from Denis Edwards, Ecology at the Heart of Faith” The Change of Heart that Leads to a New Way of Living on Earth

What then would a mysticism of ecological praxis look like? I suggest that it might embrace some of these kinds of experience:

⊕ The experience of being caught up in the utter beauty of the natural world, when this leads to a wonder and a joy that seem boundless.

⊕ The experience of being part of a fourteen-billion-year history of the universe, and part of a 3.8-billion-year history of the evolution of life on Earth, and of knowing all this as directed to God’s self-bestowal in love.

⊕ The experience of being overwhelmed by natural forces, by the size and age of the universe, of knowing the natural world as other, of feeling it as alien, and in this being taken far beyond human comfort zones into mystery.

⊕ The experience of being called to solidarity with the creatures of Earth, of being called to an ecological conversion, of coming to know other creatures as kin, and of knowing this as the gracious gift of the Spirit of God.

⊕ The experience of being overwhelmed by the size of the ecological problem, of being defeated by powerful economic forces, of seeing rain forests further destroyed, more species go extinct, more carbon pumped into the atmosphere, of feeling near despair, but still hoping against hope, of knowing this as a participation in the way of this cross, as an invitation to commit ourselves to go on, entrusting ourselves and our damaged Earth into the hands of God.

⊕ The experience of conversion from the model of individualism and consumption to the simplicity of what Sallie McFague calls “life abundant” and knowing in this truth of God: where what matters are the basic necessities of food, clothes, shelter, medical care, educational opportunities, loving relationships, meaningful work, an enriching imaginative and spiritual life, time with friends, and time spent with the natural world around us.

⊕ The experience of commitment to the creatures of our Earth community that takes us beyond our tendencies to self-righteousness and self-satisfaction, that has the character of a life-long, in fact, an eternal commitment, which we can recognize as sheer grace. . .

Following Jesus means following the way of wisdom. It involves seeing all things as loved by God and destined to be taken up and transformed in Christ. It is a call to ecological conversion that involves a new way of seeing, thinking, and acting. It is a way of loving knowledge, of the “loving eye.” It is to be led by the Spirit into ecological praxis, which is a way of seeing that leads to action that leads back to further reflection.

What is needed is a mysticism of ecological praxis. Politics and mysticism go together. Christians committed to ecological praxis need to be mystics, finding God not only in the experience of the boundless beauty of the natural world but also in the painful dark night of loss, failure, and defeat and in the enduring, life-long commitment to the Earth and its creatures. (p. 118, 122-23)

ARTWORK: Kathy Conzelman. Used with permission For more of Kathy’s photography click this link. Simply KMC Photos