belshaz & beloved creation

8/12/2019 Belshaz & Beloved Creation

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Belshazzars Feast

- past extinctions = extra-terrestrial causes, i.e. episodic meteor collisions

- current extinctions = shift from stable exchanges between various biotic communities to runaway

exponential growth for a small sub-set of the species mix: humans and their biological symbionts and

associates.

- accentuated parasitism & predation of other species deemed useful

- creation of anthropogenic biological environs that drove 100s of other species into extinction

over a few centuries or even decades

- right to life right to humanlife

- exponential growth, and the rise of cities

- list of conflicts

- millennial long waves (MLW)

1. highly unstable (variation in popn highs and lows) and highly resilient (resurgence after each

demographical catastrophe with higher reprod. rates)

2. frequency between each collapse and rebound occurrence is getting shorter and shorter.

- human popns tend to expand to the levels supported by the supplies of energy that they can mobilize

with available tech.

- pervasive character of the public faith in growth

- the good life according to Western standards gluttony, Wall Street growthism

- cant be solved simply with a new dose of messianic triumphalism

- more is better; growth is good VS enough is enough; balance is best

- all should be wary of overly domesticating God and re-creating Him too much in our image


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Gods Beloved Creationhuman activities are ravaging & depleting the world

2 major engines:Overconsumption by a small portion of populace (20%);

overpopulation due to exponential multiplication

carrying capacity is overloaded; every facet of environment is being polluted from the rivers

to the forests to the ozone layer; untold numbers of species are being wiped out

Respect for Life Extends to Earth

late Pope John Paul IIs message: humanitys lack of respect for life, placing economic profit ahead of

common good and well-being of future generations

we need a morally coherent worldview, grounded in religious convictions drawn from

[biblical] revelation, i.e. creation, sin and redemption

Respect for life and for the dignity of the human person extends also to the rest of Creation.

Three Responses

1. Contemplative response : gazing upon the world with eyes of love instead of an arrogant utilitarian

stare

appreciates the beauty of nature; renders the world sacramental

the earth is the primordial sacrament, the medium of Gods presence and blessing

2. Ascetic response: practices discipline in using the things of Earth;

sacrificial acts of doing/abstaining that remove what blocks our sensitivity to the Spirit, i.e. fasting

fast (from shopping), contribute money & time to ecological works

living more simply with greater reverence for the earth & its creatures, out of religious

conviction

3. Prophetic response: moves us to action on behalf of justice for Earth via care, protection and

restoration

If nature is the new poor, than our mandate of protection should extend to the entire naturalworld, with the moral goal of vibrant life for all creatures.


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Learning Spontaneity

The point of Christianity is to show that our lives are pointed towards an ultimate end.

we are invited to a peculiar freedom and happiness that swims against the expectations of

our culture, which is to share in Gods own vitality; hope is sustained by this taste of the goal of

this journey.

Common view of the Church as a repressive institution + Western ambiguity about freedom

(constitutional ideals vs. reality of prisons and poverty)

Reflection on JCs freedom of choice: His betrayal and loss of freedom, and how He transcends

victimhood.

Betrayal

it is wrong to think that Judas sought political freedom while JC offered spiritual freedom

In truth, JC offers a freedom from all that oppresses humanity, whether mental, political,

individual, social or spiritual: a radical revolution that reaches down to the depth of bodily life and

which therefore means death and resurrection.

Choices

JC as the innocent victim of hatred and fear

Yet, even with his life in others hands and faced with very limited options, He still chooses to have the

Last Supper with His disciples and confront His foes rather than flee


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belshaz & beloved creation

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