"Look on yonder earth:
The golden harvests spring; the unfailing sun
Sheds light and life; the fruits, the flowers, the trees,
Arise in due succession; all things speak
Peace, harmony and love."
excerpt from Queen Mab by Percy Bysshe Shelley

What’s the nature of Nature? It’s Elemental!

By Ian Lawton

Queen Mab
By Percy Bysshe Shelley

Look on yonder earth:
The golden harvests spring; the unfailing sun
Sheds light and life; the fruits, the flowers, the trees,
Arise in due succession; all things speak
Peace, harmony and love.
The universe, in Nature's silent eloquence, declares
That all fulfil the works of love and joy
All but the outcast, Man. He fabricates
The sword which stabs his peace; he cherisheth
The snakes that gnaw his heart; he raiseth up
The tyrant whose delight is in his woe,
Whose sport is in his agony.

This 19th century poem is enlightened in more ways than one. Shelley
and the other Romantics of the time caste away the superstition and
gloom of the Middle Ages, where nature was full of hobgoblins and
exiled gods who lived magically in every mountain and valley. Nature
was no longer to be feared for the Romantics. Now they tended to
idealize Nature. They saw Nature as sinless and pure, and they became
very skeptical about the role of human beings in creating their own
misery.

Less fear has to be a good thing. However their idealism was a little
condescending. Nature is not always quiet and submissive. It’s often
randomly fierce. Nature’s ferocity is the other side of its silent
eloquence. Nature is what it is. It’s impersonal, which means that
when it’s fierce it doesn’t mean anything by it. It’s just being
fierce. It strikes the righteous and the wicked alike, in the words of
Father Abraham.

Just consider Katrina, or the recent Tsunami in the Solomon Islands.
Waves swallow whole villages with neither glee nor remorse. It just
happens. Waves come and waves recede. That’s their nature, and if we
fill nature with personal qualities of goodness, where do tragedies
such as Tsunamis leave our faith. So I’m sure that Shelley’s romantic
attitude is problematic. If we expect Nature to be kind to us, as if
Nature cares about our well being, we are bound to end up in crisis.

But Shelley was also expressing something profound. When harmony with
the earth is lost, people are the outcasts and we bring agony on
ourselves. As a result of human greed and foolishness, our oceans are
dying, our topsoil is washing away, thousands of species of plants and
animals are becoming extinct, and the human population is growing out
of control.

The Romantics were deeply cynical about kings and priests, hierarchies
and top down institutions that oppress people and Nature. People and
institutions that hold their truth to be the only truth, who offer
salvation at the edge of a sword, and who excuse abuse of Nature in
the interests of advancement, set the scene for their own destruction.

Now we seem to have set the scene for our own destruction in the form
of climate change. This weekend there are a series of global warming
rallies around the country. There’s nothing unusual about that, except
it’s strangely poignant that our local rally will most likely be held
in blizzard conditions, and its April. Erratic weather is just one of
the symptoms of our groaning planet. This year, in our neck of the
woods, Easter was colder than Christmas. This at least symbolizes
global warming, if not being an actual symptom of global warming. It
seems that human shortsightedness can affect the stability of the
earth.

The biblical creation stories seem to predict this catastrophe. When
taken together, Genesis and Revelation (a new creation story) speak of
the rise and fall of the earth at the hands of people hell bent on
prosperity. Genesis 1 and 2 tell the story of nature arising in due
succession. All things were very good, speaking of peace, harmony and
love. Revelation tells the story of the earth’s undoing. Revelation 16
speaks of the wrath of God, but it could be read as the karmic reality
of indulgence. When people abuse the earth, harmony is lost and
consequences are felt. Revelation 16 imagines this karma in the form
of hundred pound hail stones.

This is the time of the year when many celebrate Nature in an
intentional way. How will you do that without either extreme of
idealizing condescension or hierarchical abuse? How will you relate to
the Earth, knowing that it is impersonal, and yet that you are deeply
related to this impersonal force?

