they actually wanted such detailed guidance. So I promised to gather my thoughts and advice and share them. With this post I begin to fulfill that promise to a wonderful group of people.

I am dividing my list of suggestions into three areas with a separate post for each. This first epic post is about aligning our everyday habits of living out our faith as it relates to God’s earth. In the second I’ll address how you and I can act for God’s earth beyond our families at the larger scale of our communities, nations, and world.

The third post may surprise you. Its focus will be growing our hearts and minds in relation to God and Creation. I fundamentally believe that our ability to be a good shepherd of God’s earth is shaped in large part by the state of our hearts and the perspective of our minds.

One of the challenges to living out God’s ways in any dimension of our lives is our tendency to allow energetic commmitment to turn into perfectionistic zeal. The reality, however, is that we and everyone else around us will fall short of holiness. What’s more, navigating the complex ways we interact with God’s earth every day in a complex society makes pure living as it relates to God’s earth especially hard to do. 

Striving to live rightly with God’s earth will put you and I in that paradoxical space where grace, faith, an understanding of the tragic fallibility of people, and a fierce hunger for holiness and God’s kingdom all come together. We somehow need to be tenacious and committed without becoming humorless, judgmental, puritanical  zealots who put our attention to God’s earth above all other Christians values. We must give ourselves and others room to get better over time and make mistakes.

This is not easy. We will experience a rollercoaster of emotions in that paradoxical space. We will need God’s help to live out God’s ways with glad and sincere hearts.

WAYS OF LIVING

In Atomic Habits, James Clear writes: “Your identity emerges out of your habits. Every action is a vote for the type of person you wish to become.”

Cover of Atomic Habits book

The fact that you are reading this indicates that you and your family want to be people who preserve, defend, and renew God’s Creation as part of a whole Christian faith. That means creating habits. Habits are intentions translated into consistent actions.

From my experience, changing habits takes an initial investment of energy, new thinking, and change. As we know from physics, it takes energy to move a body out of a state of inertia. The good news, however, is that once new habits are in place, they will become, well, habits and have an inertia of their own. They will become automatic. Once they are automatic, you can free yourself up to be involved in the protection and renewal of God’s earth at a larger scale in a focused way. I would encourage you to read Atomic Habits to gain insights into practical ways you can build positve habits of any kind.

Your changes will not go unnoticed. You will stand out. The larger culture tends to praise us for changed behavior that fits what society appreciates, like fitness and health. But changing one’s life in a direction that challenges society because it honors God can lead to pushback. But that shouldn’t surprise us. What might surprise you is how putting a whole faith into action and facing challenges related to those actions can grow your trust and faith. You’ll also find that once you can create positive habits in one area of your life you’ll be able do so in other areas as well.

Choose Grace-Filled Food 

When you begin to think about the whole faith habits you want to build, start with food.

Our food choices are the single most important way we influence the condition of God’s earth. Three times a day (or more, of course, if you are like me or a hobbit), seven days a week we choose food to eat. That food has come from people using God’s earth. Our food choices make us part of either good systems of using God’s earth or ones that dishonor God. And oftentimes, the systems are somewhere in between.

As Wendell Berry wrote, “Eating is an agricultural act.” So choose, as best you can, to buy food that came from farms where the fruits of the spirit guided how the land and animals of that farm were treated. Choose to be part of agriculture that fits with the values of God’s Kingdom.

Saying Grace by Norman Rockwell - The food we eat should have been produced with grace.

In Good Eating Stephen Webb encourages Christians to consider if there is grace in the food we say grace over. Make it your habit to seek out grace-filled food. (Painting by Norman Rockwell – Saying Grace)

This is not easy. The following are some tips and ideas.

Eat whole foods as much as possible: Michael Pollan’s book In Defense of Food does a good job of laying out the value of eating foods that are actually food, not processed food-like substances.

Avoid meat from factory farms and fish from fish farms: Factory farms (otherwise known as confined animal feeding operations) are not built on the fruits of the spirit. You will not find love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control in those places. Factory farms are also awful to neighbors living nearby.

