Act with Creation - Creation 1
Today we begin the season of creation. The theme for 2024 is “To hope and act with Creation”. Today we reflect on the beauty and love of creation as heard in the Song of Songs and Psalm 45. As we fall in love with God’s creation, so we deepen our love for the Creator God. As we hear the cry of the earth and of the poor, may we be inspired to act for climate justice.
Today’s readings speak important truths to us, across the centuries, through different cultural frames, political and economic contexts. The theme running through all of them is that the world is created out of God’s love, that God is a God of justice and equity, and that our place in creation comes with great responsibility, especially for those who are vulnerable and disadvantaged.
The Song of Songs is one of the two books in the Bible which do not mention God explicitly, but God is totally present in the passionate love between two people and their longing for each other, a longing that is the nature and innate presence of God. God is love and the Gospel of John tells us that those who abide in love abide in God and God in them. The beautiful thing is that this love song is set in the natural world: it is full of the colors, scents, seasons and fertility of creation, in the flowers that bloom, the call of the doves, the fruits and blossoms of the trees, and especially in the love that these two people have for one another. It is as if the whole earth joins in this love song: a song of praise to the Maker of it all.
The theme continues with Psalm 45, a song of blessing. There is this beautiful description of the oil of gladness flowing on this chosen king, his robes scented with perfumes and spices, the musicians play and the community gathers. God is pleased with this king. But in the middle verses, we hear of God’s might and majesty, expressed not with a show of power and military might but with a sceptre of equity. Here is God who loves righteousness and hates wickedness, who will not tolerate abuse of power or position. This King must have been chosen for a particular purpose; to be the instrument of God’s justice, the working out of God’s love for the world, especially those who are victims of our human failings and cruelties.
The scene has been set: a beautiful world created out of love; a God who cares about justice and equity, and now we come to the deep challenge of this passage from James. There is a gap between knowledge and wisdom. It’s one thing to know about God (to be hearers of the Word) and to see what God’s love steers us towards but head knowledge is not enough; it’s quite another thing to do something about it. We must allow God’s wisdom to live in us and shape us, and then enable us, with God, to reshape the word. This takes courage and perseverance. We can’t do this by ourselves but only through the power of God working in us. The world is full of temptations and distractions that pull us away from the task of building the kingdom of God, but the call of God is always a call to action.
In today’s Gospel from Mark, some of the religious leaders criticize his disciples for not following traditional Jewish hygiene rituals. Jesus gives the leaders a real blasting, pointing out to them that they have lost sight of what is most important, that while cleanliness is important, even essential, and lack of it may indeed cause sickness, what is of greater concern is sickness of the heart. This is the tendency of human beings to put ourselves, our pleasures, our needs and wants at the centre of our existence and it is this which disconnects us from the world around us. Not only from our brothers and sisters around the world, but from all of creation. If we are to be properly responsive to and responsible for God’s creation, we need to be alert to the sickness within ourselves, our selfishness and pride: anything that disconnects us from God, each other and creation. We must allow God’s wisdom to live in us, shape us, and enable us to work for the healing and well-being of our planet and all who live on it.
Our world is more and more controlled by algorithms, social media, and online transactions. Stores are moving towards self-checkouts and the great giant Amazon is putting many local stores out of business. Lately I’ve been hearing about a new breed of individuals described as “influencers”. We are in danger of losing our connection with one another and with the natural world. But we can also use technology to be more connected and more informed about what is happening both locally and for our sisters and brothers around the world.
In summary, God is calling us to not only hear the Word but to put it into action. We must pray, not only for our own intentions but with open hearts and minds, we must pray for wisdom and humility, then we can begin to discern how to act for good, for justice, for equity in response to issues of creation care and climate justice.
So today we ask ourselves, how can we make this season of creation a time to act? What one thing can we do to help ensure God’s desired future for the world? What small shift in our thinking and practice can we make to become more connected with creation, to take better care of it. We have lived by the assumption that what is good for us is good for the world… we have been wrong. We must reverse our thinking so that we can understand that what is good for the world is also good for us, and that requires that we make the effort to inform ourselves about environmental issues and be willing to make changes in our lives. Even small changes make a difference when they are practiced by many people. I believe it was a parishioner here at St. Matthias, Gerry Howell Jones, who initiated the first recycling program on a small scale in Victoria, a practice that is now carried out in all Victoria residences and businesses. There is always more we can do, the old slogan: reduce, reuse, recycle still holds true.
Above all in this season of Creation, we are called to remember that creation is full of mystery, full of wonder and we will never know everything. The Season of Creation invites us to stand in awe, to be amazed, to be reverent before the majesty of it all.
- For the beauty of the earth,
For the glory of the skies,
For the love which from our birth
Over and around us lies—
- Refrain:
Lord of all, to Thee we raise,
This our hymn of grateful praise.
- For the wonder of each hour,
Of the day and of the night,
Hill and vale, and tree and flow’r,
Sun and moon, and stars of light— - For the joy of human love,
Brother, sister, parent, child,
Friends on earth and friends above,
For all gentle thoughts and mild— - For Thy church that evermore
Lifteth holy hands above,
Off’ring up on every shore
Her pure sacrifice of love—