I attended a one-day conference on religion and the environment, Friday at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. This is a fascinating subject to me, and one that I have not written much about.
So when U of M's Erb Institute brought in several leading experts on this topic, plus two panel discussions, I thought it was a perfect opportunity for me to plunge into it.
The most compelling speech was given by Dr. Mary Evelyn Tucker of Yale University. I am going to write about it for next Saturday's religion section, 10/27, but basically Dr. Tucker said that in the last few years, the world's religious communities have begun to put more emphasis on the moral obligation of preserving the environment. The issue has "traction" now and she is excited at the prospect of religious groups getting involved on unprecedented levels.
Her keynote speech was followed by a panel discussion involving representatives of evangelical Christianity, mainline Protestantism, Roman Catholocism, Islam, Judaism, and Hinduism-Jainism-Buddhism (one guy for all three of those).
We all want our world to be in good shape for our children and our children's children. Global warming is not some scare tactic by liberals, it is scientific fact. This is not a partisan issue, it is a human issue. I want to do what I can to raise awareness of this. As a friend said today, she can't believe how many times she has seen a Hummer with a "fish" symbol on the bumper, and almost always with one person in the vehicle. We do not have an unlimited amount of "fossil fuel," which one panelist pointed out is quite a misnomer.
A person in the audience, a psychiatrist, made the point that people do not fear distant threats, only immediate threats. Hence the popularity of smoking -- they are not worried that in the long term tobacco will likely cause cancer. So the threat of global warming seems far off to many people, and it's hard to get them concerned.
Also, the term "global warming" does not sound like an urgent threat. The questioner said he lives in Milwaukee and people there are glad for the few extra degrees of heat. We need a name for this crisis that doesn't sound so warm and fuzzy.
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Below is a photo of my 18-year-old nephew Matt's car... He lost control in a turn, rolled it over 4 or 5 times, and was thrown through the sun roof. Miraculously, he is alive. Banged up, cut up, with rods and pins in his arms, he's home recuperating. It could have been a lot worse, as you can see!
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One other important note: Go Tribe! I hope the Cleveland Indians will wrap up the series with Boston tonight, and avoid a dreaded 7th game showdown in Beantown. Let's get it done tonight, guys!
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Speaking of tense, nail-biting moments like watching the Indians in action, Janet and I went to see the movie The Kingdom the other night. I know it did not get the best reviews, but I thought it was a gripping film. I was grabbing the arms of the chair all night, stressing out, caught up in the drama. One thing for sure, Saudi Arabia is not high on my list of countries to visit!
Toledo, Ohio
October 20, 2007