The Creation Spirituality Lineage Calling All Social and Environmental Activists, Mystic Explorers, Justice Makers, Cosmic Thinkers, Earth Keepers |
Lessons to Learn from
the Current Wildfires 06/09/2023 |
We who live in the West have had our share of wildfires the last few years and it is very sad to see millions of people now undergoing the same calamity in 16 states and in many of our largest
cities these days. |
And of course in Canada too, where the current wildfires are emanating from. Pictures of the reddened sun and the deep haze over New York and many other cities
makes graphic why so many cities issued | As smoke from Canadian wildfires blankets East Coast, Dr. Vin Gupta outlines the health impacts. MSNBC |
extended air quality alerts Thursday. Sensitive groups like children, those with underlying respirator conditions,
and those over 65 are especially vulnerable. Flights to New York were stopped and in Philadelphia everyone was urged to stay inside. Of course, pets too are endangered and questions like: “Dare I walk my dog?” and “can children play
outdoors?” become pressing. |
As wildfires rage across Canada, Mike Armstrong covers regional conditions and predictions. Global News | In Canada, significant fires are burning in every single province and territory except for Prince Edward Island and Nunavut. One expert predicted that if fires continue to burn as they have, by September there would be more |
scorched forest than has ever been recorded. Already this year there have
been over 2200 wildfires in Canada that have blackened more than 3.3 million hectares of Canadian wild lands—which is more than five million football fields! What spiritual lessons can we learn from this catastrophe? One is that more
wildfires, hurricanes, tornados, draughts and floods are a sign of our times. And Yes, most of them are due to climate change. Politicians who are as in denial about wildfires and these other realities as they
are about assault weapons that kill innocent people should be voted out of office. Fossil fuel companies that lie about what they know and have known for decades–like the manufacturers of cigarettes did–ought to be fined with the money earned invested in finding alternative energy sources. |
A spiritual response also includes realizing not to take the health of Mother Earth for granted, including clean air, healthy forests, healthy children, animals and human beings. It is a call to recognize
the | Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault discusses steps the Canadian government is taking against climate change. CTV News |
inherent sacredness of Mother Earth. It also reminds us how national boundaries are man-made as are red and blue states—the deadly smoke wafting about is no respecter of country divides or of political identities. Also, emergencies like this bring out generosity on the part of many: Currently firefighters from the United States, France, South Africa and many other countries are arriving to assist Canada. |
Queries for Contemplation What does this news of the “signs of the times” caused by climate change do to your view of the world? Are we being invited to move beyond our boundaries and nations and states with red and blue identities to find common ground to defend Mother Earth? |
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Order of the Sacred Earth: An Intergenerational Vision of Love and
Action By Matthew Fox, Skylar Wilson, and Jen Listug In the midst of global fire,
earthquake and flood – as species are going extinct every day and national and global economies totter – the planet doesn’t need another church or religion. What it needs is a new Order, grounded in the Wisdom traditions of both East and West, including science and indigenous. An Order of the Sacred Earth united in one sacred vow: “I promise to be the best lover and defender of the Earth that I can be.” Co-authored by Matthew Fox, Skylar Wilson, and Jennifer Berit Listug, with a forward by David Korten, this collection of essays by 21 spiritual visionaries including Brian Swimme, Mirabai Starr, Theodore Richards, and Kristal Parks marks the founding of the diverse and inclusive Order of the Sacred Earth, a community now evolving around the world. “The Order of the Sacred Earth not only calls us home to our true nature as Earth, but also offers us invaluable guidance and company on the way.” ~~ Joanna Macy, environmental activist and author of Active Hope. | |
See Matthew Fox's full calendar
HERE |
Join Matthew Fox for an online lecture and Q&A on “Letting Our Minds be Remade Regarding Religion,” hosted by The World Community for Christian Meditation, Tuesday, June 13,
11:00am-12:30pm PT. Learn more: https://wccm.org/events/metanoia/ Join Matthew Fox as he discusses “The A.W.E. Project – Reinventing Education, Reinventing the Human” in an online Our Lady of the Prairie Retreat, Thursday, June 15, 4:00-6:00 pm
PT. Register HERE. Join Matthew Fox for a Cosmic Mass and Panel Forum at the 2023 Parliament of the World’s Religions - A Call to Conscience: Defending Freedom & Human Rights, August
14-18 in Chicago, IL Wed., 8/16, 7:00pm CT - The Cosmic Mass - Honoring Gaia, Solidarity for Our Earth Thurs., 8/17, 1:00pm CT – Panel and Response to The Cosmic
Mass Register here: https://parliamentofreligions.org/ |
Creation Spirituality Conversations |
Tikkun Magazine releases a new Interview of Matthew Fox by Andrew Harvey regarding Matthew Fox: Essential Writings on Creation Spirituality (Orbis, 2022) edited by Charles Burack. Read the interview HERE. | |
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