All Trees Are Christmas Trees
Children's sermon
Illustration
Preaching
Sermon
Worship
Object:
Dear Fellow Preachers,
Last week we heard the news about the breakup of the oil tanker off the coast of Spain and the ensuing environmental damage. Coincidentally, perhaps, the announcement of the "What Would Jesus Drive?" ad campaign hit the news about the same time.
This Sunday marks the beginning of Advent, and we think there are good reasons to use it to talk about the religious perspective on environmental responsibility. So for this week's installment of The Immediate Word, we asked team member George Murphy, who is on the staff of St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Akron, Ohio, to write about the matter using this Sunday's lectionary text from Isaiah 64:1-9 as a basis.
You'll also find a children's sermon by Wesley Runk, worship resources by Larry Hard, related illustrations, and team comments.
All Trees Are Christmas Trees
by George L. Murphy
Isaiah 64:1-9
Christmas is coming, and the strains of "Joy to the World" are heard again.1
Let ... heav'n and nature sing ...
Let all their songs employ,
While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains
Repeat the sounding joy ....
Nature is to do more than just echo human praises. The psalm suggested by the lectionary for Christmas Eve says, "Then shall all the trees of the wood sing for joy before the LORD, for he comes" (Psalm 96:12-13 RSV). It sounds as if nature itself is to rejoice in the coming of Christ.
But the seabirds are dying on the coast of Spain, drenched in fuel oil from the sunken tanker Prestige. Many of the trees of the forest have been cut down, and in many places the air that is supposed to be filled with the praise of creation's king is polluted. The number of species of plants and animals continues to decline because of our impact on the environment. We can decorate our homes and churches all we like, but what sort of Christmas decoration have we prepared throughout the world?
This sounds like a pretty grim theme for Christmas. But it isn't Christmas yet. If the King is coming, we need to spend some time preparing for his arrival, his adventus. The traditional preparation for that is the season of Advent, and the first Sunday is December 1 this year. During this time the church gets ready to celebrate the birth of Jesus some 2,000 years ago. We're also reminded that we should receive Christ and his benefits now, each day. And there is the promise and the hope that "he will come again." Our preparation has past, present, and future dimensions.
But this presents us with two questions. What is Christ coming for? And how should we receive him?
Whether or not the sermons during this time can raise those questions for a congregation and point toward adequate responses to them will determine, in large part, whether or not the preacher helps to make Advent and Christmas a time for genuine spiritual growth. We aren't just preparing to observe an anniversary of a historical event.
The coming of Christ is something we look toward as the answer to our deepest needs. We need to be loved and accepted. We need some sense of security and hope for the future for ourselves and our children, and the state of the world can make us wonder if such hope is realistic. As we look at the condition of our lives and of the world, we find ourselves repeating the opening words of this Sunday's First Lesson, "O that thou wouldst rend the heavens and come down" (Isaiah 64:1 RSV).
Here I want to suggest answers to those questions about the coming of Christ that may, at first glance, seem surprising. My opening comments will, I hope, make them seem not so strange. The coming of Christ has a lot to do with the state of the natural world, and environmental responsibility ought to be part of our preparation for it.
Why was the Son of God born of Mary? He came to offer each of us the opportunity for salvation from sin. But we must not think of this in a narrow sense as "saving our souls," as if just some "religious" part of us were of interest to God. We are to be saved as whole human beings -- body, soul, spirit, and mind. And since we are fully human only in our relationships with other people and with the world, our salvation is inextricably bound up with the fate of the world.
And as Psalm 96 and other biblical texts remind us, God cares about the whole creation, not just human beings. "The compassion of human beings is for their neighbors," says a verse in the Apocrypha2 (Sirach/Ecclesiasticus 18:13), "But the compassion of the Lord is for every living thing." In Leviticus 25 God links care for the land and social justice as part of his covenant with Israel. The Letter to the Colossians (1:20) speaks of the reconciliation of "all things" to God through the cross of Christ, and St. Paul looked forward to the liberation from bondage of "the whole creation" (Romans 8:18-25).
Part of our preparation for the coming of Christ -- past, present, and future -- as individuals is to be repentant. It is no accident that John the Baptist, with his baptism of repentance, is one of the main figures of Advent. And repentance means more than sorrow for past sins. It includes also the intention, with God's grace, to change. (The usual Hebrew and Greek words mean, respectively, "to turn" and "to change one's mind.") If we take this seriously, and if we understand the cosmic scope of God's purpose, then we will also repent of the damage that we have done to the environment and will try to change our attitudes and actions that have brought about such danger. We will work to defend the natural world because as Christians we see it as the Creation that God loves.
Unfortunately, it's all too easy to find "sermon illustrations" of environmental problems in current events. The most obvious example today is the sinking of the Prestige with its thousands of tons of fuel oil. This massive oil spill has already done a lot of damage to the beaches and sea life off the coast of Spain. We don't know yet how serious leakage from the sunken ship will be in the long run. We do know that this is by no means the first time that such an accident has happened (remember the Exxon Valdez in Alaska). We know that the use of single-hulled rather than double-hulled tankers will continue the potential for such disasters. (A United Treaty that went into effect this year will phase out single-hulled tankers by 2015.) And we know -- if we're honest with ourselves -- that the need for transportation of oil is increased by our refusal to conserve resources.
The recent decision of the Environmental Protection Agency to change clean air standards should be considered here as well. Certainly power plants need to be modernized and many questions about what is best for the environment and human health in the long run are complex and don't have simple answers. But history justifies some skepticism about whether environmental protection or economic interest is determining such decisions.
And the phrase "What would Jesus drive?" has been in the news recently as a slogan of a Christian environmental group.3 Would Jesus be driving an SUV today? The question can, of course, be posed in a superficial way and the point should not be to make Jesus an advertising spokesperson for one kind of car or another. But the attitude that he showed to others and to the world is to be the pattern for our lives. "Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 2:5) Paul says, and goes on to remind us of how Christ did not cling to the privileges of divinity but "emptied" and "humbled" himself for our sake. If we apply that kind of attitude to today's questions about use of petroleum resources and transportation, our decisions about what kinds of cars to drive will not be determined entirely by economy, fashion, or even safety. (Yes, in a collision between a big car and a small one, the latter will generally sustain more damage. But this is relevant only if there are big cars on the road.)
(Is it germane to note that the only time Jesus is reported to have traveled in any way other than on foot, it was on the back of a donkey -- a deliberate contrast to the war horse associated with the powerful in Zechariah 9:9-10?)
What are people supposed to do about all this? First, the church -- and, specifically, its preachers -- need to speak clearly about the theological rationale for environmental stewardship. This may be done at some observance in the spring such as Rogationtide.4 That's fine, but it shouldn't just be a one time a year special occasion.
Congregations can be reminded that conservation and avoidance of pollution can begin at the individual level, and the weeks before Christmas can be a good time to think about that. What sort of gifts do we want to give and get? Does the celebration of Jesus' birth really require massive electrical displays? Will you take the trouble to recycle your Christmas tree or just throw it in the trash?
And Christians should be reminded to exert their influence in the political realm. There is no point in criticizing various industries and government agencies if we don't speak up. Some political leaders who are Christians might be given pause if they heard calls for defense of the environment on religious grounds from their constituents.
