Watch on YouTube
Rev Melissa Krabbe
There’s a Greek proverb that says, “A society grows great when old [people] plant trees in whose shade they shall never sit.”
Similarly, 19th century writer and poet Lucy Larcom said, “[One] who plants a tree, plants a hope.”
Planting a tree is an action that affects the future beyond our lifetimes. Our actions and our choices, both good and bad, can have lasting impact.
We see this impact in our scripture reading from Exodus today:
“…for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of parents to the third and the fourth generation of those who reject me 6 but showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation[b] of those who love me and keep my commandments.” (Exodus 20:5-6)
These verses are talking about idolatry. “Thou shalt have no other gods before me,” as the old King James version says. It’s easy to hear these commands and envision God as an angry and overly critical parent waiting to smite us for our sins. But we can also hear them as words of love. Writer and pastor Eugenia Gamble describes these passages from that loving perspective. She says:
“The word we translate into English from the Hebrew as “jealous” means to be filled with righteous zeal or passion. It is used to speak of someone who stakes a claim on another to the exclusion of all other claimants. So, rather than depicting God as an insecure lover who lashes out when feeling threatened, this word tells us that God is zealously passionate for our well-being. That passion issues in God’s exclusive claim on our hearts and loyalty. God recognizes that no secondary allegiance we might have can ever do for us what only God can do.”[2]
Gamble also points out the difference in the long-term impact of our idolatry. She says, “There is hope and kindness in these verses. Generational pain does not go on ad infinitum. God puts a boundary to even the pain we continually choose. Iniquity continues to the fourth generation, but blessing for righteousness goes on to the thousandth.”[3]
Jesus came to help us see God’s never-ending love for us, and how to live in that love instead in fear of God’s wrath. In our scripture from John, Jesus says that he came to show us abundant life (John 10:10).
All sorts of things can become idols that turn us away from God. “The issue is what or who rules us. Is it Divine Love or is it something or someone else?”[4]
April is Earth Month and April 22nd is Earth Day. Earth Day and Earth Month are recognized here in the United States with the goal of protecting our natural resources for future generations.[5] The United Nations has designated an annual World Environment Day which is celebrated on June 5 across the globe. This year will be the 50th anniversary of World Environment Day and the 54th anniversary of Earth Day.
“One heavenly spring morning, God got into a conversation with St. Francis about lawns. The conversation went something like this…….
GOD: St. Francis, you know all about gardens and nature. What in the world is going on down there? What happened to the dandelions, violets, thistle, and the other stuff I started eons ago? I had a perfect, no-maintenance garden plan. I created plants that grow in any type of soil, withstand drought, and multiply like crazy. The nectar from the long-lasting blossoms attracts butterflies, honeybees and flocks of songbirds. I expected to see down there a vast garden of colors by now. But all I see are these green rectangles.
ST. FRANCIS: It’s the tribes that settled there, Lord. The Suburbanites. They started calling your flowers weeds, and went to great lengths to kill them and replace them with grass.
GOD: Grass? But it’s so boring. It’s not colorful. It doesn’t attract butterflies, birds and bees, only grubs and sod worms. It’s temperamental with temperatures. Do these Suburbanites really want all that grass growing there?
ST. FRANCIS: Apparently so, Lord. They go to great pains to grow it, and keep it green. They begin each spring by fertilizing their grass, and poisoning any other plant that crops up in the lawn.
GOD: The spring rains and warm weather probably make grass grow really fast. That must make the Suburbanites happy.
ST. FRANCIS: Lord, I’m afraid not. As soon as the grass grows a little, they cut it, sometimes twice a week.
GOD: They cut it?! Do they then bale it like hay?
ST. FRANCIS: Well, not exactly Lord. Most “Suburbanites” rake it up and put it in bags.
GOD: They bag it? Why? Is it a cash crop? Do they sell it?
ST. FRANCIS: No, sir — just the opposite. They pay to throw it away.
