alexis in the city

and now, on to climate change

i’ve mentioned in the environmental activism series i’ve been writing that my intent in those posts was not to deal with climate change - and it’s not. i think that our responsibility to the earth can be seen to lie almost entirely outside of global warming and climate change. so i do not want my premises and conclusions on those posts to be confused with the conclusions drawn in this one.

this ad recently ran in several major newspapers (LA times, NY times, etc) - for what purpose, i’m not really sure:

perhaps they’re really seeking to educate president obama. perhaps they want to provide a voice of dissention. and they have every right to do these things. but their hypothesis and conclusion might carry a bit more weight were it not for a few things:

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how i came to celebrate lent, passover and easter

i prefer to think of myself as ecumenical rather than confused. actually, i know exactly what i believe in most cases, and choose to draw the practices of my faith from a variety of denominations, subsections, and religions. having been exposed to many different religious opportunities - both in protestantism and outside of it, within christianity and outside of it, both in childhood and adulthood - my faith has not been shaped from inside one denomination, one belief system or one code of interpretation and for this i am grateful. but this is less about the ideology behind my beliefs than it is about the practices during this week of easter. (if you want to read more about the amalgamation that continues to shift and shape my faith, you should probably read “a generous orthodoxy” by - shocker! - brian mclaren.)

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i’m a pro at turning down jobs

i’ve started writing guest blogs over at collegefinance101.com, and my first post is on the “art” of turning down a job. i’m practically a pro at doing this, as i’ve refused a disproportionate amount of jobs considering the length of my career - so when should you turn something down, and should you ever rufuse employment in a recession? here’s an excerpt from the post:

I’ve turned down about as many jobs as I’ve taken, and yes - some of them have even been offered during this recession. Yet, I haven’t once regretted the decision to pass on a certain offer. These decisions haven’t always been easy (some have!), but I feel confident I’ve made the right one largely because I know I have a game plan that I’m sticking to. While each decision to accept or turn down a job is very personal, there are a few guidelines that can help when you’re on the fence about a position. A few things to consider…

continue reading the rest of the post here.

the grass is getting trampled

“when two elephants fight, the grass gets trampled”

buddhist proverb

i finished “everything must change” (i’m sure some of you are quite relieved :-), and i’m going to leave you with one of my favorite quotes from the book:

“i think about where the path of gross inequity leads - globally, nationally, locally … i think about the united states, growing ever more conservative because it has so much to conserve, spending larger and larger percentages - obscene and irrational percentages - or its unbalanced budget on an elusive abstraction called security. and i think about our crowded prisons. i think about our failing urban and rural schools. i think about terrorism and counterterrorism, locked in a death match to defeat each other through violence, and i remember the old buddhist proverb that when two elephants fight, the grass gets trampled - and i know that the poor people of this world are the grass.”

environmental justice is a fundamental part of faith

“i remember that it’s not me trying to protect the rainforest. rather i am part of the rainforest protecting myself.”

john seed, rainforest information center

on my fridge i have the creed of the social justice council from the catholic church i attend. it says: “we are required by our faith to protect the planet, and to act as stewards of god’s wonderful creation.” it’s creeds like this that have led me away from the traditional, conservative evangelicalism of my youth - where professions and requirements such as these tend to be sadly lacking - and toward a faith that encompasses more applicable answers and actions in regards to the earth’s biggest problems. but this post is not about my spiritual dissension - i’ve covered that enough for now! - it’s a followup to the idea that people of faith, for whatever reason, aren’t as responsive as they should be to the environmental tragedy we face. my second point in this investigation and commentary is this:

2. what we believe should dictate our actions. it seems pretty fundamental, right? if people of the christian faith believe that god gave them - in one way or another (ie, through creation, evolution, increasing knowledge, development of resources, etc.) - the earth and what inhabits it, shouldn’t we be the MOST careful about caring for it?

the general argument i’ve heard against this idea is that we WERE given the earth, and it’s under our dominion, therefore we can do whatever we want. i follow the first two points, but the third reflects an attitude that to me is entirely off-base with the outlook we should have. it belies a selfishness that seems out-of-touch with the very ideals of the basics of just about any faith.

3. if we believe the earth is a gift, and set aside our selfishness - christians should be LEADING the environmental movement, not fighting against it. i suspect i would not have a hard time - all other things being equal - convincing most people of the above points, at least on the surface. but there’s one reason i suspect that - from here on out - it gets dicey and far too many evangelicals refuse to act: politics. for whatever reason, evangelical christianity is splintered highly in favor of the republican party (it’s called the “religious right” for a reason :-). and the enviromental movement is viewed as the territory of liberals and democrats.

why? i don’t know. maybe it’s due to (my former boss) al gore. maybe it’s because democrats tend to be against things like drilling, mining, polluting, etc. because they have adverse affects on the environment. but i’d bet on one thing (based on my personal experience and research) - there’s a large section of that 66% in the evangelical movement that doesn’t want to identify, in any way, with any type of liberal ideology. so the baby has been thrown out with the bath water.

i should be clear that there are those who have chosen to stay within the evangelical movement and yet put a high priority on our role in regards to the earth’s care. my parents fall into this category, and i’ll talk more about that in my next post. i want to make a point of saying i am not making a sweeping generalization, but rather talking from a perspective of experience, observation, and research.

i’d also like to point out that these posts are in no way talking about global warming. i had my brother-in-law ask me if global warming could irrefutably be proved false, would i still be an environmental activist. (though i suspect the question was simply bait to give him a chance to rattle off his list of global warming shortcomings. hi luke. :-).  the answer is an unqualified “yes.” i am not seeking - in these posts, anyway - to get into a debate on the science, evidence and factuality of global warming. for my purpose now, that has nothing to do with these topics.

environmental activism started in my family long before talk of global warming. so my investment in the issue has less to do with politicized buzz words, scientific argument, and hot button issues and much more to do with caring for a precious gift, being good stewards of our natural resources, and treating our home in a way that is equitable and respectful.