A
couple of years back I was asked if I would be interested in presenting a paper
on 'Women & Spirituality'. I was
told I could even suggest a topic in keeping with the rest of the program, that
was a journey of spiritual perspectives.
I put forward 'Environment & Spirituality', which was conspicuous by
its absence, and it was eventually gladly accepted as 'Women &
Spirituality' had actually proven so popular that it was over-subscribed. Months later, when the final program was
compiled, my paper was not included; as it turned out to be not really in-line
with the overall theme. I decided to use
the work I had done to write an entry that could be published in one of my
blogs.
The
first issue that arose when developing the paper was obviously the connection
between the environment and spirituality; which in my opinion, is a strong
one. I thought, from a religious
perspective the strongest inter-connection is present in the account of
Creation.
The
most inspiring thing about Genesis and the account of Creation, from the
standpoint of the XXI century, is how scientific developments have validated
it. Convictions that were based on
belief and faith for thousands of years, have been transformed into certainty
as humanity has increased its acumen of knowledge. And many aspects of the miracle of
Creation no longer require an act of faith, but are of our intellect and
certainty, and can be corroborated, measured and validated by science.
Does
this journey from uncertainty to knowledge invalidates faith? No, it certainly should not. Does it places religion in question? Quite the contrary, it should strenghten
it.
My
research lead me to the realization that virtually all cultures have creation
myths, and that they have been used to fulfill the need to know where the world
we live in originated. "While it is
true that each creation myth reveals the priorities and concerns of a given
culture, it is also true that when creation myths are compared certain
universal or archetypal patterns are discovered in them. Behind the many individual creation myths is
a shadow myths that is the world culture's collective dream ..."
I
came across the following definition of the word MYTH: 'a myth is a narrative
projection of a given cultural group's sense of its sacred past and its
significant relationship with the deeper powers of the surrounding word and
universe. A myth is a projection of an
aspect of a culture's soul ...'
South
Africa is an example of a rainbow of nations, with different histories and
backgrounds and the spiritual perspectives with regard to the environment
vary. Some of these traditions are more
appropriate than others in terms of the realities of the present times. That is a reflection of how different
cultures have evolved in as much as interactions with their particular
eco-systems are concerned.
"African
history is centered on the environment - co-existing in harmony with the
surroundings an important part of the ethos of the people in the
continent. Their history determines
their cultural traditions, and the traditions define the belief-system, which
in turn determines their religious perspectives" Desmond Tutu. He
went on to further state that "therefore, a spiritual perspective
on environmental issues would be part of Africa's every day living in its
different traditions".
What
is faith? According to "The Watchtower"
(January 1, 2012) the word 'FAITH' as used in the Bible refers to firm believe
in something unseen. As opposed to
knowledge that is believe based on facts or solid evidence.
Galileo
Galilee (1564-1642) went public with his support for the heliocentric view of
the solar system in 1610. This view
centred on the conviction that the planets in the solar system orbit the Sun,
and not the Earth - which was the popular view at the time. This landed him in trouble with the
Inquisition. In 1616 his findings were
declared 'false and contrary to the Scriptures' and in 1632 he was tried and
found guilty of heressy. He was given
the choice of re-canting or death by poisoning; and choose the former.
A
contemporary of his, Giordano Bruno, found himself in a similar predicament on
account of his philosophical doctrine.
When presented with the options of re-canting or death by posoning, he
rather embrased death than denying his life-work.
This
piece of history illustrates the difference between a philosophical truth
(dependant on the conviction of the one formulating it) and a scientific truth,
which is subject to independent corroboration.
Records have it, that as Galileo Galilee was leaving the courthouse
after his sentence, he was approached by one of his disciples who enquiried as
to the consequences of his decision in terms of the weight of his
teachings... And Galilee's answer, a
short sentence: "It is still turning" - pointing to the fact that his
upholding the heliocentric view or not would have no effect on the celestial
phenomenon.
But
Giordano Bruno's situation was sadly quite another. His conviction was central to the validity of
his work. This is also the case in
matters of faith. In fact, faith is
stronger than mere conviction - spiritual rather than intellectual.
I
took the following paragraphs from "The Living Bible":
1 - "When God began creating the
heavens and the earth, the earth was at first a shapeless chaotic mass, with
the Spirit of God brooding over the dark vapors. Then God said "Let there be light!"
and light appeared. "And God was
pleased with it and divided the light from the darkness - so he let it shine
for a while, and then there was darkness again.
He called the light 'daytime' and the darkness 'nightime'. Together they formed the first
day."
Scientific
evidence indicate the Sun is our father, in as much as it was the Sun that gave
birth to the Solar System. The
scientific community has been able to establish the fact that while our Sun's
age correlates that of the Universe, the age of the planets of our Solar System
is younger. The first paragraph of the
account of Creation describes the events of that initial act. The implication is that of the planet Earth
finally evolving into a stable shape, rotating on its axis, and suggests to me
the question: How many hours on that first day?
"And
God said "Let the vapours separate to form the sky above and the oceans
below." (7-8). So God made the sky, dividing the vapor above
from the water below. This all happened
on the second day."
9-10
"Then God said, "Let the water beneath the sky be gathered into
oceans so that the dry land will emerge".
And so it was. Then God named the
dry land 'earth' and the water 'seas'.
And God was pleased".
11-12
"And he said, "Let the earth burst forth with every sort of grass and
seed bearing plants, and fruit trees with seeds inside the fruit, so that these
seeds will produce the kind of plants and fruits they came from". And so it was, and God was pleased. This all occurred on the third
day."
And
it could not have happened without light.
We all realize the cycle of life enabling photo-synthesis could not have
started until light was shinning through the thick layer of gases; and affected
the composition of the amosphere.
14-15
Then God said, "Let there be bright lights in the sky, to give light to
the earth, and to identify the day and the night, they shall bring about the
seasons on the earth, and mark the days and years. And so it was."
The
Earth's 365 day-cycle around the Sun defining the seasons of the year; would
have come about when the 'chaotic mass' that had been the earth at inception,
had settled into the stable eliptic path around the Sun - closer to the one
that we have today. The oceans playing a
pivotal role.
15
"For God made two huge lights, the sun and the moon, to shine down upon the
earth - the larger one, the sun to preside over the day, and the smaller one,
the moon to preside through the night.
He also made the stars."
17
"And God set them in the sky, to light the earth and to preside over the
day and night and to divide the light from darkness. And God was pleased. This all happened on the fourth
day."
The
plant life and photo-synthesis would have re-defined the chemical composition
of the atmosphere. The thick layer of
gasses giving way to the blue sky, enabling the sighting of the Sun, the moon
and the stars.
Technological
developments have made the fear of being branded an heretic for questioning
natural phenomena impossible. It has
affected the communities of the planet, and the way in which they engage in the
pursue of knowledge. Returning to the
earlier example of philosophical and scientific truths, the account of Creation
can today be approached with the strengh of both scientific and spiritual
foundations: they correlate. Yet as we
read through the paragraphs above, I hope the awe and wonder of its miracle is
what finally prevails.
But
the fact that scientific knowledge has made an act of faith no longer required
in relation to the Genesis account of Creation, does not imply faith is
obsolete. Faith is of the essence as we
face the uncertainties of the future.
Written by Nora Rasenti - October 2014
"The Living Bible", British edition, Coverdale House
Publishers, paperback edition, 1975.
"A Dictionary of Creation Myths", by David Adams Leeming and
Margaret Adams Leeming, 1994.
"The World's Religions - Understanding the living faiths";
consulting editor - Peter B. Clark, 1993.
