Sister Earth is trying to kill us

From Lutheran Satire‘s Hans Fiene:

The pope thinks we should view the earth as our sister. I don’t, mainly because I have a sister. While my sister and I have had our disagreements over the years, I haven’t spent my entire life trying to stop her from killing me.

In the opening words of “Laudato si,” Pope Francis quotes a prayer of his Namesake-of-Assisi: “Praise be to you, my Lord, through our Sister, Mother Earth, who sustains and governs us, and who produces various fruit with coloured flowers and herbs.”

I agree with the Francises that God created the earth to be our home, to feed us with the fruit of the trees, and to bring joy to our senses with the beauty of the mountains and the aroma of the lilies. However, when Christians consider climate change and environmental issues, it’s also important to remember that, according to the Bible, the fall into sin fundamentally damaged the harmonious relationship between man and the earth, resulting in a planet that frequently needs to be mastered and subdued if you don’t want the same beautiful mountains to bury you in an avalanche or some lily of the valley berries to make your guts explode.

Genesis 1 tells us that God gave Adam and Eve every plant yielding seed and every fruit from the trees, with one notable exception, as food. But in Genesis 3:17-19, as punishment for eating of that one notable exception, God punishes Adam by cursing the ground. To obtain the food and shelter that came with no effort in the Garden of Eden, mankind would now have to subdue and conquer this newly stubborn soil. This curse also implies that the rest of creation, every aspect of the natural world, has now taken on a corrupted character. Not only does the earth begin producing thorns and thistles, but it also begins creating inhospitable land, natural disasters, deadly bacteria, and communicable diseases.

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HT:  Rev. Aggie 98