It's natural to wonder what an individual can do in the face of problems on a global scale. How much difference can my efforts make? But we should remember Jesus' response when his disciples despaired of feeding thousands of people with only five loaves and two fish -- go ahead and do what you can with what you've got. God will see to the results.
Unfortunately it has become popular for some "conservatives" to display contempt for those who are concerned about such matters and stigmatize them as "environmental whackos," and for some Christians to portray them all as devotees of some kind of New Age nature worship. Certainly there are environmental extremists whose views and tactics should be repudiated, but proper distinctions should be made. The passages of scripture which I've noted (and more could be given) show that care for the natural world is part of an adequate Christian understanding of creation. And genuine "conservatism" includes, almost by definition, "conservation."5 The really sad thing is that we have come to such a pass that claims like these have to be defended among Christians. Some truth-telling, in the Advent spirit of John the Baptist, is needed.
The theme of worship with which I began is perhaps one of the best ways to connect environmental concerns with our preparations for the coming of Christ. All the trees of the wood are supposed to sing for joy before the LORD when he comes. More than that, Psalm 148 pictures all creatures as making up a choir -- led by God's people -- to sing God's praise. There is an old legend that at midnight on Christmas Eve the animals (like those who witnessed the birth of Jesus) are able to speak for a short time.6 While I don't think donkeys and cows really can talk at that time, there is a kernel of truth in this idea: All of nature is to celebrate the birth of the savior.
But then we have to ask what kind of praise is sung by nature as it actually is -- not just as it is in our romanticized pictures that ignore the damage we have done to the world. Can we sing "Joy to the World" without embarrassment? One way of evaluating the environmental impact of some action we are contemplating is to ask, "Will this increase or decrease the praise of God? Will it expand or diminish the choir that is to rejoice before creation's king?"
Some of our preparation for the coming of Christ should involve care for God's creation. Then we could join in that cry of the prophet, "O that thou wouldst rend the heavens and come down," without the fear that we would have to be ashamed of what we have done with God's world when he does come.
Notes
1 Isaac Watts' hymn is usually thought of as a Christmas carol, but while its theme is certainly the coming of Christ, it has no direct reference to his birth or events surrounding it. The Service Book and Hymnal (Augsburg, 1958) included this hymn in its Advent section.
2 Christians of different traditions of course have different views about the status of the Apocrypha. It is worth noting that both the original King James Version and Luther's translation included it in a section separate from the Old and New Testaments. In any case, the verse from Sirach can be thought of as commentary on scripture.
3 The Wall Street Journal, November 19, 2002, D5.
4 This is the three-day period between the Sixth Sunday of Easter (Rogate Sunday) and Ascension Day. There is a tradition going back some 1,400 years of blessing of fields and prayers for harvest during this time. The Book of Common Prayer includes prayers and lessons for such an observance. In recent times this has been moved to different points in the calendar and given wider environmental emphasis with such titles as Stewardship of Creation Sunday, Soil and Water Stewardship Sunday, and Earth Sunday.
5 "Why are the conservatives so anti-conservative?" by Los Angeles Times columnist John Balzar, published in the Akron Beacon Journal, November 24, 2002, is of interest here.
6 Francis X. Weiser, Handbook of Christmas Feasts and Customs (Harcourt, Brace & World, 1958), 72-75, describes some of the folklore connected with the night of 24-25 December. The cattle in the stables and the deer in the forest kneel at midnight, the birds sing all night, etc. On page 72 Weiser says: "Other legends tell of how animals talk like humans at midnight. Their favorite language seems to be Latin. In an old French mystery play the cock crows with a piercing voice, "Christus natus est" (Christ is born); the ox moos "Ubi?" (Where?); the lamb answers "Bethlehem"; and the ass brays "Eamus" (Let us go!). In Central Europe the animals in the stable are said to gossip about the public and hidden faults of those who listen in on their conversation.
Team Comments
Charles Aaron responds: This really is a theologically sound piece, and it gives several concrete examples of our negligence about the environment. One thing I experienced as I read it was the feeling of frustration over my inability to do anything about some of the issues mentioned. I was powerless to stop the sinking of the oil tanker. I can choose some other car to drive besides an SUV, but I can't reduce the number of SUVs on the road. I can't veto the environmental protection agency. Perhaps it is that sense of frustration and powerlessness that led the prophet known as Third Isaiah to cry out to God to tear open the heavens and come down.
We humans keep getting ourselves into messes we can't get out of. Our sinfulness spills over into the creation, and affects other species. This realization pushes me in two directions. First, I realize my need to do all I can to conserve and to protect the environment, and to spread the message. Secondly, I realize how much we need God's intervention. Left to our own devices, we mess things up. The coming of Christ into the world is an offer of hope that if we can't do things ourselves, God does not leave us alone.
Carter Shelley responds: A couple of related thoughts your piece sparked:
NPR (November 25, 2002) had a piece about tree sitters who are climbing high up into trees to protect the trees from being chopped down for timber, building purposes, etc. It's an extreme measure and taken often illegally when logging companies, etc. have made plans for replacement, growth, etc.
John Grisham's novella Skipping Christmas had the potential to refocus American extravagance during the Christmas season to something more spiritual and less out-of-control -- i.e., the exhaustion, expense, parties, etc. that the season often entails. If Sundays begin with Sunday school and end with exhaustion, the same is certainly true for the Advent Season for the Christian who combines church life and celebrations with the other holiday demands our culture offers. Grisham fails to take this opportunity to offer an inspiring alternative in part because he is best as a writer when he is criticizing and attacking something he holds in contempt. He knows how to tear down and not how to build up.
The opportunity remains before us. How might we in conjunction with the rest of nature celebrate Christ's coming this year? How may we make a change, turn around and go in a new direction in one area of our life that would nurture and uphold nature rather than tear it down? I like the suggestions you offer. Thank you for your insights.
Carlos Wilton responds: Actually, "Joy To the World" is appropriate any time of year. I remember hearing once that Isaac Watts didn't write the text with Christmas in mind at all -- which becomes clear once we look at the words, separating them from all the prior associations we've made between them and Christmas. Yes, there's joy that the Lord has come, but no, the hymn is lacking any specific mention of the nativity.
Jonathan Smith responds: We could also look at the ongoing controversy regarding the gas project in Peru that is seeking financial support from U.S. taxpayer-supported public agencies such as the Inter-American Development Bank and the Export-Import Bank. This project is not well known but could cause extensive environmental damage and have a devastating impact on the local population. The output of the project is designated for the North American, primarily the California market. I imagine there are a number of other projects/instances of this kind in the works. Do we as Christians have any responsibility as to how our tax dollars are used?
Related Illustrations
"There was once a town in the heart of America where all life seemed to live in harmony with its surroundings ... Then a strange blight crept over the area and everything began to change ... There was a strange stillness ... The few birds seen anywhere were moribund; they trembled violently and could not fly. It was a spring without voices. On the mornings that had once throbbed with the dawn chorus of scores of bird voices there was now no sound; only silence lay over the fields and woods and marsh."
