by Carol Howard Merritt
Old Testament Reading: Isaiah 43:16-21
For Sunday, March 17, 2013: Year B—Lent 5
The reports seem more desperate each month, as we watch how the climate changes. We know that the earth warms, icecaps melt, and habitats evolve.
As we think about what might come, we realize that India and China are moving from agriculture to industry and their growing populations are becoming increasingly dependent on energy. We dig deeper for coal and drill farther for oil as our global consumption grows. We fight wars over oil, using violence and death to plunder the limited resources.
Our anxiety increases as we realize that poorer regions of the globe, developing countries that do not use as much crude, will become more desperate with the changes.
Need to Consume
Yet, even in the midst of impending devastation, we seem to be caught in our need to consume.
We cannot see our way out of our addiction to oil, gas, and coal. We try to innovate, relying upon different sources by using wind power instead of solar energy, but each attempt has its own drawbacks and limitations.
The situation feels desperate.
No Hope?
I think of our earth when I read this passage from Isaiah. The prophet’s beautiful imagery draws me in to contemplate the landscape and its richness. His poetry gives us a vision of harmony between the sand, creatures and people. Also, the words make us aware of a futile moment. They make us think of a time when we become so caught up in our wrongdoings that there is no hope.
We become distressed in our longing for forgiveness that our desiccated souls thirst for renewal and grace. These words place us in that geography where the sand stings our eyes, clogs our nostrils, and parches our lips. As our tongues stick to the roofs of our mouths, Isaiah reminds us to look for the streams.
Tension that Transforms
Coming to this passage as a preacher, I wonder, how do we keep our congregations in the tension between longing and hope - the kind of tension that stirs the pot of complacency and incites change?
We know that as long as corporate concerns entangle the environment, politicians twist facts, and religious leaders neglect the care of the earth, we can stay in denial about our arid situation until we wither. We could shrivel without understanding our need for the streams, because we don’t understand our need for mercy until we understand our wrongdoings.
If we don't know the harm and devastation that we cause, we living in a mirage. In this state, has our proclamation become too desiccated to challenge the dominant culture of consumption?
The Hardest Question
So the hardest question for me is, how do we keep people aware of the desert while still looking for the streams?
Carol Howard Merritt grew up along the beaches of Florida. After being raised as a conservative Baptist and attending a fundamentalist Bible college, she went to Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary and decided to become a minister. Carol has been a pastor for 13 years, serving growing Presbyterian Churches in the swamps of Cajun Louisiana, a bayside village in Rhode Island, and in an urban neighborhood in D.C. She is the award-winning author of Tribal Church (Alban 2007) and Reframing Hope (Alban 2010). She has contributed to numerous books, websites, magazines, and journals. Her blog, TribalChurch.org, is hosted by the Christian Century. She blogs regularly at Huffington Post and Dukes Divinity's Faith and Leadership site. Carol is a sought-after speaker. She hosts Unco (short for Unconference), open-space gatherings where participants dream about and plan for the future of the church. And she co-hosts God Complex Radio, a podcast with Derrick Weston. Carol lives in Chattanooga, TN with her daughter and husband, Brian Merritt, who is starting a new church. You can follow her on Twitter (@CarolHoward) or Facebook.
