There is hope
01.01.1970
We need to be evangelised by ecologists and scientists who show us how to live sustainably.
Recently I attended the "Intelligence Squared Debate: The World Would Be Better Off Without Religion" held in Sydney. The large crowd suggested great interest in the topic which was debated at a secular level.
The audience voted against religion - highlighting for me the increasing secularisation of our culture; it prompted my reflection on how, we Christians, are "doing mission" in Australia.
The debate gave me the impression that intelligent secular humanists and scientists are either unaware of, or choose to ignore what Christianity and other religious traditions believe, teach and have been doing in relation to ecology. One of the protagonists, Professor Ian Plimer, Emeritus Professor of Earth Sciences at the University of Melbourne, argued that environmentalism is a new religion. Another, Lyn Alison, past Democrat Senator, ironically using biblical terminology, debated that global warming was an 'Armageddon' being ignored by religious leaders. One argument displays a lack of knowledge of the essential connection between scripture, theology and ecology and the other showed ignorance of what religious leaders, particularly Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI, have been speaking about for years - and with increasing urgency. Both arguments or lack of argument point to ecology as a key area of mission in a secular society.
In his encyclical letter Redemptoris Missio( On the permanent validity of the Church's missionary mandate) Pope John Paul II identified three situations in which we "do mission".
The first situation is:
"People, groups and social-cultural contexts in which Christ and his Gospel are not known".
The Earth today is crying out, groaning under the effects of profligate human behavior. This is why the late Pope John Paul II and now Pope Benedict XVI have been calling the whole world to an "ecological conversion". The environmental crisis is perhaps the biggest public issue of our time. Engaging with all kinds of people in this area of common concern is a way of witnessing belief in the God of life and sharing appropriate Catholic social teaching. An example of this occurs in the 'Faith Ecology Network' (FEN), an inter-faith network which is facilitated by the Columban Mission Institute. In public seminars on topics of common interest, there is an interaction between different faith traditions, and scientific and environmental people.
The second situation is:
"Christian communities where the Church carries out her activity and pastoral care".
Our Christian communities have been anthropocentric for too long. The Earth is now 'the prophet', reminding us that creation is inter-connected. If we are to be the light of Christ in a secular culture, our faith communities need to make the connections between science and the Gospel, and to be formed in an ecological faith that leads to a new relationship with God and all creation.
This is the goal of Catholic Earthcare Australia and religious organizations like our own. With better formation, our motivation for reducing our carbon emissions would be loving God in all creation - not fear of calamities or self – interest. The liturgy, prayer and sacramental life of parishes would naturally make the link between faith and caring for the natural world.
The third situation is:
"Entire groups of the baptised who have lost a living sense of faith".
Perhaps Professor Ian Plimer is half-right in calling environmentalism a new religion. I meet many environmentalists who turned from religion and became involved in the environmental movement because they found that concern in the Church for environmental degradation has not matched their own commitment. Now many see that the Church has a significant contribution to make in dealing with climate change issues in its teaching and its community life.
We need to be evangelised by ecologists and scientists who show us how to live sustainably. We need to look for opportunities to listen and learn from each other. In the face of opportunistic greed and power grabs for the climate change dollar, religious, humanitarian and environmental groups need to co-operate. This is the challenge of "ecological conversion".
The endangered Earth demands a new prophetic way of being missionary.
Anne Lanyon
Columban Mission Institute
Centre for Peace, Ecology and Justice
Locked Bag 2002
Strathfield. 2135