Those words are now 40 years old. They were published in 1962 by biologist Rachel Carson, in a series of articles in the New Yorker magazine. Soon after, those articles became a book, Silent Spring. It was a simple, factual account of what was happening to America's wildlife as a result of pesticides like DDT.
When Silent Spring hit the bookstores in 1962, it shook up an entire nation. Corporate America -- led by chemical giants like Monsanto, DuPont and American Cyanamid, and backed (at least at first) by the Agriculture Department -- launched a furious counterattack. Rachel Carson was threatened not only with hostile reviews, but also with lawsuits. Despite a lifetime of distinguished work as a biologist, she was, for the first time, labeled a "hysterical woman," unqualified to write such a book.
Today, of course, we know differently. Just about everything Carson wrote about the long-term effects of certain pesticides was dead on (in more ways than one). The publication of Silent Spring is now considered a landmark event: the start of the modern environmental movement. Just eight years later, in 1970, the first Earth Day was organized.
When I was a kid, the trucks of the Ocean County Mosquito Commission used to rumble through our suburban neighborhood, spewing forth billowing white clouds of DDT. We kids used to race outside (when our mothers weren't looking) to go charging through those clouds, before they dispersed. Oh, what fun! We had no idea how deadly those white clouds were. No one would dream of spraying DDT anywhere today -- let alone in a residential neighborhood. We know all too well the cumulative, long-term effects of such poisons, especially on creatures like bald eagles, who dwell near the top of the food chain. Yet just 40 years ago, to make a statement such as that would have brought down the wrath of corporate America upon your head.
So why were the movers and shakers of business and government so slow to listen to voices like Rachel Carson's? One word: greed. Pesticides like DDT made their manufacturers millions. The corporate spinmeisters saw the issue, at first, as a public relations problem, rather than a matter of public health. But the will of the American people prevailed. The modern environmental movement was born, because the ecosystem in which we all live is far more important than corporate profits earned by a few.
Listen to these closing comments of Rachel Carson's from Silent Spring:
"We stand now where two roads diverge. But unlike the roads in Robert Frost's familiar poem, they are not equally fair. The road we have long been traveling is deceptively easy, a smooth superhighway on which we progress with great speed, but at its end lies disaster. The other fork of the road -- the one 'less traveled by' -- offers our last, our only chance to reach a destination that assures the preservation of the earth."
(by Carlos Wilton)
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"To those who followed Columbus and Cortez, the New World truly seemed incredible because of the natural endowments. The land often announced itself with a heavy scent miles out into the ocean. Giovanni di Verrazano in 1524 smelled the cedars of the East Coast a hundred leagues out. The men of Henry Hudson's Half Moon were temporarily disarmed by the fragrance of the New Jersey shore, while ships running farther up the coast occasionally swam through large beds of floating flowers. Wherever they came inland they found a rich riot of color and sound, of game and luxuriant vegetation. Had they been other than they were, they might have written a new mythology here. As it was, they took inventory."
(Frederick Turner, Beyond Geography: The Western Spirit Against the Wilderness [Viking, 1980], 41.256; quoted by Matthew Fox, Original Blessing [Santa Fe: Bear & Co., 1983], 43.)
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My heart is moved by all I cannot save:
so much has been destroyed.
I have to cast my lot with those who age after age, perversely,
with no extraordinary power, reconstitute the world.
(Adrienne Rich, The Dream Of a Common Language [Norton, 1978])
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I flip a switch, and the light comes on; how familiar but very remarkable is this everyday energy transaction. It's worth looking a little deeper at what's going on.
Where I live, the electricity I use comes from a dynamo some 50 miles away. At the heart of this machine is a finely balanced mass of steel and copper, weighing a few dozen tons but whirling on its axis at a precisely controlled 3600 revolutions per minute. The metal on the periphery of this armature is moving at nearly supersonic speeds, but with only millimeter clearances, inside a stationary electromagnet; in the whirling copper wires, the magnetic field pushes a flow of charged particles out of the dynamo and into the wires that supply me in the city. When I flip the switch, I provide yet another circuit through which the generator pushes electric charges.
We are familiar with the flow of energy, first latent in the coal, next blatant in a fire, then turning water into steam to spin the turbine that drives this dynamo which lights my bulb on demand; but we are not always so aware of the other transaction that occurs at every flip of the switch. We usually think (if we think at all) of the energy that flows from the supply station to the consumer, but here I want us to think about another flow, a separate transaction, that we cause in lighting our bulb. In completing a circuit, we cause an extra electric current to flow through our bulb, and thus we increase the current that flows through those copper wires in the spinning generator. The steam turbine now has to do extra work to push those current-carrying wires through the magnetic field; that work comes from a throttle opening a bit further to admit more steam, and ultimately of course from the burning of a little more coal to generate the electrical energy we use. Focus now on that reverse influence that propagates backwards, from our choice at the switch to that increased demand on the power plant.
One can imagine a very different way to manage an electrical industry; in an adequately planned economy, a specified quantity of electrical energy could be generated, and parceled out on a first-come, first-served basis among the consumers. If demand were to exceed the fixed supply, some rationing would have to be imposed to allocate the energy produced. But our energy economy is demand-driven, with extra energy transformed into electrical form at every flip of the switch; instead of centralized rationing, we have entirely decentralized decision-making, and we get our energy "on de-mand." We have perfect democracy in the energy market; my switch is just as good as yours in communicating energy demand back to the generator.
Every time I flip the switch, I vote for some coal to be consumed. If our energy supply were decided by some central planners, I could readily allocate to them the full responsibilities for the consequences of that consumption of coal; but since in practice energy supply is decided by people voting with their switches, it seems to me that the responsibility is just as decentralized as the control. It follows from this line of thought that in our energy economy, it is futile and deeply self-deceiving to blame energy companies for the environmental health and safety consequences of energy production; rather, we the energy voters can take individually our proportional shares, and collectively the entire burden, of the responsibility that goes along with the use of energy.
(David Van Baak, "The Light Switch, the Heavy Responsibility," Perspectives, December 1999, 23. Van Baak is professor of physics at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan.)
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"Worrying is less work than doing something to fix the worry. Everybody wants to save the earth; nobody wants to help Mom with the dishes."
(P.J. O'Rourke, author of All the Trouble in the World, quoted in the SojoMail online newsletter, August 21, 2002.)
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One of those pushing the "What Would Jesus Drive?" program is Rev. Jim Ball, of the Evangelical Environmental Network. His group is launching TV ads on the theme in Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, and North Carolina. This is not traditional environmental activism.
Says Ball, "We hope that when Christians go to purchase their next vehicle, they will ask: 'What would Jesus have me drive?' We think the answer would be he would have you drive the most fuel-efficient vehicle that truly meets your needs."
(Quoted in The Wall Street Journal, November 19, 2002, D5.)
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Of course, no matter what the environmentalists say, we don't know exactly what Jesus would drive. According to an e-mail a friend sent me, the Bible says God drives an old Plymouth. In Genesis, it does say he drove Adam and Eve out of the Garden of Eden in a Fury. There is also a verse to suggest he favored Pontiacs and Geos, as when David asked him to "Pursue your enemies with your Tempest and terrify them with your Storm."