In our community, we will celebrate the elements as profound, diverse,
wondrous, and magnificently impersonal. Earth that reaches deep down,
offering us roots and space for re-growth. Air that surrounds us, a
universal and all embracing life force. Water that teaches us flow and
timing. Fire that warms our spirits and charges our passions.

We will recommit to harmony with the elements that arise in due
succession. Our lives will speak of peace, harmony and love as we
balance people, planet and profit as a mutually interdependent set of
relationships.

We will explore how abuse of the elements is catastrophic and will
only change with a new heart.

Where will your new heart come from? How will you ensure that your
advancement is not your agony? The earth is groaning under the weight
of too many people thinking too little about the consequences of
consumption. What’s it going to take for you to respect Nature’s
balance?

Step It Up 2007!

This April 14, tens of thousands of Americans will gather all across
the country at meaningful, iconic places to call for action on climate
change. We will hike, bike, climb, walk, swim, kayak, canoe, or simply
sit or stand with banners of our call to action: Step it Up Congress!
Cut carbon by 80% by 2050!

In conjuction with Step It Up rallies in all 50 U.S. states have been
organized totally over 1300 to date. Check out the Step It Up website
listed below for a rally or event in your area.

Local Event
Muskegon 3:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Local Adopt-a-Beach members will meet for our initial beach assessment
and clean-up of a beautiful Lake Michigan beach. We welcome all
members of the community to Step Up. Cleaning with us is not
mandatory. Enjoying the beach is!
Event location: Norman F. Kruse Park, Muskegon

Step It Up 2007 website and event locator

Being Eco-Logical

As we explore our deep spiritual connection with the earth, we are
moved to learn, evolve, and to act in more eco-logical ways.

Earth Season
Our four-week Earth series kicks off on this Sunday, April 15, with
Ian Lawton preaching and music from the Steve Weideman band. Do your
part for the earth by walking, biking, or carpooling to church
throughout Earth Season

Friday, April 20
Hoffmaster State Park 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Youth Conservation Tour: No Child Left Inside

This event features outdoor instruction for elementary students on
preserving wildlife, Michigan sand dunes, water quality and the Great
Lakes, and much more. Please see Ellie Williams for more information.

Saturday, April 21
Adopt-a-beach program 9:00 a.m. – Noon
Alliance for the Great Lakes

Clean up sights will take place at Pere Marquette Park, North Beach
Park, and Kirk Park. Contact Steve Platt at 616-847-9183 for more
information.

Sunday, April 22 - Earth Day
Morning gatherings at 8:30 and 9:30 a.m.

Ian Lawton will be preaching during our Earth Day Celebration. The
service will be enhanced with drumming meditations from Amy Oak and
Barb Pitcher, music by Lisa Chorny, and a photo presentation by Ed
Post.

Earth Day Community Picnic at Mill Point Park
12:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

The picnic will feature music by Carol Johnson, games, information on
wetlands, and how to plant a tree. You are encouraged to bring your
own picnic lunch, chairs, and weather gear. Please see Jean King for
more information or call 616-842-7448.

An Inconvenient Truth Showing

You will not want to miss this incredible opportunity to learn more
about the environment and ways you can stop global warming at our
showing of the Oscar-winning film “An Inconvenient Truth” on Saturday,
April 28, at 7:00 p.m. in the Sanctuary. “Take-action” tables with
practical information on how you can stop global warming will be
available before the film at 6:30 p.m.

Watch the trailer for An Inconvenient Truth Here

A Progressive Easter Sermon

For many evolving Christians, the celebration of religious holidays
after leaving behind the belief in the literal understanding of myths
can leave one feeling pretty flat. What is Christmas without a virgin
birth? What is Easter without a bodily resurrection?

Read Ian's sermon from Easter Sunday to awaken to the ways you are
experiencing the resurrection everyday, you just may need new eyes to
see it.

If you would be interested in purchasing a DVD of our Easter gathering
to watch, or would like to purchase a CD of Ian's Easter sermon to
listen to, please contact Brad Vander Ark for more information.

Read a fabulous Easter Sermon Here

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