We've all seen it – the now-familiar photo of our planet taken from space: a blue marble swirled around with white clouds against a vista of endless black. Astronauts who have seen this view with their own eyes speak of its power to change their attitude. Saudi Arabian astronaut Sultan bin Salman al‐Saud, part of an international crew, recollected:
The first day we all pointed to our own countries. The third day we were pointing to our continents. By the fifth day, we were all aware of only one earth.
One of the astronauts used his thumb to obscure the earth, like how we might do with the moon from here. He realised that all he loved and all that held meaning to him existed on that minuscule sphere. And in that contemplative moment, he comprehended how precious a place our earth is.
Precious, but fragile.
Biologists inform us that the earth is now undergoing its sixth mass extinction event. The pace of species loss is unmatched in its swiftness. The first five extinctions were triggered by various geological upheavals – an asteroid collision, movements of tectonic plates and volcanic eruptions. But today’s catastrophe takes on a novel form. As Gayle Boss has poignantly reflected:
For the past century, whole species have been disappearing a hundred times faster, by conservative estimates, than in the past, because the choices about shelter, food, transportation, communication, and leisure that we humans make every day are pounding the planet. We are laying waste the animals’ only home. Which is the only home of human animals too. This beautiful blue-green globe is the one ark we all ride.
I’ve been working on a resource for churches to use during the Season of Creation, which runs from September 1 to October 4. I’d like us to imagine the earth as an ark, using the story of Noah as a guide. This study is designed to be used in a small group. There are four sessions, one session for each of the four weeks in the Season of Creation.
The first session will wrestle with the question: How are we to understand God’s decision to judge human evil by “destroying” the earth? Then we’ll focus on the ark as a school of compassion, and explore the theme of covenant within the story. The final session will focus on the theme of re-creation and hope.
If you or anyone in your congregation would like a copy of the study, please email me.
Check out other articles in the
series below.
More articles in the
series are to come.
We have invited these writers to share their experiences, ideas and opinions in the hope that these will provoke thought, challenge you to go deeper and inspire you to put your faith into action. These articles should not be taken as the official view of the Nelson Diocese on any particular matter.
We've all seen it – the now-familiar photo of our planet taken from space: a blue marble swirled around with white clouds against a vista of endless black. Astronauts who have seen this view with their own eyes speak of its power to change their attitude. Saudi Arabian astronaut Sultan bin Salman al‐Saud, part of an international crew, recollected:
The first day we all pointed to our own countries. The third day we were pointing to our continents. By the fifth day, we were all aware of only one earth.
One of the astronauts used his thumb to obscure the earth, like how we might do with the moon from here. He realised that all he loved and all that held meaning to him existed on that minuscule sphere. And in that contemplative moment, he comprehended how precious a place our earth is.
Precious, but fragile.
Biologists inform us that the earth is now undergoing its sixth mass extinction event. The pace of species loss is unmatched in its swiftness. The first five extinctions were triggered by various geological upheavals – an asteroid collision, movements of tectonic plates and volcanic eruptions. But today’s catastrophe takes on a novel form. As Gayle Boss has poignantly reflected:
For the past century, whole species have been disappearing a hundred times faster, by conservative estimates, than in the past, because the choices about shelter, food, transportation, communication, and leisure that we humans make every day are pounding the planet. We are laying waste the animals’ only home. Which is the only home of human animals too. This beautiful blue-green globe is the one ark we all ride.
I’ve been working on a resource for churches to use during the Season of Creation, which runs from September 1 to October 4. I’d like us to imagine the earth as an ark, using the story of Noah as a guide. This study is designed to be used in a small group. There are four sessions, one session for each of the four weeks in the Season of Creation.
The first session will wrestle with the question: How are we to understand God’s decision to judge human evil by “destroying” the earth? Then we’ll focus on the ark as a school of compassion, and explore the theme of covenant within the story. The final session will focus on the theme of re-creation and hope.
If you or anyone in your congregation would like a copy of the study, please email me.
Check out other articles in the
series below.
More articles in the
series are to come.