In keeping with the environmental theme, we know the disciples carpooled in a Honda, as it says in John, "The Apostles were in one Accord."
None of which tells us what Jesus would drive. I like to think of him as a van man, a 17-seater so he'd have room for all the disciples and the occasional harlot or tax collector. Given the crowd he hung with, I'd suggest rubber floor mats and vinyl seats. Fishermen are heck on the upholstery.
It's just as likely Jesus wouldn't even own a vehicle. I don't think he's big on personal ownership. The Bible mentions Christ's mission, Christ's lineage, and Christ's followers. It says nothing about Christ's mortgage.
(Bart Mills, "It's not really clear what Jesus would drive," Lima News, Lima, Ohio, November 21, 2002.)
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Laugh if you will at the ludicrous question, but this campaign [What Would Jesus Drive] has wheels. It began more than a year ago when the Rev. Dan Smith, associate minister at Hancock United Church of Christ in Lexington, Massachusetts, first posed the question in the pulpit -- with the idea of getting a rise out of the good people in his congregation. Smith's reasoning, as he explained in August 2001 to ABCNews.com: SUVs are not friendly to our environment. Taking care of God's green Earth is something all people of faith should do. Therefore, if you're a Christian you shouldn't own an SUV. "Many Christians have this phrase that is meaningful for them, 'What would Jesus do?'" Smith told ABCNews.com. So he turned the catch phrase WWJD on its head, changing it to "What would Jesus drive?" He added, "It's something that I think is provocative. So my intention was to be provocative. Hopefully it would make people think before making this decision."
(Cathryn Conroy, "What Would Jesus DRIVE?" Compuserve.com, November 25, 2002.)
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Want to see SUVs in the extreme? Check out http://poseur.4x4.org/futuresuv.html.
Worship Resources
by Larry Hard
SUGGESTED VISUALS
Advent banners
Display world flag with picture of our planet
Project changing pictures of nature scenes
ADVENT PREPARATION (Call to Worship)
L. Jesus comes to bring joy to the world.
P. Prepare us to receive good news of great joy.
L. Jesus comes to bring light to our world.
P. Prepare us to receive light and be light in the world.
L. Jesus comes to bring hope to the world.
P. Prepare us to receive hope and to be hopeful.
L. Jesus comes to bring peace to the world.
P. Prepare us to receive peace and to become peacemakers.
L. Jesus comes to bring salvation to the world.
P. Prepare us to receive salvation and work for the world's salvation.
OPENING HYMNS
"O Come, O Come, Emmanuel"
"Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus"
SONG OF PREPARATION
"Prepare the Way of the Lord" (Jacques Berthier)
OPENING PRAYER
O God, in the advent of Jesus, we are made aware of how much You love this world. Grant that through our worship we will find ways to better care for this earth and all who dwell on it. Open our hearts and minds to what we need to know and do in our time to fulfill Your will made known in Jesus, in whose name we pray. Amen.
LITANY OF PRAISE
L. We praise God for all of creation
P. for the amazing universe of galaxies, stars, and planets.
L We thank God for the energy-giving sun,
P. for the light and heat that makes life possible.
L. We bless God for this blue planet on which we live,
P. for water and air that sustains life.
L. We praise God for all living creatures, great and small,
P. for human life and the whole human family.
L. We thank God for the advent of Jesus,
P. for the hope of peace on earth and good will to all.
HYMNS
"All Creatures of Our God and King"
"Mountains Are All Aglow"
"Creating God, Your Fingers Trace"
GUIDED MEDITATION
(Invite the congregation to close their eyes, allowing them time to do the following -- words to be spoken, not printed in bulletin.)
Meditate on the advent of Jesus, coming to live on this planet (silence)
Be mindful of your earthly life and each breath you take (silence)
Visualize 6 billion on this planet needing air to breathe (silence)
Consider that our bodies are two-thirds water (silence)
Each person takes in about 16,000 gallons of water during a lifetime. (silence)
Be aware of our God-given responsibility for air, water, and energy. (silence)
Ask God to guide you and all people to be good stewards of the earth's resources. (silence)
PASTORAL PRAYER
God, who sent prophets to warn people of ways they were destroying the earth, what warnings do we need to hear in our time? God, who sent Jesus as a living, breathing baby, how do you find us keeping this earth as a livable place for children and future generations?
We pray for wisdom to conserve resources of the earth, that there will be clean air to breathe, enough energy to meet human needs, water safe to drink, and enough food to sustain life.
Through our advent meditations, keep us aware of how Jesus came to be the hope of the world. Direct us in keeping hope alive by what we do and how we live. Amen.
CLOSING HYMNS
"Hope of the World"
"Joy to the World"
A Related Children's Sermon
by Wesley Runk
Text: Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; let the sea roar, and all that fills it; let the field exult, and everything in it. Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy before the Lord; for he is coming, for he is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with his truth. (Psalm 96:11-13)
Object: If possible, acquire the smallest fir tree starts available and distribute them to the children. If you ask a tree nursery, they will often help you. Otherwise choose one tree and adapt the children's sermon.
Good morning boys and girls. Today is the first Sunday of December, and for many Christians it is the day we call the First Sunday in Advent. All of us look forward to December and one of the most special days of the year, Christmas. But today isn't Christmas; it is just the first Sunday when we prepare for Christmas.
How many of you will have a Christmas tree in your home? (let them answer) Is it a pretty big tree? (let them answer) We like Christmas trees don't we? We like them if they are great big, pretty big, kind of big, and even if they are small. We love Christmas trees, and almost every house has one. What do you put on your Christmas tree? (let them answer) Lights, lots of lights and ornaments help decorate our trees. Some people put a star on the top and others a very pretty bow.
I brought along some very tiny Christmas trees today and I want to share them with you. But before I do that I want to talk a little bit about these trees. Trees are very important to our world. They are very good to us and make our world clean and a better place to live. Some of the animals live in areas where there are many trees, and when we cut them down then the animals have to look for new homes. Trees protect us from the wind and keep the earth from eroding and washing away during floods. Trees are more than just pretty; they are some of God's great helpers. The Psalm says that all of the trees in the forest sing for joy before the Lord; for he is coming.
Isn't that neat, trees like these little ones grow up, and with the help of the wind they sing beautiful songs to welcome the Lord. We are in Advent and we are waiting for Jesus to come into our hearts today, just like he came to the people of Bethlehem over 2,000 years ago. The hills were filled with trees and great forests, and they sang their songs waiting for the Lord to come.
I would like for you to take home this very tiny tree and take care of it until spring comes when you can plant it. Make sure it gets plenty of sunshine and enough water so that it begins to grow. When planted in your yard or in a park near you, this tiny tree will someday become a real worker for God. It will help clean our air and become a place for birds and squirrels and other animals and bugs to live. And along with other trees and the wind, it will become part of the tree choir that sings for joy while they wait for the Savior, our Lord Jesus.
Now remember, get ready for the coming of the Lord and prepare for his presence with your singing Christmas tree.
The Immediate Word, December 1, 2002, issue.
Copyright 2002 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to The Immediate Word service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons and in worship and classroom settings only. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to permissions@csspub.com or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., P.O. Box 4503, Lima, Ohio 45802-4503.
