Many of us would like to believe that global warming isn’t happening. When something is slow building, it is tough to discern among the natural cycles that our planet goes through. But it is undeniable that carbon dioxide is rising to historic levels. That is measurable and concrete. What is the cause? The rise correlates perfectly with human use of fossil fuels. It makes sense. Are there also natural sources? Definitely. But is naive to think that the planet is so big that humanity could not impact it significantly.
Using fossil fuels has benefitted mankind in a large way. Before fossil fuels we were dependent on muscle power either that of slaves, animals or our own. We live in a different world, a better world, because of energy. Is it right that such a benefit could also produce a significant threat? Yes. I’m afraid that is more the rule than the exception.
In the story of the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve and therefore humanity, was given the responsibility of caring for the Earth.
26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
27 So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
Genesis 1:26-28 (ESV)
“Dominion” in this context does not mean control or selfish dominance. It is dominion the way God exercises dominion. He cares for things. They depend on him. This is all prior to the corruption of humans by evil.
Many people dismiss this story as myth or metaphor. I believe it is a factual, historical story put in simplistic terms for an audience without much scientific sophistication. As such, the story tells us that the world worked when there were only two people and no sin.
That isn’t the situation we are in today. Even in Adam and Eve’s day, once sin got in the cooperation of nature was no longer a given.
In dramatic understatement, God explained the way things were going to work now.
17 And to Adam he said,
“Because you have listened to the voice of your wife
Genesis 3:17-19 (ESV)
and have eaten of the tree
of which I commanded you,
‘You shall not eat of it,’
cursed is the ground because of you;
in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;
18 thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you;
and you shall eat the plants of the field.
19 By the sweat of your face
you shall eat bread,
till you return to the ground,
for out of it you were taken;
for you are dust,
and to dust you shall return.
Humans would still try to be stewards of the environment, but many things would go amiss. There is a curse. Not some magical, evil-eye kind of thing, but rather God letting go of control somewhat. Nature will act in a strictly cause and effect type of way and remain somewhat out of balance.
In such an environment, why would global warming be a surprise? Carbon dioxide isn’t the strongest greenhouse gas, and greenhouse gases are not the biggest factor in the temperature of the Earth; but carbon dioxide is just enough to throw off balance something whose balance was tenuous from the beginning.
Now what? Could people intervene in a way that actually makes it worse? That is not inconceivable. Our economy will need to transform and there will be pains associated with the change. Even without global warming hastening the change, we would need to do this soon anyway. While coal remains in vast supply, easy oil is not. Fracking extends our abilities to get oil, but it comes with concerns of its own. The main being micro-earthquakes. Expect the world to produce various versions of “thorns and thistles” as we try to respond. There will be problems with whatever we do. It is matter of doing something that has the least amounts of problems. What I mean is that nuclear power has problems, lithium-cobalt-nickel production has problems, so do the known renewable energy resources. But it would seem that doing nothing and charging ahead with the status quo is the worst choice.
We are still God appointed stewards of the planet. We answer to Him. But we also have to live here, and it behooves us to all do our part.
Giving Christ 