By Daoist standards we are very poor indeed!

Daoism is one of the smallest religions of all.
Actually Daoism, like Buddhism, is more a philosophy of life than a religion, as Daoists worship no god as such. The Daoist believes that nature has its own limits, that if recklessly exploited by greed or desire, we will see extinction and destruction.
Daoists see in the deepening world environmental crisis that ways of human thinking have unbalanced the harmonious relationship between human beings and nature, and overstressed the power and influence of the human will over nature. The number of thriving species on our planet measures the affluence of the true Daoist. If one considers the continuing destruction of life forms on this earth, the many species threatened with a man induced extinction, then by Daoist standards we are now becoming very poor indeed.

It seems to me from these brief vignettes that the Ancient Wisdom of the great Eastern faith traditions recognizes a deeper spiritual commune of mankind with nature. Many of us hunger for that spirituality. We could learn so much about the links between the unrest in our wounded souls and the wounds of the natural world if we would only allow our hearts to be receptive to what all these great faiths and philosophies have to offer. Between them they provide a wonderful tapestry of beliefs. But equally they are all united in the same mission. We all have a duty of care to the world, whether based upon our sensitivity and compassion or the beliefs of our faith, or indeed both. We surely have to look beyond our own horizons more and appreciate our place in a much wider world.

As the Sikh teaches us,

"All life is interconnected. A human body consists of many parts; every one of them has a distinct name, location, and function, and all of them are dependent upon each other. In the same way, all the constituents of this universe and this earth are dependent upon each other. Decisions in one country or continent cannot be ignored by others. Choices in one place have measurable consequences for the rest of the world. It is part of the same system."

This is very reminiscent of the famous passage in the Apostle Paul's first letter to the Corinthians, on human worth, when he likened the worldwide body of Christians with the human body. All parts of the body are essential for the complete welfare of the whole, he wrote. In the same way we all need each other and the loss of any part weakens us all: there should be no discord between us. He taught his followers that the members of the church should ‘have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honoured, all rejoice together.’

Interestingly, the ‘body’ in this biblical context is translated from the Greek Soma, related to Sozo meaning ‘to heal, preserve, be made whole.’ We are not whole: we are wounded or spiritually impoverished if we are not a part of the greater body of faith in our community. We all need to feel that connectedness, that relationship. We need to find unity within the wide diversity of all our individual gifts. We all need each other and we all are special in the eyes of God. 

I have not mentioned the Baha’i faith in this series of blogs. Baha'i followers see Earth as one country of which we are all citizens. One of their guiding principles is that ‘the oneness of humanity is the fundamental spiritual and social truth shaping our age.’ 

Whatever our faith we can be guided by these truths. 

 

This is surely our responsibility.

(Sikh teaching taken from the statement compiled under the guidance of Sri Singh Sahib Manjit Singh, the Jathedar of Anandapur, who is one of the five spiritual and temporal heads of Sikhism; and Sri Akhal Takhat Sahib, his deputy. From Faith in Conservation 2003, p.141 and at http://www.arcworld.org/faiths.asp?pageID=73

human emptiness reflected within an increasingly barren earth?

In my vignettes on the great faiths of the world, and their teachings on Creation, we now come to Sikhism.

Guru Nanak, who laid the foundation of Sikhism in the late fifteenth century, declared that matter is only a form of spirit and spirit is the only reality.
Sikhs believe that "The current instability of the natural system of the earth, the external environment of human beings, is only a reflection of the instability and pain within humans.  


The increasing barrenness of the earth’s terrain is a reflection of the emptiness within humans."

Now that is something I can really relate to.

On creation the Sikh believes:

"a concern for the environment is part of an integrated approach to life and nature. As all creation has the same origin and end, humans must have consciousness of their place in creation and their relationship with the rest of creation. Humans should conduct themselves through life with love, compassion, and justice. Becoming one and being in harmony with God implies that humans endeavor to live in harmony with all of God’s creation."

Whether or not one believes in God or any other gods, and whatever our beliefs about the origins of this world and all its creatures, surely few can argue with the need for us to be aware of the part we play within the complex network of life on this earth. This after all is basic ecology. And if we all conducted ourselves in this life with total love, compassion and justice, wouldn't the world be a much better place for us all? 

(Sikh quotes taken from the Sikh faith statement compiled by Sri Akhal Takhat Sahib under the guidance of Sri Singh Sahib Manjit Singh, the Jathedar of Anandapur, for Faith in Conservation: 2003, pp. 132 and 134).

Judaism and Creation

So now we come to the Judaism views on God's creation:

Jews believe that the entire universe is the work of the Creator, and therefore to love God must mean to love everything He has created, including the inanimate, plants, animals and man. This core belief is behind the Jewish attitude to environmental issues. They also believe that nature in all its beauty has been created for man, and it is, therefore, wrong for man to spoil it. Moreover, man’s connection to nature can restore him to his original character, to a natural state of happiness and joy.

In the current environmental crisis, Jewish values and laws are seen to be paramount. ‘If the proper course is followed, man will not forfeit his opportunity to live a life of comfort in his environment, nor will the environment be uncomfortable with man.’
Judaism teaches that it is wrong to over exploit the earth’s resources, or behave in such a way as to destroy any species, since all have been created for some purpose. Jews understand the vital importance of preserving the natural balance of creation.