Last week we heard the news about the breakup of the oil tanker off the coast of Spain and the ensuing environmental damage. Coincidentally, perhaps, the announcement of the "What Would Jesus Drive?" ad campaign hit the news about the same time.
This Sunday marks the beginning of Advent, and we think there are good reasons to use it to talk about the religious perspective on environmental responsibility. So for this week's installment of The Immediate Word, we asked team member George Murphy, who is on the staff of St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Akron, Ohio, to write about the matter using this Sunday's lectionary text from Isaiah 64:1-9 as a basis.
You'll also find a children's sermon by Wesley Runk, worship resources by Larry Hard, related illustrations, and team comments.
All Trees Are Christmas Trees
by George L. Murphy
Isaiah 64:1-9
Christmas is coming, and the strains of "Joy to the World" are heard again.1
Let ... heav'n and nature sing ...
Let all their songs employ,
While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains
Repeat the sounding joy ....
Nature is to do more than just echo human praises. The psalm suggested by the lectionary for Christmas Eve says, "Then shall all the trees of the wood sing for joy before the LORD, for he comes" (Psalm 96:12-13 RSV). It sounds as if nature itself is to rejoice in the coming of Christ.
But the seabirds are dying on the coast of Spain, drenched in fuel oil from the sunken tanker Prestige. Many of the trees of the forest have been cut down, and in many places the air that is supposed to be filled with the praise of creation's king is polluted. The number of species of plants and animals continues to decline because of our impact on the environment. We can decorate our homes and churches all we like, but what sort of Christmas decoration have we prepared throughout the world?
This sounds like a pretty grim theme for Christmas. But it isn't Christmas yet. If the King is coming, we need to spend some time preparing for his arrival, his adventus. The traditional preparation for that is the season of Advent, and the first Sunday is December 1 this year. During this time the church gets ready to celebrate the birth of Jesus some 2,000 years ago. We're also reminded that we should receive Christ and his benefits now, each day. And there is the promise and the hope that "he will come again." Our preparation has past, present, and future dimensions.
But this presents us with two questions. What is Christ coming for? And how should we receive him?
Whether or not the sermons during this time can raise those questions for a congregation and point toward adequate responses to them will determine, in large part, whether or not the preacher helps to make Advent and Christmas a time for genuine spiritual growth. We aren't just preparing to observe an anniversary of a historical event.
The coming of Christ is something we look toward as the answer to our deepest needs. We need to be loved and accepted. We need some sense of security and hope for the future for ourselves and our children, and the state of the world can make us wonder if such hope is realistic. As we look at the condition of our lives and of the world, we find ourselves repeating the opening words of this Sunday's First Lesson, "O that thou wouldst rend the heavens and come down" (Isaiah 64:1 RSV).
Here I want to suggest answers to those questions about the coming of Christ that may, at first glance, seem surprising. My opening comments will, I hope, make them seem not so strange. The coming of Christ has a lot to do with the state of the natural world, and environmental responsibility ought to be part of our preparation for it.
Why was the Son of God born of Mary? He came to offer each of us the opportunity for salvation from sin. But we must not think of this in a narrow sense as "saving our souls," as if just some "religious" part of us were of interest to God. We are to be saved as whole human beings -- body, soul, spirit, and mind. And since we are fully human only in our relationships with other people and with the world, our salvation is inextricably bound up with the fate of the world.
And as Psalm 96 and other biblical texts remind us, God cares about the whole creation, not just human beings. "The compassion of human beings is for their neighbors," says a verse in the Apocrypha2 (Sirach/Ecclesiasticus 18:13), "But the compassion of the Lord is for every living thing." In Leviticus 25 God links care for the land and social justice as part of his covenant with Israel. The Letter to the Colossians (1:20) speaks of the reconciliation of "all things" to God through the cross of Christ, and St. Paul looked forward to the liberation from bondage of "the whole creation" (Romans 8:18-25).
Part of our preparation for the coming of Christ -- past, present, and future -- as individuals is to be repentant. It is no accident that John the Baptist, with his baptism of repentance, is one of the main figures of Advent. And repentance means more than sorrow for past sins. It includes also the intention, with God's grace, to change. (The usual Hebrew and Greek words mean, respectively, "to turn" and "to change one's mind.") If we take this seriously, and if we understand the cosmic scope of God's purpose, then we will also repent of the damage that we have done to the environment and will try to change our attitudes and actions that have brought about such danger. We will work to defend the natural world because as Christians we see it as the Creation that God loves.
Unfortunately, it's all too easy to find "sermon illustrations" of environmental problems in current events. The most obvious example today is the sinking of the Prestige with its thousands of tons of fuel oil. This massive oil spill has already done a lot of damage to the beaches and sea life off the coast of Spain. We don't know yet how serious leakage from the sunken ship will be in the long run. We do know that this is by no means the first time that such an accident has happened (remember the Exxon Valdez in Alaska). We know that the use of single-hulled rather than double-hulled tankers will continue the potential for such disasters. (A United Treaty that went into effect this year will phase out single-hulled tankers by 2015.) And we know -- if we're honest with ourselves -- that the need for transportation of oil is increased by our refusal to conserve resources.
The recent decision of the Environmental Protection Agency to change clean air standards should be considered here as well. Certainly power plants need to be modernized and many questions about what is best for the environment and human health in the long run are complex and don't have simple answers. But history justifies some skepticism about whether environmental protection or economic interest is determining such decisions.
And the phrase "What would Jesus drive?" has been in the news recently as a slogan of a Christian environmental group.3 Would Jesus be driving an SUV today? The question can, of course, be posed in a superficial way and the point should not be to make Jesus an advertising spokesperson for one kind of car or another. But the attitude that he showed to others and to the world is to be the pattern for our lives. "Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 2:5) Paul says, and goes on to remind us of how Christ did not cling to the privileges of divinity but "emptied" and "humbled" himself for our sake. If we apply that kind of attitude to today's questions about use of petroleum resources and transportation, our decisions about what kinds of cars to drive will not be determined entirely by economy, fashion, or even safety. (Yes, in a collision between a big car and a small one, the latter will generally sustain more damage. But this is relevant only if there are big cars on the road.)
(Is it germane to note that the only time Jesus is reported to have traveled in any way other than on foot, it was on the back of a donkey -- a deliberate contrast to the war horse associated with the powerful in Zechariah 9:9-10?)
What are people supposed to do about all this? First, the church -- and, specifically, its preachers -- need to speak clearly about the theological rationale for environmental stewardship. This may be done at some observance in the spring such as Rogationtide.4 That's fine, but it shouldn't just be a one time a year special occasion.
Congregations can be reminded that conservation and avoidance of pollution can begin at the individual level, and the weeks before Christmas can be a good time to think about that. What sort of gifts do we want to give and get? Does the celebration of Jesus' birth really require massive electrical displays? Will you take the trouble to recycle your Christmas tree or just throw it in the trash?
And Christians should be reminded to exert their influence in the political realm. There is no point in criticizing various industries and government agencies if we don't speak up. Some political leaders who are Christians might be given pause if they heard calls for defense of the environment on religious grounds from their constituents.
