Post by Gina on Mar 2, 2007 1:48:04 GMT -5
It seems as though there's a lot of animosity between conservative religions (mostly Christian) and environmentalists. Sometimes I come close to understanding why, but most of the time I'm a little confused. I don't see environmentalism as a religious issue, and I don't see religion as an environmentalist issue. Sure, there are some areas where they might be intertwined, but I don't think the issues necessarily step on each others toes.
I'm going to try to use an analogy to get my thoughts out. The house I live in is my home. I clean it, not because of my religion, but because I want to live in a clean environment (home). Maintaining cleanliness does not add to my religious views, nor does it take away from my religious views. I like clean - I make it happen. I suppose there are ways that one could stretch this to make it religious, but people who provide clean homes for themselves represent all religions and non-religions, all societies, all countries, all social sects - all everything. (By the way, 'clean' is in the eye of the homeowner / renter in this particular instance).
On a larger scale, the EARTH is my HOME. I want the earth to be clean for my personal comfort, and for the sake of my children and [potential] future grandchildren. I don't want to live with trash in the streets, and I want to minimize the possibility of that being a reality for my children (so I reduce, reuse, and recycle - while NOT littering and while making sure my neighborhood is clean). The same goes for the air. Reducing pollutants of any kind is not an effort to prolong or delay the end of the world (which is an argument I've heard), but I want to breathe fresh air for health and comfort reasons. I want my children and grandchildren to have the RIGHT to breathe fresh air. I don't see wanting a clean home as being contradictory to any religion. I see it as a basic human instinct. Whether or not global warming is real (which I believe it is), there are sooo many other valid reasons to care about the environment and be pro-active about future problems. Global warming aside, it could possibly be that the air, water, and soil are so polluted that we start to experience a decline in life expectancy. We could start to see current diseases more abundantly than we do now, or even new diseases all together as a direct result of pollution. Those problems won't necessarily be global warming - it could be a number of things related to not taking care of the earth.
So, my question is.... Since the earth is our home, why don't we take care of it the way we take care of our kitchens, living rooms, and back yards? Why don't more people put aside the global warming debate, and see the other issues that come from not taking care of the earth?
I'm going to try to use an analogy to get my thoughts out. The house I live in is my home. I clean it, not because of my religion, but because I want to live in a clean environment (home). Maintaining cleanliness does not add to my religious views, nor does it take away from my religious views. I like clean - I make it happen. I suppose there are ways that one could stretch this to make it religious, but people who provide clean homes for themselves represent all religions and non-religions, all societies, all countries, all social sects - all everything. (By the way, 'clean' is in the eye of the homeowner / renter in this particular instance).
On a larger scale, the EARTH is my HOME. I want the earth to be clean for my personal comfort, and for the sake of my children and [potential] future grandchildren. I don't want to live with trash in the streets, and I want to minimize the possibility of that being a reality for my children (so I reduce, reuse, and recycle - while NOT littering and while making sure my neighborhood is clean). The same goes for the air. Reducing pollutants of any kind is not an effort to prolong or delay the end of the world (which is an argument I've heard), but I want to breathe fresh air for health and comfort reasons. I want my children and grandchildren to have the RIGHT to breathe fresh air. I don't see wanting a clean home as being contradictory to any religion. I see it as a basic human instinct. Whether or not global warming is real (which I believe it is), there are sooo many other valid reasons to care about the environment and be pro-active about future problems. Global warming aside, it could possibly be that the air, water, and soil are so polluted that we start to experience a decline in life expectancy. We could start to see current diseases more abundantly than we do now, or even new diseases all together as a direct result of pollution. Those problems won't necessarily be global warming - it could be a number of things related to not taking care of the earth.
So, my question is.... Since the earth is our home, why don't we take care of it the way we take care of our kitchens, living rooms, and back yards? Why don't more people put aside the global warming debate, and see the other issues that come from not taking care of the earth?