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William Harryman
Rupert Sheldrake, an outcast among "real" scientists, thinks we need the help of religion to save the
planet. I'm sure this stance is enough to make Sam Harris pen another book extolling the relative virtues
of atheism.
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As Edward Goldsmith wrote in the Ecologist in 2000, mainstream religions have become
increasingly otherworldly. They have scarcely any interest in the natural world at all.
Traditionally, religion used to play an integral role in linking people to the natural world,
imbuing people with the knowledge and values that make caring for it a priority. Mainstream
religion Goldsmith wrote has failed the earth. It has lost its way, and needs to return to its
roots.
So if the worlds religions are to play a part in saving what remains of the natural world, they
not only need to return to their roots but also to confront the threat and scale of the global
ecological crisis we now face. This means being open to a dialogue with science. No
religions, when they were growing up, had to deal with our present situation and ecological
crisis, says Sheldrake. People thought they could take the earth more or less for granted.
Certainly the idea that human beings could transform the climate through their actions was
unheard of. This is a new situation for everybody, for religious people and scientists, for
traditional cultures and modern scientific ones. Were all in this together.
Environmental sin Religion and Ecology is now a subject of serious academic study. The
Forum on Religion and Ecology at Yale University, for example, recently explored the
ecological dimension of all the major world religions. The ongoing environmental crisis has
sparked a bringing together of the worlds religions in a series of interreligious meetings
and conferences around the world on the theme of Religion, Science and the Environment,
exploring the response that religious communities can make. These brought together
scientists, bishops, rabbis, marine biologists and philosophers in a way that, according to
Sheldrake, really worked.
Within many religions, including all branches of Christianity, theres an attempt to recover
that sense of connection with nature. Theres a lot going on, says Sheldrake, even within
the group seen as lagging the furthest behind the American Evangelicals, who are
somewhat retrogressive in relation to the environment.
Some evangelicals who believe in the Rapture and think the world is soon to end have
expressed the view that theres no point in attempting to save the environment because its
all going to be discarded like a used tissue.
But a more environmentally friendly view is held by the Evangelical Environmental Network
(EEN), a group of individuals and organisations including World Vision, World Relief and the
International Bible Society. An Evangelical Declaration on the Care of Creation, its landmark
credo published in 1991, begins: We believe that biblical faith is essential to the solution of
our ecological problems... Because we worship and honour the Creator we seek to cherish
and care for the creation. Because we have sinned, we have failed our stewardship of
creation. Therefore we repent of the way we have polluted, distorted or destroyed so much
of the Creators work.
It then commits to work for reconciliation of people and the healing of suffering creation.
The belief that environmental destruction is a sin isnt a new concept. The spirituality of
native American Indians, for instance, is a land-based one. In this culture, the world is
animate, natural things are alive and everything is imbued with spirit.
In the words of John Mohawk, native American chief: The natural world is our Bible. We
dont have chapters and verses; we have trees and fish and animals The Indian sense of
natural law is that nature informs us and it is our obligation to read nature as you would a
book, to feel nature as you would a poem, to touch nature as you would yourself, to be part
of that and step into its cycles as much as you can.
The question is, how did we lose the sacred connection with the natural world? Where did
religion and culture go wrong? According to Sheldrake, the break began in the 16th century.
Until then there were pagan festivals, such as May Day, that celebrated the seasons and
the fertility of the land; there were nature shrines, holy wells and sacred places.
But with the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century there was an attempt by the
reformers, who couldnt find anything about these pagan practices in the Bible, to stamp
them out. In the 17th century the Puritans brought a further wave of suppression of these
things banning, for example, Maypole dancing (Maypoles being a symbol of male fertility).
There was a deliberate attempt to get rid of all the things that connected people to the
sacredness of the land and it largely succeeded, says Sheldrake.
