Christian Ecology Link Prayer for Today

At the Earth Summit in Brazil in 1992, a 12-year old Canadian schoolgirl, Severn Suzuki, berated world leaders for allowing greed and apathy to destroy the environment and jeopardise the future of our planet. “If you don’t know how to fix it, stop breaking it”, she said. 17 years later, children aged from 6 to 18 are invited to explain online, in 20 words, why world leaders should consider them when signing climate change treaties, what is precious about our world and why it’s worth saving. It is they who have the most to lose if Copenhagen falls short of what is required. Website: www.considerus.org and www.hopenhagen.org

TAKE ACTION: Destructive Fishery up for Review

Take action now, click here


One of Australia's most destructive fisheries is up for review RIGHT NOW. The level of destruction caused by bottom trawling our oceans and bycatch of threatened species like our Australian fur seal is grossly unsustainable. It is unbelievable that it goes on and on and on, every day. But it does.
We have just 7 days to protect our endangered ocean wildlife and habitats. As an ocean lover I'm calling on you to defend our seas once again. Please take action before Wednesday 11th November. Every day, off our coastline, out of sight and out of mind, Australia's largest fishery is catching high numbers of over-fished, deep sea, long lived species which are highly vulnerable to extinction.
Stretching from Cape Leeuwin in South Western Australia to Fraser Island off the Queensland coast, the 'Southern and Eastern Scalefish and Shark Fishery' is one of the most unsustainable fisheries in Australia. This is a fishery that catches over 700 fur seals each year as bycatch. It also catches our precious and threatened sea lions, albatrosses and dolphins.

This is a fishery that bottom trawls our deep sea, destroying fragile habitats as it goes. This is a fishery that has recently increased its quotas for vulnerable species of concern. Now is the time for us to make a stand. Please TAKE ACTION NOW.
Submissions on this destructive fishery are due 5pm (AEST) 11 November 2009.
Incredibly, this fishery has recently increased the quota for the threatened and hugely over-fished orange roughy - our 'old man of the sea', that deep sea, iconic fish that lives for over a century, not breeding until around 30 years of age.
This fishery also catches deep sea sharks, gulper sharks and gemfish - all red list species in Australia's Sustainable Seafood Guide. All threatened, all under immense pressure from our very own fisheries. The Government is assessing this fishery and may give export accreditation to fish caught from overfished stocks with environmentally damaging practices.It is incredible that the Australian Government could put their hand on their heart and claim that this fishery is sustainable. Our ocean wildlife needs you to speak out and sign on to the letter today. Be assured that our cyber actions do work. They give AMCS the muscle to let our government know that the public is serious about ocean protection. Please sign the petition today and send to your friends.
Together we will let the Australian Government know that we want our seas managed sustainably, and we want it now. Click here for more information on the the review of this fishery from the Australian Government website.

Christian Ecology Link Prayer for Today

Most EU countries derive their biofuels from palm oil plantations in South-East Asia, where the conversion of rainforest to palm oil is fuelling climate change and is a major obstacle to any agreement at Copenhagen on protecting world forests. As long as Western consumers cannot, or will not, see that their addiction to moving fast and far is in effect destroying the planet, greenhouse gas emissions can only go on rising. Sooner or later we need to face the question: Is land primarily for growing food or for growing fuel?

Eco farm warriors are leading the way

To borrow the motto of one of Australia's largest woolgrowers, Clyde Agriculture, which is having its properties environmentally certified, ''Esse quam videri'' - ''to be rather than to seem to be'' - is the only way forward.
http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/eco-farm-warriors-are-leading-the-way-20091104-hxxh.html

Clean coal not the answer: Gore

AUSTRALIA should not bank on being able to reduce its greenhouse emissions by storing carbon dioxide from coal-fired power plants, US climate advocate Al Gore has said.
A day after The Age revealed plans by the Brumby Government to gamble on "clean coal" technology in Victoria, Mr Gore expressed serious doubt about its viability and said Australia's focus should instead be on renewable energy.

