St. Francis Of Assisi Painted By Craig Johnson
What thoughts come to mind when you look at this painting of St. Francis of Assisi by my friend Craig Johnson? Perhaps you recognize the setting — Earth Sanctuary with a bit of artistic license and more non-human individuals than you would likely see at one time. It is a composite image of the species Craig enjoyed in his Bush Point back yard and on his frequent visits to the nearby wetlands. Indeed, many of the birds recognized him and came to his hand for seeds or a peanut. You might comment that this is a great environment with a lot of cool critters.
People often describe me as an “environmentalist.” But as a Christian, I choose to speak of God’s incredible Creation that is filled with amazing creatures. The word environment in our language refers to that which surrounds us as humans but does not acknowledge a Creator and generally does not include humans. But in God’s view, both we and the environment comprise Creation. The noun Creation includes all which god has made. I am not sure what a critter is. I have a living relationship with the Creator and share God’s Creation with its myriad of creatures. Words make a difference as we take time to love and honor our Creator and God’s amazing creatures.
Our western culture is highly anthropocentric (human centered). Both its language and thinking is dominated by the capitalistic economic system. Again, words make a difference when we consider our relationships within Creation. We have been educated to think of the environment as a resource to meet our needs. If we are part of Creation, perspectives change. Relationships change. Our national laws regulating the use of our grasslands, forests, and game animals are based on the concept of maximum sustained yield while at the same time, the Endangered Species Act is designed to maintain minimum viable populations. Both the maximum sustained yields and minimum viable populations are moving targets — nearly impossible to accurately estimate – and they change through time depending on weather, climate, and other factors. From a Biblical perspective, a minimum viable population is far less than God’s blessing of fruitfulness on God’s Creation (Genesis chapter 1).
Perhaps it is time to return to the thinking of St. Francis of Assisi and God’s words in Scripture. St. Francis spoke of both the living and non-living members of Creation as brothers and sisters. In the book of Job Chapter 39, God speaks of God’s creatures with awe and wonder. They are not “its” but rather referred to as “he” and “she”. When Christ describes the second greatest commandment as “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:39), is it stretching Scripture too much to suggest that our “neighbors” also include the members of God’s non-human Creation? Would that make a difference in how you value and care for all of Creation?
Thanks for listening.
— Joe Sheldon
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