Evangelicals Finally Doing the "Right" Thing on Environment

By Chuck Marshall

     I was delighted to read an article yesterday morning in our local “bugle”, The Orlando Sentinel elaborating on a trend coming from the evangelicals to encourage our governor and the government to start taking climate change seriously.   It has always bothered how so many religious people are so ambivalent towards the environment.   Aren't they the ones that believe all the earth's bounty and life was designed and created by the Lord himself ?   Why would He then be OK with them to be so reckless about it by turning it into a part of our crass and never ending political debate ?   I have always been a bit of a tree-hugger as anyone who reads this blog is well aware.  (Lest the reader question my claim to always veer towards the middle.   The fact of the matter is I don't see protecting the environment as right or left….... I see it as common sense).  As I understand it this is and will be the only planet at our disposal for the foreseeable future.  Right?  Why test that fact  and risk  punching a hole in our lifeboat when any agreeable landfall is centuries away in technology?   Indeed, the Republican reluctance to address issues regarding the environment is the reason I left that party.  This is nothing to do with corporations or labor or democrats or republicans it's to do with the air we breath and the fresh water that will be available for our kids and their kids in the next century.  Finally,  yes, it has to do with our planet getting hotter because of our actions.  Global Warming, the much maligned moniker that the far right has had so much fun impugning is fast becoming an accepted fact much as the debate for the flatness of the world 500 years ago was overwhelmed by the reality that it is....... round.  

So, I was pleased to see others of my faith (I am a non-denominational Christian) stand up and move forward in defense of our planet despite the custom of fighting all things "left".   The Bible is very clear that mankind is responsible for the well being of our planet.  One thing that is never clarified is  any particular political persuasion we should all be choosing.   The hypocrisy and contradiction that comes from many "so called" Christians within the right leaning ranks of society is offensive.  Like so many other issues, these self proclaimed Christians are often the ones that least practice what Jesus taught us to do. They  judge, they're hypocrites, they covet money, they're materialistic and they neglect the poor.  So, I am pleasantly encouraged by this movement to start acting like real Christians in the battle to preserve our planet for all of mankind.   That's a lot of poor people we're helping by protecting the environment…… in fact if you think about it, it's ALL the poor people.... and the rich and the middle class and all the plants and all the animals., etc....

In Genesis from the lips of God, it's announced  this way:   "Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven". 

His opinion of it is put this way;  "And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good".

To me this holds much more water in the grand scheme of things than any other argument such as granting the corporations more levity in doing as they please to make a profit and bestow us with their low paying jobs.  In the end, all of God's creation is dependent on us to do the right thing here.  All religious affiliations from Muslim to Hindu to Buddhist should stop fighting one another and do God real honor by banding together to tackle all threats to our planet.  

In my humble opinion…..