Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's needs, but not every man's greed. — Mahatma GandiInvocation
Welcome to the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Harford County. In the wake of the recent tragedies across the U.S. in Minneapolis, Baton Rouge, and Dallas this past week, and around the world in Iraq, Bangladesh, Syria, and Saudi Arabia, we gather in solace and hope to remember the inherent worth of every person and know that every day is a blessing and an opportunity to make the world a better place.
Reading: Nature (Ch. 1) by Ralph Waldo Emerson
The lover of nature is he whose inward and outward senses are still truly adjusted to each other; who has retained the spirit of infancy even into the era of manhood. His intercourse with heaven and earth, becomes part of his daily food. In the presence of nature, a wild delight runs through the man, in spite of real sorrows. Nature says,—he is my creature, and maugre all his impertinent griefs, he shall be glad with me. Not the sun or the summer alone, but every hour and season yields its tribute of delight; for every hour and change corresponds to and authorizes a different state of the mind, from breathless noon to grimmest midnight. Nature is a setting that fits equally well a comic or a mourning piece. In good health, the air is a cordial of incredible virtue. Crossing a bare common, in snow puddles, at twilight, under a clouded sky, without having in my thoughts any occurrence of special good fortune, I have enjoyed a perfect exhilaration. I am glad to the brink of fear. In the woods too, a man casts off his years, as the snake his slough, and at what period soever of life, is always a child. In the woods, is perpetual youth. Within these plantations of God, a decorum and sanctity reign, a perennial festival is dressed, and the guest sees not how he should tire of them in a thousand years. In the woods, we return to reason and faith. There I feel that nothing can befall me in life,—no disgrace, no calamity, (leaving me my eyes,) which nature cannot repair. Standing on the bare ground,—my head bathed by the blithe air, and uplifted into infinite space,—all mean egotism vanishes. I become a transparent eye-ball; I am nothing; I see all; the currents of the Universal Being circulate through me; I am part or particle of God.
Sermon
Where do we come from? What are we? Where are we going? The Unitarian Universalist adage, questioning the past, present, and future, is the core incentive behind all faiths as we strive to learn our true purpose in this riddle and mystery of life. In light of this, I present you all with another riddle. See if you can guess what I'm describing:
43 kg Oxygen 1 kg Calcium 100 g Sodium 2.6 g Fluorine 16 kg Carbon 780 g Phosphorus 95 g Chlorine 2.3 g Zinc 7 kg Hydrogen 140 g Potassium 19 g Magnesium A small amount of about 1.8 kg Nitrogen 140 g Sulfur 4.2 g Iron 50 other elements Can you guess? That's right; I'm describing each of you. This is the elemental composition of an average adult human body. All your bones, muscles, fluids, organs, including your brain, with all of its memories, desires, opinions, and ideas, everything that makes you, you, is all contained in this humble recipe. Although this concrete scientific answer to the second question, what are we, may seem cold and fruitless, it actually leads to a more profound divination to all three questions.
Where does this matter come from, and where is it going? The answer to both is our environment. The literary definition of
environmentis all the conditions, circumstances, and influences surrounding, and affecting the development of, an organism or group of organisms. All the food we eat, water we drink, and air we breathe, composes the matter of our physical forms, just as all the social stimuli from those around us composes own spiritual and mental forms. All of this comes from our environment, upon which our existence depends. Like all other life forms, we are a material product of the environment, encompassing everything on this planet that has been traveling through this universe for billions of years. The forests, oceans, mountains, deserts, plains, watersheds, tundra, and even the sun and stars that energize this planet, which is itself a product of a greater environment: the universe itself. Even the cities and infrastructure of human civilization, including this very room, are part of our environment.Throughout human history, we've tried to separate ourselves from the natural environment and the savage destruction inherent within it, both physically and spiritually. Many still regard God's presence as unique to human society. After all, what kind of God would want us to live like animals among the brutality of nature? And what kind of God would not only allow, but require its own creations to kill and devour each other mercilessly just to survive, and still be wiped from existence? A God that facilitated the mythical Great Flood, described in many religions, is no less discerning than one that facilitated the K-T Extinction, which killed off not only the dinosaurs, but 75% of all life on the only planet in the entire universe that we know currently hosts it. To admit to being part of this environment is to admit, like every other life form, we are feeble and very mortal amalgams of matter and energy which we ultimately must give back. Who wouldn't seek refuge and religion in human society to vindicate such a limited existence?