GOD: Now, let me get this straight. They fertilize grass so it will grow. And when it does grow, they cut it off and pay to throw it away?
ST. FRANCIS: Yes, sir.
GOD: These Suburbanites must be relieved in the summer when we cut back on the rain and turn up the heat. That surely slows the growth and saves them a lot of work.
ST. FRANCIS: Lord, you’re not going to believe this. When the grass stops growing so fast, they drag out hoses, and pay more money to water it so they can continue to mow it and pay to get rid of it.
GOD: What nonsense. At least they kept some of the trees. That was a sheer stroke of genius, if I do say so myself. The trees grow leaves in the spring to provide beauty and shade in the summer. In the autumn they fall to the ground and form a natural blanket to keep moisture in the soil and protect the trees and bushes. Plus, as they rot, the leaves form compost to enhance the soil. It’s a natural circle of life.
ST. FRANCIS: You’d better sit down, Lord. The Suburbanites have drawn a new circle. As soon as the leaves fall, they rake them into huge piles, and pay to have them hauled away, too.
GOD: No way!! What do they do to protect the shrub and tree roots in the winter and to keep the soil moist and loose?
ST. FRANCIS: After throwing away the leaves, they go out and buy something which they call mulch. They haul it home and spread it around in place of the leaves.
GOD: And where do they get this mulch?
ST. FRANCIS: They cut down trees and grind them up to make the mulch.
GOD: Enough! I don’t want to think about this anymore. St. Catherine, you’re in charge of the arts. What movie have you scheduled for us tonight?
ST. CATHERINE: Dumb and Dumber, Lord. It’s a real stupid movie about……
GOD: Never mind, I think I just heard the whole story from St. Francis.
….Author Unknown”[6]
This conversation is fictional, of course, but it helps us see how we might make better use of the resources God has given us. Why do we have lawns? In a dry area like Kansas, do they even make sense? Long ago, land was cleared of trees around castles so they could more easily see their enemies approaching. In the 1700s, French and English lords hired landscape designers to groom the land around their estates. When they came to America, these ideas came with them.[7] Lawns were and still are a bit of a status symbol. Maybe you even know someone who has made an idol out of having the perfect lawn.
Idols come in many forms. Comfort and convenience. Retail therapy. Having whatever is newer, bigger, better.
I mentioned that April is Earth Month. Each year, Earth Month has a theme. This year’s theme is plastic.
God’s love goes on forever, and so, it seems, does plastic.
Our use of plastic is so pervasive that it’s hard to imagine a world without it, and indeed that may never happen, but we need to be more mindful about our use of plastic because it’s harming our planet and our health. Most plastic manufacturing uses fossil fuel, increasing our demand for oil, a resource that is diminishing. The byproducts of that manufacturing process are toxic. Many of those factories are along rivers to facilitate access for oil tankers, and which also means much of the waste goes into the river. Those who can afford to choose don’t want to live near these factories, so the neighborhoods around them are generally lower income housing, which also means that the pollution from the factories has greater impact on people of color and people in poverty who live in those neighborhoods.
But we don’t have to live near the factories to be affected by plastic. It’s filling up our landfills and our oceans. It takes a long time to degrade. Plastic is the most prevalent kind of debris found in the ocean. As it breaks apart, it becomes what is now called microplastic, tiny pieces of plastic that marine life eat thinking it is food. Then we eat those creatures and we also ingest the microplastic….and I don’t even want to think about that, honestly.
Being aware of the impact of plastic is important. But it can be overwhelming to think about. We can make a difference, though, by focusing on single-use plastic.