It's natural to wonder what an individual can do in the face of problems on a global scale. How much difference can my efforts make? But we should remember Jesus' response when his disciples despaired of feeding thousands of people with only five loaves and two fish -- go ahead and do what you can with what you've got. God will see to the results.
Unfortunately it has become popular for some "conservatives" to display contempt for those who are concerned about such matters and stigmatize them as "environmental whackos," and for some Christians to portray them all as devotees of some kind of New Age nature worship. Certainly there are environmental extremists whose views and tactics should be repudiated, but proper distinctions should be made. The passages of scripture which I've noted (and more could be given) show that care for the natural world is part of an adequate Christian understanding of creation. And genuine "conservatism" includes, almost by definition, "conservation."5 The really sad thing is that we have come to such a pass that claims like these have to be defended among Christians. Some truth-telling, in the Advent spirit of John the Baptist, is needed.
The theme of worship with which I began is perhaps one of the best ways to connect environmental concerns with our preparations for the coming of Christ. All the trees of the wood are supposed to sing for joy before the LORD when he comes. More than that, Psalm 148 pictures all creatures as making up a choir -- led by God's people -- to sing God's praise. There is an old legend that at midnight on Christmas Eve the animals (like those who witnessed the birth of Jesus) are able to speak for a short time.6 While I don't think donkeys and cows really can talk at that time, there is a kernel of truth in this idea: All of nature is to celebrate the birth of the savior.
But then we have to ask what kind of praise is sung by nature as it actually is -- not just as it is in our romanticized pictures that ignore the damage we have done to the world. Can we sing "Joy to the World" without embarrassment? One way of evaluating the environmental impact of some action we are contemplating is to ask, "Will this increase or decrease the praise of God? Will it expand or diminish the choir that is to rejoice before creation's king?"
Some of our preparation for the coming of Christ should involve care for God's creation. Then we could join in that cry of the prophet, "O that thou wouldst rend the heavens and come down," without the fear that we would have to be ashamed of what we have done with God's world when he does come.
Notes
1 Isaac Watts' hymn is usually thought of as a Christmas carol, but while its theme is certainly the coming of Christ, it has no direct reference to his birth or events surrounding it. The Service Book and Hymnal (Augsburg, 1958) included this hymn in its Advent section.
2 Christians of different traditions of course have different views about the status of the Apocrypha. It is worth noting that both the original King James Version and Luther's translation included it in a section separate from the Old and New Testaments. In any case, the verse from Sirach can be thought of as commentary on scripture.
3 The Wall Street Journal, November 19, 2002, D5.
4 This is the three-day period between the Sixth Sunday of Easter (Rogate Sunday) and Ascension Day. There is a tradition going back some 1,400 years of blessing of fields and prayers for harvest during this time. The Book of Common Prayer includes prayers and lessons for such an observance. In recent times this has been moved to different points in the calendar and given wider environmental emphasis with such titles as Stewardship of Creation Sunday, Soil and Water Stewardship Sunday, and Earth Sunday.
5 "Why are the conservatives so anti-conservative?" by Los Angeles Times columnist John Balzar, published in the Akron Beacon Journal, November 24, 2002, is of interest here.
6 Francis X. Weiser, Handbook of Christmas Feasts and Customs (Harcourt, Brace & World, 1958), 72-75, describes some of the folklore connected with the night of 24-25 December. The cattle in the stables and the deer in the forest kneel at midnight, the birds sing all night, etc. On page 72 Weiser says: "Other legends tell of how animals talk like humans at midnight. Their favorite language seems to be Latin. In an old French mystery play the cock crows with a piercing voice, "Christus natus est" (Christ is born); the ox moos "Ubi?" (Where?); the lamb answers "Bethlehem"; and the ass brays "Eamus" (Let us go!). In Central Europe the animals in the stable are said to gossip about the public and hidden faults of those who listen in on their conversation.
Team Comments
Charles Aaron responds: This really is a theologically sound piece, and it gives several concrete examples of our negligence about the environment. One thing I experienced as I read it was the feeling of frustration over my inability to do anything about some of the issues mentioned. I was powerless to stop the sinking of the oil tanker. I can choose some other car to drive besides an SUV, but I can't reduce the number of SUVs on the road. I can't veto the environmental protection agency. Perhaps it is that sense of frustration and powerlessness that led the prophet known as Third Isaiah to cry out to God to tear open the heavens and come down.
We humans keep getting ourselves into messes we can't get out of. Our sinfulness spills over into the creation, and affects other species. This realization pushes me in two directions. First, I realize my need to do all I can to conserve and to protect the environment, and to spread the message. Secondly, I realize how much we need God's intervention. Left to our own devices, we mess things up. The coming of Christ into the world is an offer of hope that if we can't do things ourselves, God does not leave us alone.
Carter Shelley responds: A couple of related thoughts your piece sparked:
NPR (November 25, 2002) had a piece about tree sitters who are climbing high up into trees to protect the trees from being chopped down for timber, building purposes, etc. It's an extreme measure and taken often illegally when logging companies, etc. have made plans for replacement, growth, etc.
John Grisham's novella Skipping Christmas had the potential to refocus American extravagance during the Christmas season to something more spiritual and less out-of-control -- i.e., the exhaustion, expense, parties, etc. that the season often entails. If Sundays begin with Sunday school and end with exhaustion, the same is certainly true for the Advent Season for the Christian who combines church life and celebrations with the other holiday demands our culture offers. Grisham fails to take this opportunity to offer an inspiring alternative in part because he is best as a writer when he is criticizing and attacking something he holds in contempt. He knows how to tear down and not how to build up.
The opportunity remains before us. How might we in conjunction with the rest of nature celebrate Christ's coming this year? How may we make a change, turn around and go in a new direction in one area of our life that would nurture and uphold nature rather than tear it down? I like the suggestions you offer. Thank you for your insights.
Carlos Wilton responds: Actually, "Joy To the World" is appropriate any time of year. I remember hearing once that Isaac Watts didn't write the text with Christmas in mind at all -- which becomes clear once we look at the words, separating them from all the prior associations we've made between them and Christmas. Yes, there's joy that the Lord has come, but no, the hymn is lacking any specific mention of the nativity.
Jonathan Smith responds: We could also look at the ongoing controversy regarding the gas project in Peru that is seeking financial support from U.S. taxpayer-supported public agencies such as the Inter-American Development Bank and the Export-Import Bank. This project is not well known but could cause extensive environmental damage and have a devastating impact on the local population. The output of the project is designated for the North American, primarily the California market. I imagine there are a number of other projects/instances of this kind in the works. Do we as Christians have any responsibility as to how our tax dollars are used?
Related Illustrations
"There was once a town in the heart of America where all life seemed to live in harmony with its surroundings ... Then a strange blight crept over the area and everything began to change ... There was a strange stillness ... The few birds seen anywhere were moribund; they trembled violently and could not fly. It was a spring without voices. On the mornings that had once throbbed with the dawn chorus of scores of bird voices there was now no sound; only silence lay over the fields and woods and marsh."