And yet, in this scientific exploration, we must contrast the laws of mortality with those of conservation. We may be mortal amalgams of matter and energy, but no matter or energy in the universe can ever truly die or be destroyed. It can only change into something else. When our physical bodies die, they decompose, and the aforementioned matter composing them is absorbed into the earth. When plants grow on this earth, part of that same matter becomes the plant. When an insect feeds on that plant, part of that matter becomes the insect. When a bird eats that insect, part of that same matter becomes the bird. When taking a broader perspective, the apparent destructive chaos of nature becomes harmony. Like a macrocosm of our own frantic lives, the universe is constantly trying to repair, improve, and grow itself, and bring its environments and the countless life forms within into balance. Our environment is both our cradle and grave, and if not for the eons of sacrifice this environment has endured in this struggle, we wouldn't be here today.
The physical force perpetuating this flow of matter and energy between the environment and the countless life forms within is one of the most powerful in the known universe: Hunger. Hunger is the inherent need for not just food, but all the natural necessities that sustain life: vital nutrients, clean water, fresh air, shelter from the elements, sanitation against disease, security from predators, and the ability to socialize and connect with other members of the species. All life forms experience hunger; it is our communion with the environment, making it part of ourselves. But humans have mental hunger as well, as we strive to find spiritual and moral fulfillment in this perpetual mystery of life. Whether due to divine mandate or an abrupt evolutionary algorithm (or both), our species has uniquely advanced to a state where survival is no longer our sole priority, and we are free to leave this natural world in pursuit of fulfilling these human hungers: the need to create, build, explore, discover, entertain, and understand our purpose in this universe.
Too often, in our struggle for survival, we feel like we are in conflict with our environment. This conflict has driven our need to escape the natural world by taking refuge in human civilization. But how can we be separate from our environment when we assimilate it with every breath?
In attempting to escape both the natural struggle and those of human civilization, we have sought and become accustomed to convenient, impulsive, and instantaneous fulfillment to our hungers, and our efforts to feed this hunger become more desperate as we inevitably take more than we need. Processed food that neither nourishes nor fulfills us, and undermines our health. Factory-based agricultural systems that deplete our natural resources and augment global conflict. Energy production from finite fuels that poisons our air and water and devastates our land. Drug abuse to provide immediate stimulation in our lives that steadily shortens them. Mass incarceration that depletes our economy, deprives our citizens of a fair and just future, and leaves us less safe. Twisted religious and political ideologies that further divide us into either holy patriots or infidels. Stockpiles of nation-ending weaponry and acts of paranoid aggression under the guise of security that leave the whole world blind. All these easy efforts to fulfill our hunger are tempting, but ultimately leave us starved.
Because of our perceived separation from our environment, we believe what leaves our vicinity no longer has consequence to us, and whatever we take to fulfill our hunger is limitless. For every other species on this planet, this hunger is balanced by that of a more dominant species or the limited availability of a lesser one. For humans the consequences are more subtle: every pollutant we emit into our environment will be consumed eventually, just as every natural resource we consume is at the expense of something or someone else. As our species cumulatively populates and succumbs to this unrestrained competitive hunger, a terrible truth emerges: we begin to feed off each other. In damaging our environment, we damage ourselves.
So why do we perceive environmental issues are mutually exclusive from human ones? Environmentalism is
advocacy for or work toward protecting the natural environment from destruction or pollution,but also the theory that environment rather than heredity is the primary influence on intellectual growth and cultural development. Paradoxically, environmentalism is less about protecting our environment than protecting our species from itself. Our environment will continue to survive for eons after humanity has passed on just as it has for eons before, but what will our legacy be?Ironically, whether due to avarice or ignorance, we regard ourselves as the only form of intelligent life on this planet because survival is no longer our sole priority. But what is intelligence, if not the comprehension of one's environment and the will to survive in it? Is that truly unique to humans? Other mammals, beyond primates, have developed their own forms of communication, and even understand trade, fairness, and empathy. The smallest insect will selflessly give its life to prolong the survival of its species. Plants and fungi will grow only in the most energy-efficient patterns, and even react to defend themselves when threatened. Even single-celled organisms will trade DNA with complete strangers in their midst to improve themselves and prepare the next generation to thrive. Is this not a will to survive and find that natural harmony?