Another factor he believes severed our connection is the view of nature as a machine. From
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Sheldrake thinks we need stories: Its part of our nature. Science gives us stories, too the
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When talking about the discovery that 95 per cent of the universe is dark matter or
unknown, he says, it is as if science has discovered the cosmic unconscious. He
embraces the idea of Mother Nature in fact he believes the old intuition of nature as
Mother still affects our personal responses to it and conditions our response to the
ecological crisis. We feel uncomfortable when we recognise that we are polluting our own
Mother; it is easier to rephrase the problem in terms of inadequate waste management.
He sees the green movement as one aspect of Mother Nature reasserting herself, whether
we like it or not.#
One of the most significant implications of Sheldrakes worldview is that it connects people
to the natural world and if people feel more connected to the world around them, they might
be less likely to accept its destruction, he says. Reframing our view to encompass a world
that is alive also, effectively, puts humans back in our proper place in the scheme of things.
Sheldrakes scientific and philosophical investigation is fuelled by a passionate concern for
all of life, and his vision of life expands to the cosmos. If the earth is alive, if the universe is
alive, if solar systems are alive, if galaxies are alive, if planets are alive, then causing harm
to any of these systems really is a sin; one that we have committed all too willingly for far
too long.
34 have us in
circles
View
all
FOLLOWERS
---------------------------------------------------Hinduism
The Vedas (ancient Hindu scriptures) describe how the creator god Vishnu made the
universe so that every element is interlinked. A disturbance in one part will upset the
balance and impact all the other elements.
Three important principles of Hindu environmentalism are yajna (sacrifice), dhana (giving)
and tapas (penance).
Yajna entails that you should sacrifice your needs for the sake of others, for nature, the
poor or future generations.
Dhana entails that whatever you consume you must give back.
Tapas commends self-restraint in your lifestyle.
Mother Earth is personified in the Vedas as the goddess Bhumi, or Prithvi.
Hindu businessman Balbir Mathur, inspired by his faith, founded Trees for Life
(www.treesforlife.org/), a non-profit movement that plants fruit trees in developing countries,
to provide sustainable and environmentally-friendly livelihoods.
Islam
Allah has appointed humankind khalifah (steward) over the created world.
This responsibility is called al-amanah (the trust) and Man will be held accountable to it at
the Day of Judgment.
The Quran warns against disturbing Gods natural balance: Do no mischief on the earth
after it hath been set in order (7:56).
Shariah (Islamic law) designates haram zones, used to contain urban development in
protection of natural resources, and hima, specific conservation areas.
The Islamic foundation for ecology and environmental sciences www.ifes.org.uk publishes
a newsletter called Eco Islam and organised an organic iftar (the evening meal during
Ramadan) in 2006.
In 2000, IFEES led an Islamic educational programme on the Muslim-majority island of
Misali, in response to the destruction to the aquatic ecosystem by over-fishing and the use
of dynamite in coral reefs. The environmental message based on the Quran initiated
sustainable fishing practices.
Judaism
The Torah prohibits harming Gods earth: Do not cut down trees even to prevent ambush,
do not foul waters, or burn crops even to cause an enemys submission (Devarim 20:19)
It teaches humility in the face of nature: Ask the beasts, and they will teach you; the
birds of the sky, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth and it will teach you; the fish of
the sea, they will inform you (Job 12:7-9)
The Talmudic law bal tashchit (do not destroy) was developed by Jewish scholars into a
series of specific prohibitions against wasteful actions.
The Noah Project (www. noahproject.org.uk) is a UK-based Jewish environmental
organisation, engaged in hands-on conservation work, and promoting environmental
responsibility by emphasising the environmental dimensions of Jewish holidays such as Tu
BShevat (New Year of the Trees).
integral-options.blogspot.com/2009/02/ecologist-life-religion-and-everything.html
4/6
3/17/13
Tags: Environment, Religion, Science, Nature, Rupert Sheldrake, The Ecologist, Laura Sevier, balance,
sacred
Posted by William Harryman at 4:15 AM
+1 Recommend this on Google
Labels: Environment, Nature, Religion, Science
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