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A Divine Wisdom of Balance for Fauna and Flora (Based on Psalm 104: 14-23 and Job 39: 1-8, 26-30, Year C, Sept

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A Divine Wisdom of Balance for Fauna and Flora (Based on Psalm 104: 14-23 and Job 39: 1-8, 26-30, Year C, Sept A Divine Wisdom of Balance for Fauna and Flora (Based on Psalm 104: 14-23 and Job 39: 1-8, 26-30, Year C, Sept. 8, 2019) This Sunday we celebrate the plants and creatures that inhabit Earth, including us, we also examine the ways divine Wisdom sustains, defends and delights in creation. Last Sunday, we celebrated the depth of God’s creative power by examining the oceans alongside humankind’s power to damage those oceans and those creatures who live in them. Wisdom is at the heart of the profound circle of life that God put in motion so many millions of years ago. As we explore this divine circle, the circle of life, we give thanks to Wisdom. Wisdom that points the way to further divine mystery. Let's explore some of that wisdom in our scriptures today. In Psalm 104, the poet sings God’s praises, we imagine God’s delight in the diversity and activity of creation. “You cause the grass to grow for the cattle, and plants for people to use to bring forth food from the earth … The trees of the Lord are watered abundantly… In them the birds build their nests.” 1 God is a caring provider who connects all things to one another. The psalmist graciously acknowledges Mother Earth and gives praise to God for rocks that offer a hiding place for the coneys (hyrax: small rodent like mammals), and young lions that roar for their prey. The natural order of things includes hunting and being hunted, escaping and being caught, fighting and living peacefully together. God’s creation is composed of an ebb and flow of life and death. One follows the other, a circle – a circle of life. Out of love, God has set this circle of life in motion. The psalmist provides us a look at how God shelters creation and tends to the unique needs and gifts of each creature. However, this is not quite a utopia of eternal life. There are predators and prey which maintain the balance in the circle of life. Just as the sun has a set time to shine, so to do the nocturnal hunters, such as the lions, have a set time to seek "their food from God." There is enough food, space and time for all creatures of this planet, including humans, if we seek the wisdom 2 of God and avoid the hoarding of resources, and the trespassing or appropriation of territory or habitat. God's divine wisdom sustains creation by playing in it, which in turn produces growth, strength and vitality in the flora and fauna that cover the earth. As human beings, plants and animals nurture our bodies providing sustenance, materials to fashion clothing or construct things, and medicines to heal us. Not only do these plants and animals nurture our bodies, but they enliven our spirits. Many of us grow flowers to brighten our surroundings. Many view animals as icons of God's wild creation such as wolves, bears, lions, various birds or reptiles. We see the images of these creatures in paintings, on clothing, vehicles and other items. We are all connected to one another on this planet, as God's wisdom intended. We are called to be good stewards by the Creator, and in doing so we can derive great fullness in life. In Job 39, God also provides for creation. Job has challenged God’s wisdom and God answers through several 3 examples of God’s power in our natural world. God knows every minute detail of everything and everyone’s existence. That's not surprising considering God is the author of life. Here we read that not only God provides, but that God also gives dignity and reverence to each living thing. God speaks of the animals with pride, honouring their freedom. All of creation is intimately connected, both in our search for freedom and in our sheltering of others. If we know this wisdom to be true, then to what extent and in what ways do we as humans have a sense of being connected? Personally, I derive my sense of connectedness in a few ways: by providing a good and loving home to a small menagerie of previously abused or abandoned pets, by growing flowers that attract bees, and by putting out bird feeders in the winter. I also contribute funds to wildlife protection organizations and animal rescue charities. Certainly, we all have the capacity for connectedness to creation, and there are many ways to demonstrate this other than the few examples I've cited. 4 But what is important to understand is that as God's stewards of creation it is up to all of us to do what we can, as we can, when we can, to exercise the wisdom that God has gifted us. Both scriptures today propound that creation is good and all is working in harmony. But is this our experience today? It is my opinion that until the industrial revolution of the mid-1800s, much of creation was unfolding as God intended it to do so through the wisdom of creatures. As the onset of industrial progress, mechanisation, fossil fuel discovery and usage, and a surge in human population gained momentum, creation sadly became a resource to be exploited rather than a sacred trust to be managed. As delicate ecosystem were swallowed up by ever- expanding settlements of humans, our predatory instincts also increased proportionally causing an imbalance in the circle of life. 5 Scientist, environmentalist, and author David Suzuki sizes up the creation imbalance with an example from B.C. and Alberta this way: "Humans are the world's top predator. The way we fulfil this role is often mired in controversy, from factory farming to trophy hunting to predator control. The latter is the process governments use to kill carnivores like wolves, coyotes and cougars to stop them from hunting threatened species like caribou — even though human activity is the root cause of caribou's decline. Predation is an important natural function. But as the human population has grown, we've taken over management of ecosystems once based on mutually beneficial relationships that maintained natural balances. If we are to emulate natural predators, we must look at the types of prey killed. Non-human predators usually take down the injured, old or young. This leaves the strongest genetic material to 6 be passed on. Human predators often target the largest males (trophy hunting) or entire packs (predator control). In the wild, non-human predators rarely kill top predators. A report from the publication Science concluded humans kill large predators at nine times the rate at which carnivores typically kill each other. There are also differences in how prey are killed. Natural predation is violent. But human predation often goes to another level. In addition to using aerial shooting and poison baits, reports indicate British Columbia employed "Judas wolves", radio-collared wolves used to track down packs so they can be killed. Predators usually kill for sustenance. For millennia, Indigenous peoples have also relied on hunting to maintain traditional ways of life. But with trophy hunting, the government's impetus is to make money. Governments that allow continued resource extraction in imperilled caribou habitat are using predator control as a stopgap measure to keep caribou alive. 7 Ultimately, natural predator-prey relationships are symbiotic. Predators not only keep prey populations in check and maintain natural cycles, they can even heal degraded ecosystems. Wolves reintroduced into Yellowstone National Park in 1995 restored the natural biodiversity that had diminished in their absence. To avoid predation, elk spent less time in valley bottoms, which allowed plants and trees to regenerate, in turn attracting birds, bears and beavers. Vegetation stabilized riverbanks, beavers altered waterways and soon turtles, amphibians and river otters returned. When judged by this dynamic of upholding natural balances, humans are failing terribly as predators. It's hubris to think we can manage complex ecosystem dynamics using simple-minded band-aid approaches. What can we do to become better? We can stop looking for scapegoats and look in the mirror at the primary cause of species' decline across Canada. We can end trophy hunting. We can end predator control by maintaining and restoring the habitat that 8 caribou need to survive and recover. We can plan to operate within natural limits. It's shocking that Western society villainizes predators like wolves, even though they're highly intelligent, social creatures that play a critical role in regulating nature. The predator we need to control is us!" Today's scriptures celebrate God’s providential care of creation and proclaim God’s over-arching wisdom. The animals of Job 39 feed the young who then leave; the plants of Psalm 104 grow and shelter animals. No species is self-sufficient including humans. Each relies on the other. It is this interconnectedness, this circle of life, this Divine wisdom, that we all must respect and understand if are to live and thrive together on this precious and unique home of ours called planet Earth. Amen. Resources: 1) Fauna and Flora Sunday, Seasons of the Spirit, Season Fusion, Season of Creation, Pent 2, 2016 2) David Suzuki, with contributions from David Suzuki Foundation Science Projects Manager Rachel Plotkin. 9 .
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