http://www.theage.com.au/world/clean-coal-not-the-answer-gore-20091105-hz4k.html

An Inconvenient Truth, the sequel

NEW YORK - Al Gore has released a follow-up to 2006 best-seller An Inconvenient Truth, the former US vice president's rallying cry against global warming, a statement said on Wednesday.
http://www.theage.com.au/world/an-inconvenient-truth-the-sequel-20091105-hydp.html

Animal Sacrifices

Reading: Leviticus 1

It is hard to know what to say about Leviticus 1. As an environmentalist and believer in Animal Rights, it is hard to stomach. Yet we must note that our God, unlike most of the other God's in the area and the God's of peoples like the Aztecs and Incas, is not satisfied with human sacrifice, but rather with that of animals. That the Lord asks for the sacrifice of perfect animals (perhaps because before original sin this is how they would all have been) clearly indicates that God deems animals worthy to do Him honour - as we have earlier seen that the altar of natural stone is the desire of the Lord. Also, we note that God does not condone the random or vicious killing of animals - the sacrifices are steeped in tradition and God dictates very specific proceedures on how it is to be done. The ceremony is based on respect for God and for His creatures.

Mount Sinai

Reading: Exodus 19-34

We cannot pass this section of Genesis without a mention of Mount Sinai - the great holy mountain of God. Although "the whole earth is mine" (Exodus 19:5) according to the Lord, Mount Sinai was where God came down upon the mountain in the sight of all the people. The Israelites were only allowed to stand at the foot of the mountain, with the higher reaches being so holy only Moses was invited to enter there.

"The glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days; on the seventh day he called to Moses out of the cloud. Now the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the people of Israel. Moses entered the cloud, and went up on the mountain." Exodus 24:16-18

"Be ready in the morning, and come up in the morning to Mount Sinai and present yourself there to me, on the top of the mountain." Exodus 34:2

When Moses came down from the mountain his face shone because he had been speaking with God.

The story of Moses and Mount Sinai is the story of the original 'wilderness experience'. Today, many people turn to nature and the wilderness when they wish to be closer to God. In the wilds we find it easier to still the noises of the world and instead hear the quiet voice of God. Nature's majesty and splendour leads us to praise God and its bounty and joy to thankfulness. Town planners try to cater for our need for nature by providing parks as small oases where we can escape from our cities. For others, their gardens are a vital link to nature - their connection to soil and life. Some have to retreat to the wilderness, to climb the mountain in order to find God.

It is an important part of our lives of faith to take this time to worship and connect with God through creation. People worship in different ways, but for those of us who need nature, it is important to protect areas of wilderness and natural beauty so that future generations will also have somewhere to go and learn about God. Everyone needs to make their face shine occasionally.

ANU students lead the way in carbon fight

The student association at the Australian National University (ANU) in Canberra will be the first in the country to become carbon neutral.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/11/02/2730592.htm

Billions of litres to flow into River Murray Lower Lakes

GOOD winter and spring rains will allow a large volume of River Murray water to be set aside for the Lower Lakes.

http://www.news.com.au/adelaidenow/story/0,22606,26292632-2682,00.html?from=public_rss

Young filmmakers look at sustainability

PRIZE-WINNING short films on sustainability made by young Victorians - including primary school-aged students - will be screened at Federation Square in December to coincide with the Copenhagen climate change conference.

http://www.theage.com.au/environment/young-filmmakers-look-at-sustainability-20091101-hrn7.html

Koalas set to be declared vulnerable, get protection

SCIENTISTS expect the Federal Government will list koalas as vulnerable to extinction.
http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,26289956-3102,00.html

Many Heavens: One Earth celebration at Windsor - prayer topic

“Many Heavens: One Earth”, hosted by UNDP and the Alliance of Religions and Conservation, is a three-day celebration at Windsor, attended by senior representatives of nine major faiths with the UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-Moon, and HRH Prince Philip. The associated public event takes place on Wednesday at Friends Meeting House, Euston, London, when many faiths will come together on climate change and the environment, with music and dance. Tickets are free but must be reserved. Websites: www.quaker.org.uk and www.arcworld.org