Unfortunately, the vast majority of meat, eggs, and dairy you’ll find in grocery stores and restaurants come from factory farms. These factory farms can be buildings where the animals spend their whole lives or feedlots where cattle spend some of their lives. This means we need to do extra work to find ethically raised animal products.

Look for certifications that give you extra assurance. This article introduces you to certification options and their relative strengths.  Also look to buy from local livestock farmers who can tell you exactly how they raise their animals.

Be thoughtful, too, in your fish purchases. Do not buy farmed fish. Buy sustainably raised fish. (I cannot help but be increasingly alarmed, by the way, by the prospect of fish increasingly absorbing plastic from the oceans.)

Seek out plant foods grown with fruits of the spirit: Consider carefully where your other food, especially the food you eat the most of, comes from as well. Annual crops like wheat, corn, and soy beans, which dominate our agricultural landscape, are often grown in ways that, again, are at complete odds with the fruits of the spirit.

Here are two examples of farm chemicals used widely on annual crops that are incompatible with a Christian faith-life. Dicamba easily volatilizes and can damage crops, trees, and other vegetation more than 20 miles away from where it was first sprayed. Neonicitinoid pesticides are another example of human ingenuity gone badly wrong. Learn more here.

To avoid supporting the use of those chemicals and ingesting chemicals like them, I encourage you to look for organic products where possible. I also have deep concerns about GMOs as there is no testing or regulation of them. Buying organic foods or foods with the Non GMO Project label are good ways to avoid them.

Buy Local: By buying food from local farmers we reduce pollution from transportation and build up your local community’s economy. However, making the decision between buying food from an exceptionally grace-filled farm far away (like Wild Idea Buffalo) or buying food that is moderately sustainable but grown very close by can be a difficult one. Do the best you can.

Last thoughts: First, I would encourage you to make your first food habit changes with the 2-3 foods you eat the most of. If your family eats a lot of bread, for example, find a good organic bread (and it’s even better if it’s from your local area or region) and start buying that.

Second, surprisingly enough, choosing to buy food that is compatible with the fruits of the spirit and the value of Creation to God is healthier for you and your family. This is another reminder that the kingdom of God is a wonderful, life-giving state of being.

Third, buying truly good food is usually more expensive. This shouldn’t be surprising. Nor should that fact deter you.

Anything that is important to do well (like relationships and parenting) takes more effort, time, and investment. Your family’s health, the fianncial health of farmers and farm workers, and the health of God’s earth are all very important. Doing right by all of them creates a fundamental tension with the push to offer food as cheaply as possible.

You can find creative ways to figure out how to make God-honoring food fit into your budget. Start by eating out less. Live more simply in general. Again, within the limits of your situation, do the best you can in creative ways and prioritize where you can make the most difference.

Fourth, there are some people who care deeply for God’s earth who believe we should not eat any meat. After many years of being a vegetarian, I’ve come to a more nuanced conclusion. This is partly because the studies that generally state that beef production, for example, are bad for the climate don’t distinguish between sustainable cattle grazing and conventional approaches. Here’s an article that highlights the complexities.

I’ve also come to see that the most soil-building forms of food farming always, like nature, integrate animals for fertility and other benefits.  Animals can be cherished partners in rejuvenating the world. We should, of course, do all we can to avoid meat that is raised and slaughtered in ways counter to the fruits of the spirit. And because meat raised with the fruits of the Spirit will be more expensive, we will likely need to eat less meat. But life is on this earth is inherently paradoxical and built on sacrifice. I’ve come to an uneasy peace with the idea of conscious, conscientious consumption of meat.

Fifth, we should be careful not to judge the character of the many farmers using conventional methods. As I wrote in this blog post, American farmers today work within a system that pulls and pushes them towards using chemicals and valuing production volume over all else. Most are decent, hard-working people. Many are Christian who have been immersed in the theology of dominion and the corporate-supported slogan of “feeding the world.”

Finally, food is at the heart of culture and sociability. Be senstive in how you handle your ethics in other settings when you are offered hospitality. Not everyone sees the linkage between trying to live ethically as part of a faith-life and our interactions with God’s earth.

