I was talking to a guy the other day that I’ve know for a lot of years. He was telling me about the roof he was planning to put on his new house. It was some sort of metal roof that looked like a shake shingle – fully recyclable so it would be good for the environment. Sounds like a good plan. Then I had a little epiphany. This guy worships the environment – it’s his god. I won’t bore you with the details, but there’s a lot of other indicators in this person’s behavior that lead me to this conclusion. He’s certainly not alone.There’s plenty of god’s to choose from in the United States. There’s the Mormon god, there’s everybody’s favorite punching bag god - money. There’s even Joel Osteen’s god. But none of them can top the environmental god right now – he tops the charts.
Think about it. The environment is America’s new god. You don’t see Mormon President Thomas S. Monson’s or Joel Osteen’s mug plastered on everything. But everywhere you go there’s signs of America’s newest god. Movie stars fawn over him; actually, let’s say “her.” She’s on Coke cans (please recycle), on the radio (I heard somebody talking about flushing less). There’s even a Green Bible. Ditch the disposable diapers. Reuse the towels in your hotel room. I really love that one because there’s always a little notice hanging there about saving water by reusing your towels, yet the sink won’t hold water. There’s even advice on how to go green if you’re getting engaged:
…Alongside the smaller decisions—like whether your guests would prefer pigs in a blanket or stuffed mushrooms at the cocktail hour—you'll be making bigger decisions, too, that impact the environment long after you've wrapped up the extra cake and preserved your dress. Keeping your guest list small, sending engagement announcements on recycled paper, choosing an eco-friendly ring, and adding green items to your registry all help you keep the after-effects of your big day under control—but there's also no better time to sit down with your fiance and discuss your green goals for the future.
America is no longer worshipping the Creator. Instead, we worship the creation. It fits in nicely with the growing belief that all is God. But there is a Creator, and there is a creation. They are separate, and the creation is sustained by the Creator, and all things are held together in Him (Col 1:16-17). This certainly isn’t to say that we shouldn’t properly care for God’s good creation. Even after the fall, with the creation in bondage and decay because of sin, it is a miraculous thing that we are called to steward. At the same time, the Creation serves us, not the other way around (Gen 1:28).
Sometimes “Hollywood” does get it right. Here’s a video from a 2010 Super Bowl commercial that serves to illustrate the “excess” of environmentalism gone astray. Enjoy!
Sometimes “Hollywood” does get it right. Here’s a video from a 2010 Super Bowl commercial that serves to illustrate the “excess” of environmentalism gone astray. Enjoy!
1 comment:
Well.....sort of.
I know you are old enough to remember glass soda pop bottles. Remember taking the empty bottles to the store and getting your deposit money back. And now we have plastic and aluminum cans and bottles filling up landfills.
The whole "green movement" is misguided. How much easier would it be to mandate manufacturers to reintroduce glass, steel, and paper. Attention is not being directed at the originators of trash: the producers.
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