Those words are now 40 years old. They were published in 1962 by biologist Rachel Carson, in a series of articles in the New Yorker magazine. Soon after, those articles became a book, Silent Spring. It was a simple, factual account of what was happening to America's wildlife as a result of pesticides like DDT.
When Silent Spring hit the bookstores in 1962, it shook up an entire nation. Corporate America -- led by chemical giants like Monsanto, DuPont and American Cyanamid, and backed (at least at first) by the Agriculture Department -- launched a furious counterattack. Rachel Carson was threatened not only with hostile reviews, but also with lawsuits. Despite a lifetime of distinguished work as a biologist, she was, for the first time, labeled a "hysterical woman," unqualified to write such a book.
Today, of course, we know differently. Just about everything Carson wrote about the long-term effects of certain pesticides was dead on (in more ways than one). The publication of Silent Spring is now considered a landmark event: the start of the modern environmental movement. Just eight years later, in 1970, the first Earth Day was organized.
When I was a kid, the trucks of the Ocean County Mosquito Commission used to rumble through our suburban neighborhood, spewing forth billowing white clouds of DDT. We kids used to race outside (when our mothers weren't looking) to go charging through those clouds, before they dispersed. Oh, what fun! We had no idea how deadly those white clouds were. No one would dream of spraying DDT anywhere today -- let alone in a residential neighborhood. We know all too well the cumulative, long-term effects of such poisons, especially on creatures like bald eagles, who dwell near the top of the food chain. Yet just 40 years ago, to make a statement such as that would have brought down the wrath of corporate America upon your head.
So why were the movers and shakers of business and government so slow to listen to voices like Rachel Carson's? One word: greed. Pesticides like DDT made their manufacturers millions. The corporate spinmeisters saw the issue, at first, as a public relations problem, rather than a matter of public health. But the will of the American people prevailed. The modern environmental movement was born, because the ecosystem in which we all live is far more important than corporate profits earned by a few.
Listen to these closing comments of Rachel Carson's from Silent Spring:
"We stand now where two roads diverge. But unlike the roads in Robert Frost's familiar poem, they are not equally fair. The road we have long been traveling is deceptively easy, a smooth superhighway on which we progress with great speed, but at its end lies disaster. The other fork of the road -- the one 'less traveled by' -- offers our last, our only chance to reach a destination that assures the preservation of the earth."
(by Carlos Wilton)
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"To those who followed Columbus and Cortez, the New World truly seemed incredible because of the natural endowments. The land often announced itself with a heavy scent miles out into the ocean. Giovanni di Verrazano in 1524 smelled the cedars of the East Coast a hundred leagues out. The men of Henry Hudson's Half Moon were temporarily disarmed by the fragrance of the New Jersey shore, while ships running farther up the coast occasionally swam through large beds of floating flowers. Wherever they came inland they found a rich riot of color and sound, of game and luxuriant vegetation. Had they been other than they were, they might have written a new mythology here. As it was, they took inventory."
(Frederick Turner, Beyond Geography: The Western Spirit Against the Wilderness [Viking, 1980], 41.256; quoted by Matthew Fox, Original Blessing [Santa Fe: Bear & Co., 1983], 43.)
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My heart is moved by all I cannot save:
so much has been destroyed.
I have to cast my lot with those who age after age, perversely,
with no extraordinary power, reconstitute the world.
(Adrienne Rich, The Dream Of a Common Language [Norton, 1978])
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I flip a switch, and the light comes on; how familiar but very remarkable is this everyday energy transaction. It's worth looking a little deeper at what's going on.
Where I live, the electricity I use comes from a dynamo some 50 miles away. At the heart of this machine is a finely balanced mass of steel and copper, weighing a few dozen tons but whirling on its axis at a precisely controlled 3600 revolutions per minute. The metal on the periphery of this armature is moving at nearly supersonic speeds, but with only millimeter clearances, inside a stationary electromagnet; in the whirling copper wires, the magnetic field pushes a flow of charged particles out of the dynamo and into the wires that supply me in the city. When I flip the switch, I provide yet another circuit through which the generator pushes electric charges.
We are familiar with the flow of energy, first latent in the coal, next blatant in a fire, then turning water into steam to spin the turbine that drives this dynamo which lights my bulb on demand; but we are not always so aware of the other transaction that occurs at every flip of the switch. We usually think (if we think at all) of the energy that flows from the supply station to the consumer, but here I want us to think about another flow, a separate transaction, that we cause in lighting our bulb. In completing a circuit, we cause an extra electric current to flow through our bulb, and thus we increase the current that flows through those copper wires in the spinning generator. The steam turbine now has to do extra work to push those current-carrying wires through the magnetic field; that work comes from a throttle opening a bit further to admit more steam, and ultimately of course from the burning of a little more coal to generate the electrical energy we use. Focus now on that reverse influence that propagates backwards, from our choice at the switch to that increased demand on the power plant.
One can imagine a very different way to manage an electrical industry; in an adequately planned economy, a specified quantity of electrical energy could be generated, and parceled out on a first-come, first-served basis among the consumers. If demand were to exceed the fixed supply, some rationing would have to be imposed to allocate the energy produced. But our energy economy is demand-driven, with extra energy transformed into electrical form at every flip of the switch; instead of centralized rationing, we have entirely decentralized decision-making, and we get our energy "on de-mand." We have perfect democracy in the energy market; my switch is just as good as yours in communicating energy demand back to the generator.
Every time I flip the switch, I vote for some coal to be consumed. If our energy supply were decided by some central planners, I could readily allocate to them the full responsibilities for the consequences of that consumption of coal; but since in practice energy supply is decided by people voting with their switches, it seems to me that the responsibility is just as decentralized as the control. It follows from this line of thought that in our energy economy, it is futile and deeply self-deceiving to blame energy companies for the environmental health and safety consequences of energy production; rather, we the energy voters can take individually our proportional shares, and collectively the entire burden, of the responsibility that goes along with the use of energy.
(David Van Baak, "The Light Switch, the Heavy Responsibility," Perspectives, December 1999, 23. Van Baak is professor of physics at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan.)
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"Worrying is less work than doing something to fix the worry. Everybody wants to save the earth; nobody wants to help Mom with the dishes."
(P.J. O'Rourke, author of All the Trouble in the World, quoted in the SojoMail online newsletter, August 21, 2002.)
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One of those pushing the "What Would Jesus Drive?" program is Rev. Jim Ball, of the Evangelical Environmental Network. His group is launching TV ads on the theme in Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, and North Carolina. This is not traditional environmental activism.
Says Ball, "We hope that when Christians go to purchase their next vehicle, they will ask: 'What would Jesus have me drive?' We think the answer would be he would have you drive the most fuel-efficient vehicle that truly meets your needs."
(Quoted in The Wall Street Journal, November 19, 2002, D5.)
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Of course, no matter what the environmentalists say, we don't know exactly what Jesus would drive. According to an e-mail a friend sent me, the Bible says God drives an old Plymouth. In Genesis, it does say he drove Adam and Eve out of the Garden of Eden in a Fury. There is also a verse to suggest he favored Pontiacs and Geos, as when David asked him to "Pursue your enemies with your Tempest and terrify them with your Storm."
In keeping with the environmental theme, we know the disciples carpooled in a Honda, as it says in John, "The Apostles were in one Accord."