There’s a
French-Swiss street artist named Saype who creates giant art that’s intended to bring attention to the problem of plastic pollution. One of his creations is a giant plastic water bottle painted on the shore of Lake Geneva in Switzerland using charcoal and chalk that won’t harm the environment.[8]
Plastic water bottles are everywhere. They’re convenient. They’re great for getting water to people in the midst of disasters and wars. I have a case of them upstairs in my office right now so that I can offer water to people who come to talk with me, and because I don’t like how our tap water tastes. But I also try to use a refillable water bottle that I fill up at home with filtered water. When I went to the clergy retreat in Oklahoma a few weeks ago, we were encouraged to bring refillable water bottles, and we were excited to find that the church where we were meeting had those kind of water
fountains that include a spout for filling water bottles.
There are churches that prioritize creation care in their ministries in various ways. Bottle filling fountains are just one of those ways. There’s a church in Raliegh North Carolina that has historically held creation care in high value. To take that a step further, they became a zero-waste church, and now curate a website called zerowastechurch.
Zero-Waste Church’s mission is heavily rooted in theology. Their rector Stephanie Allen says, “Every person, every being has a use and has a purpose within the Kingdom of God.” The concept of single-use plastics is inherently unchristian, disregarding God’s intent for environmental preservation and contradicting God’s doctrine of eternal life. The life cycle of plastics corresponds to the concept of life, death and resurrection — we shouldn’t simply throw things away because it is easy. “Plastic is a sacrament for our god of convenience,” says Stephanie, equating haphazard plastic use to false idols.[9]
Thinking about Stephanie’s church has inspired me this week in a few ways. One is that we are a church full of creative people heavily involved in the arts through music and theater, painting and drawing,
quilting and crocheting, and the list goes on. So I volunteered us to lead the art station at our community VBS the second week of June. If you’d like to be a part of that, let me know! I am already thinking about the sorts of projects that we might do. The theme this year is camping and to me that also means enjoying and taking care of God’s creation. Methodist pastor Amy Foster suggested making birdfeeders, but instead of spending the money to buy manufactured kits, I think it’s a great opportunity to reuse items we normally put in the trash, like milk cartons or jugs, soda bottles, tin cans. Maybe you have some ideas, too. I want to hear them!
What other ways can we be more intentional about our use of plastic, especially one-time use plastic?
In what ways are we worshipping, as Rector Stephanie says, “our god of convenience”?
What decisions are we making today that will impact our children and grandchildren, our community, and our world not just today, but in the decades to come?
Sing to the Lord, all you godly ones!
Praise his holy name.
For his anger lasts only a moment,
but his favor lasts a lifetime!
Weeping may last through the night,
but joy comes with the morning.
Psalm 30:4-5
Rector Stephanie points out that God still loves us, even if we use a plastic water bottle.
Jesus told us that “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” John 10:10
The thief is anything that makes us think we need something or someone more than we need God, or that gets in the way of loving God and loving our neighbors or being the beautiful loving people we were created to be.
What idols in our lives are stealing the abundant joy we find in trusting God?
[1] Photo by Jeremy Bishop on Unsplash
[2] Gamble, Eugenia Anne. Words of Love: A Healing Journey with the Ten Commandments (pp. 26-27). Presbyterian Publishing Corporation. Kindle Edition.
[3] Gamble, Eugenia Anne. Words of Love: A Healing Journey with the Ten Commandments (p. 28). Presbyterian Publishing Corporation. Kindle Edition.
[4] Ibid., p. 33.
[5] https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/earth-day/
[6] https://www.homegardencompanion.com/1012/
[7] https://www.dailycal.org/archives/why-do-we-have-lawns-anyway-and-what-we-can-do-instead/article_5a141f30-fc49-5e8b-89c8-6c65ab5eab08.html#:~:text=Lawns%20originated%20in%20Europe%20in,kept%20short%20by%20grazing%20livestock.
[8] https://www.graffitistreet.com/saype-takes-out-the-trash-lake-geneva-lausanne-2023/
[9] Quoted in “Plastic Jesus: Real Faith in a Synthetic World” by Creation Justice Ministries, Creationjustice.org.
United Presbyterian Church 