Consider this: All life is intelligent. How could it survive otherwise? Could it be, therefore, that all matter and energy in this universe that composes the bare necessities to sustain life, contains God? Just as hunger is our communion with our environment, intelligence is our ability to guide that hunger to find harmony with it. Hunger can either consume entire species or enable them to thrive, depending on how it is sustained. Because survival is no longer our sole priority, we are blessed to develop our hunger for creativity, entertainment, discovery, and understanding. But when left unchecked, our primal hunger will steadily consume us in our blind frenzy to escape our natural struggles.
But what if instead of either being restrained by other species or feeding off each other, we have a third option to maintain harmony with our environment? What if we practiced intelligent hunger: the ability to comprehend and control our impact on each other and our environment so we can all survive in it? Countless indigenous tribes around the world still live sustainably in this way as they have for millennia, and we have scientifically proven its potency in our globalized society. Plant-based diets can feed every human on this planet. Clean, renewable energy sources can sustain all our electrical needs. Fair trade policies that protect the safe allocation of resources can promote peace and prosperity worldwide. The diplomatic policies of scientifically-minded leaders can protect this peace and prosperity far more effectively than military hegemony or mutually assured destruction. As we practice intelligent hunger, our environment will in turn foster more sustainable mental influences on each proceeding generation. And as this new hunger protects our environment, so too will our environment protect us.
The time required to incorporate this new mindset is relatively short compared to the millennia we've spent building this globalized civilization that has enabled this perspective. But like the primal hunger of the natural world, intelligent hunger is a perpetual struggle. Instinctive, emotional, short-term solutions to hunger which we have become accustomed to in the age of convenience, are the path of least resistance. But seeking sustainable resolution requires constant commitment from all humanity. It requires us to acknowledge that no species can last forever, but can live sustainably with its environment as it evolves into something greater. Consequently, maintaining intelligent hunger requires something more than intelligence; it requires faith.
In braving the storm of environmental degradation facing humanity today, we must have faith in ourselves and each other, as we all contain that same intelligence exemplifying a higher power that drives the universe to develop itself. We must believe that not only can our individual actions make a difference but that this faith is shared by all humans who have a vested interest in preserving our survival. And just as any act of faith is significant, no matter how small, every act of intelligent hunger we make each day will bring all of humanity closer to this sustainable mindset.
Just as hunger transcends all life, so too can intelligent hunger transcend all faiths. Many Christians see themselves as stewards, not owners, of God's earth, as summarized in Genesis 2:15:
And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.And each of the seven deadly sins in the bible is an iteration of taking more than we need, whether it be food, money, security, or personal indulgence. The Jewish law of halakhah forbids bal tashkhit, or unnecessary destruction of the earth, and the rules of Mishnah specifically forbid harming public domain and agriculture. The Qur'an describes the importance of protecting a Hima, orprivate pasture,reserved for the conservation of natural capital, and describes humans as Allah's representatives on earth; if they are not charged with maintaining it, they must at least not destroy it. Hinduism recognizes that the human body is composed of Pancha Mahabhutas, the five great elements (space, air, fire, water, and earth) that constitute the environment, which are derived from prakriti, the primal energy; protecting this environment is an important expression of Dharma, translated as duty, virtue, and cosmic order. The first precept of Buddhism requires respect for all sentient beings, summarized by Thich Nhat Hanh's teachings:Aware of the suffering caused by the destruction of life, I undertake to cultivate compassion and learn ways to protect the lives of people, animals, plants, and minerals. I am determined not to kill, not to let others kill, and not to condone any act of killing in the world, in my thinking, and in my way of life.And one of the principles of Unitarian Universalism is inherent respect for the interconnected web of life of which we are all a part.Let's all take one more breath; this time, as you inhale, think about all the wondrous forms the matter in the air has taken since the creation of this universe, the incredible journey it will take as it becomes part of you, and all the forms it will take after you exhale. Be grateful for the environment that produced it, but also honored to be a part of that environment as we co-write the story of the universe. If there is to be harmony in our world, it can and must begin with each of us, and can be sustained as we gather here to explore the mystery of this life with the hunger we all share. Amen. So be it; blessed be.
Benediction
Go forth and taste the natural fruits of this world, and be honored to count yourself among them as we work to preserve the vitality around and within us. Make it a great week.
Copyright © 2016 Marc Petrequin. All Rights Reserved.