So in the three great Abrahamic religions we see a common theme as regards their relationship with the environment, in the need to preserve it; although the Jewish teaching seems a little more materialistic and dare I say a little egocentric when compared with the Christian ideal? Is that fair comment I wonder? Although I do like the way the writer here quoted has expressed the relationship between man and the environment as symbiotic. It truly is, and the sooner man really and deeply realizes this truth the better it will be for this mother earth that we ravage and wound so deeply in so many ways.Note also the expressed need to love the inanimate as well as the animate amongst God's creations, meaning I guess the mountains, the streams and the oceans. They are inextricably linked of course with the animate life around and within them. And I certainly agree with the idea that nature is restorative and healing. I'm sure many of us can relate to that and I've written quite a bit more about that in my book.

Professor Nahum Rakover, an Orthodox legalist and Torah/Talmud scholar, was appointed by the World Jewish Congress to write a very extensive and comprehensive statement on ecology in Judaism for Faith in Conservation: New Approaches to Religions and the Environment 2003, Palmer, Martin with Victoria Finlay, from which the above information and short extract have been taken.

Christianity, Creation and the Environment

In my tour of the world's great faiths, and their teachings on creation and the environment, I shall begin with Christianity. It is after all still the faith to which 33% of the world’s population and 78% of North Americans turn for their healing and spiritual nourishment. The ministry of Jesus Christ reflects the very essence of the Wounded Healer, with his compassion borne out of his own redemptive suffering for mankind.
However, throughout the history of Christianity, its followers have tended to think of their relationship with God’s Divine creation in terms of stewardship, which has been too often interpreted as mastery. Faced by the threat of environmental crises, the main Christian Churches have been redefining their theology for some time, as seen in the document from a meeting of the World Council of Churches in Granvollen, Norway, in 1988:

"The drive to have ‘mastery’ over creation has resulted in the senseless exploitation of natural resources, the alienation of the land from people and the destruction of indigenous cultures…Creation came into being by the will and love of the Triune God, and as such it possess an inner cohesion and goodness. Though human eyes may not always discern it, every creature and the whole creation in chorus bear witness to the glorious unity and harmony with which creation is endowed. And when our human eyes are opened and our tongues unloosed, we too learn to praise and participate in the life, love, power and freedom that is God’s continuing gift and grace."

The World Council of Churches again came together in 1990 ‘to consider the issues of justice, peace, and the integrity of creation,’ when they wrote in an affirmation of faith:

"The integrity of creation has a social aspect which we recognise as peace with justice, and an ecological aspect which we recognise in the self-renewing, sustainable character of natural eco-systems. We will resist the claim that anything in creation is merely a resource for human exploitation. We will resist species extinction for human benefit; consumerism and harmful mass production; pollution of land, air and waters; all human activities which are now leading to probable rapid climate change; and the policies and plans which contribute to the disintegration of creation."

The report concludes with a challenge to all Christians, ‘to discover anew the truth that God’s love and liberation is for all creation, not just humanity; to realise that we should have been stewards, priests, co-creators with God for the rest of creation but have actually often been the ones responsible for its destruction; and to seek new ways of living and being Christians that will restore that balance and give the hope of life to so much of the endangered planet.’

Now how many of us who claim to be Christians are prepared to rise to that challenge?
And remember these statements were made over 20 years ago. Have matters changed significantly since then?

God's Creation and the world's faiths

All the world’s faiths share a concern for Creation. Whether or not we believe that our world is God’s Creation, it is instructive to look at the beliefs of some of the main faiths regarding our relationship with the environment. We should be aware of the substantial work they are all doing, often in collaboration or cooperation with others, towards ensuring the earth’s future protection. In an age when we so often seem to focus on differences between our faiths, and when we are urged to celebrate these differences, it is I think instructive to remember first just how much we all share in common. Our similar views on Creation are a very good case in point.

First a story, taken from Palmer, Martin with Victoria Finlay, Faith in Conservation: New Approaches to Religions and the Environment, The World Bank Washington DC 2003, p. 3.:
The Tanzanian island of Misali on the East African coast is an important nesting site for turtles and has wonderful corals reefs to support the fish population. The local fishermen were unwittingly beginning to destroy this ecosystem by the indiscriminate use of dynamite to literally blow their fishing catch out of the water. This made their fishing so much easier, and the catch so much more certain. But of course this was not only killing young fish that were too small to catch, and would have escaped through more traditional nets. It was also destroying the coral habitat on which the fish population depends. In the long term this would seriously threaten the livelihood of the fishing community. Attempts to educate the fishermen through leaflets had no effect, and neither did the imposition of a law banning this method of fishing. The law was simply flouted, a sadly common human reaction. Scientists even suggested that there should be armed patrols to apprehend the culprits to put an end to this devastation of their environment. But by appealing to the Muslim faith of the majority involved, through the community sheik leaders, the fishermen were persuaded that what they were doing was wrong, that dynamite fishing is illegal according to the laws of Islam. In particular the Qur’an teaches ‘O children of Adam!...eat and drink: but waste not by excess for Allah loveth not the wasters.’(The Qur’an 007.031).

Over the next few postings I shall write more about the different great faiths of the world and how they each view their place and role within Creation and their responsibility to the environment.

The pictures were taken in Madeira. A beautiful island.