Bring Life to Your Land

You likely have control or input over how a particular piece of God’s earth is treated. This could be your yard. It could be farmland you farm. It could be land you own that someone else uses for farming or some other activity. Or even be the common spaces of a condominium in which you live or at the church which you attend.

Trail scene in Prairie Crossing. Living rightly on God's earth means carefully using each patch of Creation carefully.

People can bring life to their land on their own home properties and even to the land of whole communities. This is a part of the Prairie Crossing conservation community in Grayslake, Illinois, where I live. Prairies and other natural habitat have been extensively restored, providing habitat for the life of God’s earth.

The more control you have over a piece of land the more effort and thought you should give to having it stewarded in ways that honor God and promote God’s glory. For yards and common spaces, planting native plants and avoiding the use of chemicals as much as possible is key. For farmland, use practices that promote life, especially the life of the soil. These include using cover crops, regenerative grazing, longer rotations (corn-beans-wheat is a longer rotation than just corn and beans), and converting some areas to perennial plants. Whether you’re a farmer, a farmland owner, or both, you’ll be inspired by these words from Christian farmer Joel Salatin.

Reduce and Eliminate Harmful Chemicals

Look for safe alternatives to chemicals for cleaning your home and caring for your lawn. Baking soda and vinegar are surprisingly useful.

Reduce Use of Resources

Energy is a good place to start here. Find ways to reduce your use of energy in every form. Find ways to use renewable energy.

Avoid using disposable items whenever possible. My wife Mayumi, for example, bought us a camping backpack with plates, cups, and utensils. We can bring this to events where people would otherwise use plastic utensils and paper plates. Buy products made with recycled and/or compostable materials. Buy products that will last rather than cheap products that you’ll need to replace much sooner. Try to live close to work so you use fewer resources going back and forth and have more time for family and other life pursuits.

Live Simply

The simpler the way you live the richer your actual life even as you have less impact on God’s earth. Do without whenever you can. Walk or bike when you can. Observe a Sabbath. Value experiences over material goods.

Pray for God’s Earth and Those who Protect It

If we believe that prayer matters and is heard by God, then we should be praying for Creation. We should also pray for the people, like farmers, who use it every day. Urge God to open their hearts so they will be attentive to the fate of God’s life in their hands.

Finally, we should pray for the people who are trying to understand and protect God’s earth. The scientists who are paying attention to the degradation of natural systems and the advocates who are speaking up face many difficulties. They often grieve deeply when they see the earth’s life diminished and destroyed. Because they stand in the way of greed and power, defenders of the earth often face death.

Use Money with a God Filter

This principle applies to food and materials. For example, choose products (like computers) designed to  be easily recycled. Avoid buying products with palm oil unless it has been sourced sustainably. Avoid products with plastic packaging where possible. Try to support companies that do their best to ethically produce the goods and services you need. Consider whether they treat people and Creation well.

Green Burial

Let your body do what it’s designed to do – return to dust. The traditional approach to burial use bad news for God’s earth. Cremation is one option. Another is green burial where your body is allowed to decompose naturally. The very best option along these lines is what is called conservation burial, where the green burial takes place in a natural setting that is being actively managed for conservation. The number of these kinds of cemeteries is growing, but they can still be hard to find.

Choosing natural burial is a strong statement of your faith and your life principles. It is the punctuation mark for how you have tried to live.

Share Your Joy of Creation

Earlier this summer I heard a harsh, loud sounds coming from our bur oak tree in our yard. I didn’t recognize the sounds. I thought it might be an upset squirrel or a large bird I didn’t know. While looking in the tree, I saw a small bird moving about. Even though the bird was opening and closing its beak in a way that corresponded with the sounds I literally couldn’t believe that this small bird (a house wren) could responsible for such a large auditory impact. I had to share that story and I did.

Share your joy of Creation with others, both Christians and non-Christians. When friends go on vacations to places with significant wildness, for example, ask them what wildlife they saw.

What’s the point? We don’t live in isolation. We shape the mindset and culture of people around us by what we talk about and show pleasure in. Be an agent of change in the family and community culture of which you are part.

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