Do not lay a chisel upon it

Reading: Exodus 20:25

In this reading, God instructs Moses that if he wishes to make an altar to the Lord, it must be made of natural stone, which has not been touched by a chisel. It is interesting that God makes this distinction. He implies that He wishes to be worshiped, not with what is man-made but with that which He has created himself. Obviously God doesn't think that humans are needed to improve things to make them worthy of Him. Perhaps instead of all our magnificent churches and cathedrals we should have adopted the approach of the outdoor cathedrals - just a cross, some seats and the surroundings of nature or a forest.

God doesn't ask for stones cut neatly into squares to build the perfect altar, he asks for natural stones- blemishes and all. Nature can be untidy at times, but God loves it the way it is. In the same way, people in Australia need to learn to love our untidy looking Eucalypt forests instead of longing for the green rolling hills and manicured parks of England. If God wanted those things here they would have been created here. Instead, God loves our rugged sunburnt country and we need to learn to fit our culture and values into this landscape and not make the same mistakes our ancestors made when they treated this country as though it were England - and suffered the consequences in drought, salinity and introduced pests.

Christian Living Series: Learning not to fear - the faith to stop the killing

I was re-watching the first Transformers movie the other day when something occured to me. It was the scene where Bumblebee sacrifices himself to save the two kids then the police all decend to 'neutralise' the threat. I couldn't help thinking that we always do that. We humans seem to be unable to live with anything we see as a threat. Throughout history we have wiped out, or hunted almost to extinction, many species that we have seen as either a threat to ourselves or our livelihood. Just look at the declines in wolves, tigers, bears and sharks. Even the Tasmanian Tiger(Thylacine) was wiped out because we thought it would eat our livestock. We have killed dingoes and crocodiles for the same reason. Even people who generally like animals often think it is ok to kill them if they have, or might, kill us. Look at the shouts from the media to kill the shark after every 'attack'. I applaud the poor victims and their families who sometimes have to remind us all that it is not the shark's fault, and we were in their habitat. As the science shows, it's not like sharks get a taste for human flesh, and they move on so fast I have to wonder if it is ever the same individual who is killed when we do hunt down the 'maneater'.

I wonder if maybe humans have been on the top of the food chain for so long that we don't know how to live with threats anymore. It's like our knee-jerk reaction to kill spiders when we see them. On the scale of one to ten, spiders are probably only a two in terms of danger. They are tiny, and quite easy for us to avoid. And yet we don't seem to think that we should have to avoid them, so we just kill them. Where is our belief in the sanctity of life? It all kind of goes out the window when we feel threatened doesn't it? I suppose that's why we do senseless things like put nets near beaches to kill things in the hope that will mean we don't get bitten by sharks (shark nets do not close off beaches as popularly believed, and in fact provide no protection at all. But they do kill hundreds of sharks, whales, turtles and fish each year).

Our fear has also reduced the success of various wolf reintroduction projects around the world. Farmers get scared and shoot the wolves to defend their stock. We can't live with losing a little livelihood for the survival an endangered species? We don't seem to manage the things we fear, or our own fear, we simply annihilate the threat.

So if we could overcome our fear of other creatures, would the world become a better place? I think it would. This is an area where education can play a big role. Have you ever seen someone hold a snake for the first time? When one of the animal shows came around to your school or at the zoo perhaps? It can be a magic moment, a moment that turns fear into respect, and eventually respect into liking, or even love. Today's society desperately needs more contact with nature, and especially more contact with God's creatures. It is easy to fear the unknown, but if we have contact with these creatures maybe we can learn to care for them instead. After all, the Bible says that perfect love drives out all fear (1John 4:18). Maybe if we love and trust God, our creator, a bit more, we can learn to love his creatures; and the killing will stop. I am sure only love can save 'dangerous' species.

Action idea: invite an animal show to your church and help bring people closer to animals. Or organise a church trip to the zoo.