None of which tells us what Jesus would drive. I like to think of him as a van man, a 17-seater so he'd have room for all the disciples and the occasional harlot or tax collector. Given the crowd he hung with, I'd suggest rubber floor mats and vinyl seats. Fishermen are heck on the upholstery.
It's just as likely Jesus wouldn't even own a vehicle. I don't think he's big on personal ownership. The Bible mentions Christ's mission, Christ's lineage, and Christ's followers. It says nothing about Christ's mortgage.
(Bart Mills, "It's not really clear what Jesus would drive," Lima News, Lima, Ohio, November 21, 2002.)
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Laugh if you will at the ludicrous question, but this campaign [What Would Jesus Drive] has wheels. It began more than a year ago when the Rev. Dan Smith, associate minister at Hancock United Church of Christ in Lexington, Massachusetts, first posed the question in the pulpit -- with the idea of getting a rise out of the good people in his congregation. Smith's reasoning, as he explained in August 2001 to ABCNews.com: SUVs are not friendly to our environment. Taking care of God's green Earth is something all people of faith should do. Therefore, if you're a Christian you shouldn't own an SUV. "Many Christians have this phrase that is meaningful for them, 'What would Jesus do?'" Smith told ABCNews.com. So he turned the catch phrase WWJD on its head, changing it to "What would Jesus drive?" He added, "It's something that I think is provocative. So my intention was to be provocative. Hopefully it would make people think before making this decision."
(Cathryn Conroy, "What Would Jesus DRIVE?" Compuserve.com, November 25, 2002.)
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Want to see SUVs in the extreme? Check out http://poseur.4x4.org/futuresuv.html.
Worship Resources
by Larry Hard
SUGGESTED VISUALS
Advent banners
Display world flag with picture of our planet
Project changing pictures of nature scenes
ADVENT PREPARATION (Call to Worship)
L. Jesus comes to bring joy to the world.
P. Prepare us to receive good news of great joy.
L. Jesus comes to bring light to our world.
P. Prepare us to receive light and be light in the world.
L. Jesus comes to bring hope to the world.
P. Prepare us to receive hope and to be hopeful.
L. Jesus comes to bring peace to the world.
P. Prepare us to receive peace and to become peacemakers.
L. Jesus comes to bring salvation to the world.
P. Prepare us to receive salvation and work for the world's salvation.
OPENING HYMNS
"O Come, O Come, Emmanuel"
"Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus"
SONG OF PREPARATION
"Prepare the Way of the Lord" (Jacques Berthier)
OPENING PRAYER
O God, in the advent of Jesus, we are made aware of how much You love this world. Grant that through our worship we will find ways to better care for this earth and all who dwell on it. Open our hearts and minds to what we need to know and do in our time to fulfill Your will made known in Jesus, in whose name we pray. Amen.
LITANY OF PRAISE
L. We praise God for all of creation
P. for the amazing universe of galaxies, stars, and planets.
L We thank God for the energy-giving sun,
P. for the light and heat that makes life possible.
L. We bless God for this blue planet on which we live,
P. for water and air that sustains life.
L. We praise God for all living creatures, great and small,
P. for human life and the whole human family.
L. We thank God for the advent of Jesus,
P. for the hope of peace on earth and good will to all.
HYMNS
"All Creatures of Our God and King"
"Mountains Are All Aglow"
"Creating God, Your Fingers Trace"
GUIDED MEDITATION
(Invite the congregation to close their eyes, allowing them time to do the following -- words to be spoken, not printed in bulletin.)
Meditate on the advent of Jesus, coming to live on this planet (silence)
Be mindful of your earthly life and each breath you take (silence)
Visualize 6 billion on this planet needing air to breathe (silence)
Consider that our bodies are two-thirds water (silence)
Each person takes in about 16,000 gallons of water during a lifetime. (silence)
Be aware of our God-given responsibility for air, water, and energy. (silence)
Ask God to guide you and all people to be good stewards of the earth's resources. (silence)
PASTORAL PRAYER
God, who sent prophets to warn people of ways they were destroying the earth, what warnings do we need to hear in our time? God, who sent Jesus as a living, breathing baby, how do you find us keeping this earth as a livable place for children and future generations?
We pray for wisdom to conserve resources of the earth, that there will be clean air to breathe, enough energy to meet human needs, water safe to drink, and enough food to sustain life.
Through our advent meditations, keep us aware of how Jesus came to be the hope of the world. Direct us in keeping hope alive by what we do and how we live. Amen.
CLOSING HYMNS
"Hope of the World"
"Joy to the World"
A Related Children's Sermon
by Wesley Runk
Text: Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice; let the sea roar, and all that fills it; let the field exult, and everything in it. Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy before the Lord; for he is coming, for he is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness, and the peoples with his truth. (Psalm 96:11-13)
Object: If possible, acquire the smallest fir tree starts available and distribute them to the children. If you ask a tree nursery, they will often help you. Otherwise choose one tree and adapt the children's sermon.
Good morning boys and girls. Today is the first Sunday of December, and for many Christians it is the day we call the First Sunday in Advent. All of us look forward to December and one of the most special days of the year, Christmas. But today isn't Christmas; it is just the first Sunday when we prepare for Christmas.
How many of you will have a Christmas tree in your home? (let them answer) Is it a pretty big tree? (let them answer) We like Christmas trees don't we? We like them if they are great big, pretty big, kind of big, and even if they are small. We love Christmas trees, and almost every house has one. What do you put on your Christmas tree? (let them answer) Lights, lots of lights and ornaments help decorate our trees. Some people put a star on the top and others a very pretty bow.
I brought along some very tiny Christmas trees today and I want to share them with you. But before I do that I want to talk a little bit about these trees. Trees are very important to our world. They are very good to us and make our world clean and a better place to live. Some of the animals live in areas where there are many trees, and when we cut them down then the animals have to look for new homes. Trees protect us from the wind and keep the earth from eroding and washing away during floods. Trees are more than just pretty; they are some of God's great helpers. The Psalm says that all of the trees in the forest sing for joy before the Lord; for he is coming.
Isn't that neat, trees like these little ones grow up, and with the help of the wind they sing beautiful songs to welcome the Lord. We are in Advent and we are waiting for Jesus to come into our hearts today, just like he came to the people of Bethlehem over 2,000 years ago. The hills were filled with trees and great forests, and they sang their songs waiting for the Lord to come.
I would like for you to take home this very tiny tree and take care of it until spring comes when you can plant it. Make sure it gets plenty of sunshine and enough water so that it begins to grow. When planted in your yard or in a park near you, this tiny tree will someday become a real worker for God. It will help clean our air and become a place for birds and squirrels and other animals and bugs to live. And along with other trees and the wind, it will become part of the tree choir that sings for joy while they wait for the Savior, our Lord Jesus.
Now remember, get ready for the coming of the Lord and prepare for his presence with your singing Christmas tree.
The Immediate Word, December 1, 2002, issue.
Copyright 2002 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to The Immediate Word service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons and in worship and classroom settings only. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to permissions@csspub.com or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., P.O. Box 4503, Lima, Ohio 45802-4503.
