The most obvious response is one of helplessness. What can one person do in light of the magnitude of the problem? Hope in a loving God demands that we do all that we can and trust in God for the rest. We are never alone in the struggle for life and justice and freedom.
Only transformation of consciousness will deliver us from our ignorance. It will challenge the myths of the advertising industry. It will surface gospel values to contest the seemingly unending call to self-indulgence and self-absorption. It will raise questions about a reasonable use of energy and attack the gross waste that is the foundation of the indulgent lifestyle that is proposed to us as the gateway to happiness. We need to see the world differently. There is no greater prism for real truth, beauty and justice than the gospel of Jesus Christ. If we accept the call to love God and our neighbor, that surely will include saving our world from its ongoing destruction. It will mean examining our lifestyle. It will mean sacrifice as Jesus tell us so often: take up your cross and follow me, lose your life, serve your brothers and sisters, sell your goods and give to the poor, etc.
We are now caught up in a world-view created by the profit motive. The potential for further profits is enhanced by our unchallenged ignorance. Our consumer-driven world defines our needs and is relentless in creating our desires. It tells us what we need to be happy. But it actually drives us to anxiety and unhappiness as we live in fear that we do not have the latest of … whatever. It even implies immortality by suggesting the possibility of unending youth through purchases of the right food and drink, the correct well-being programs of mind and body, the latest fashion designs, the proper medicines and travel plans.
So, what can we do to overcome a sense of helplessness as we become aware of how deeply we are personally entrapped in the environmental crisis? First and foremost, let the gospel values help us see that we are called to simplicity in our daily living. Nurtured by an ever-increasing awareness of God’s gracious presence in all of creation, we should cultivate a mindfulness of the beauty and wonder of this gift and the horror of devastation that our lifestyle supports. We also need to open our hearts to the poor in our midst. They are the ones most often victimized by our continual neglect of the environment. Pope Francis has this to offer: “Happiness means learning how to limit some needs which only diminish us and being open to many different possibilities which life can offer.” (Laudato Si #223)
Our growing recognition of the depth of sin and injustice in this area will encourage us to act, to begin the changes on the long road to freedom and ecological justice.
In 2000, at a meeting in The Hague, the Earth Charter was developed and proclaimed. It was a significant step in the expanding quest to prod humankind’s action to avoid the oncoming disaster. The Earth Charter addressed the issue of personal change and commitment. “As never before in history, common destiny beckons us to seek a new beginning… Let ours be a time remembered for the awakening of a new reverence for life, the firm resolve to achieve sustainability, the quickening of the struggle for justice and peace, and the joyful celebration of life.”
Such a beautiful vision needs to become reality by the little things at our disposal. We can make riding the bus an equal option with using our car. We can choose a sweater rather than more heat, less food rather than a diet program. We can become aware that every single purchase is a moral decision for or against true concern for the environment. Creating a passionate concern for recycling, especially of plastic and paper, realizing the implications of energy consumption in heat, light and electrical consumption of all sorts of things, and nurturing and planting trees and plants can become the norms of our new lifestyle. These changes are a beginning. Deeper personal involvement will open up further options. In an essay called “Think Little,” Wendell Berry summarized the lifestyle issue with these words: “If you are fearful of the destruction of the environment, learn to quit being an environmental parasite.”
This more intense engagement will only be sustained by a spirituality that is supported by the growth of virtues. Pope Francis says in Laudato Si: “Living our vocation to be protectors of God’s handiwork is essential to the life of virtue; it is not an optional or secondary aspect of our Christian experience.” (#217)
Personal transformation will evolve from addressing God’s call to cherish the gift of creation along with love for our brothers and sisters. It will reveal new horizons of action. While the response begins with the individual, it must lead to common action with others. Social problems demand a community response. There must be networks of groups. The lasting change foreseen in ecological conversion will lead to community conversion and community action.
However, true community conversion will always find its strength and purpose in the enlightenment and commitment of the individuals that make up the community.
