On Environmental Stewardship
An Opening Parable
Once upon a time there was a man who sought escape from the prattle of his neighbors and went to live alone in a hut he had found in the forest. At first he was content, but a bitter winter led him to cut down the trees around his hut for firewood. The next summer he was hot and uncomfortable because his hut had no shade, and he complained bitterly of the harshness of the elements.
He made a little garden and kept some chickens, but rabbits were attracted by the food in the garden and ate much of it. The man went into the forest and trapped a fox, which he tamed and taught to catch rabbits. But the fox ate up the man's chickens as well. The man shot the fox and cursed the perfidy of the creatures of the wild.
The man always threw his refuse on the floor of his hut and soon it swarmed with vermin. He then built an ingenious system of hooks and pulleys so that everything in the hut could be suspended from the ceiling. But the strain was too much for the flimsy hut and it soon collapsed. The man grumbled about the inferior construction of the hut and built himself a new one.
One day he boasted to a relative in his old village about the peaceful beauty and plentiful game surrounding his forest home. The relative was impressed and reported back to his neighbors, who began to use the area for picnics and hunting excursions. The man was upset by this and cursed the intrusiveness of human beings. He began posting signs, setting traps, and shooting at those who came near his dwelling. In revenge, groups of boys would come at night from time to time, to frighten him and steal things. The man took to sleeping every night in a chair by the window with a loaded shotgun across his knees. One night he turned in his sleep and shot off his foot. The villagers were saddened by his misfortune and thereafter stayed away from his part of the forest. The man became lonely and cursed the unfriendliness of his former neighbors. And all these troubles the man saw as coming from outside himself, for which reason, and because of his technical skill, the villagers called him the American.1
It is worth while to make explicit some of the behaviors that characterize this fictional gentleman. He is imagining that there is a place he can escape to that will be free of the need of others. He does not seem to be able to imagine the consequences of his actions. He does not have much experience in dealing with the creatures of the wild. Rather than finding some alternative to inviting vermin by throwing his garbage on the floor, he seeks a technical solution. When push comes to shove, he pulls out his shotgun.
This Conference
This conference is a follow-up to the conferences on "The Community of Goods" and "Simplicity and the Reign of God." How to live in a world of unprecedented consumption, unbelievable poverty, waste, and hunger with simultaneous environmental degradation is a knotty set of seemingly intractable dilemmas as many of you have commented to me. Because of our history and our involvement as an institution in the economic system, it is not easy to step back and move in a different direction. I do not have answers to this set of problems and because of the complexity of these challenges, my analysis will be incomplete. But I also know that many of you are troubled and concerned about this situation, that you are reading and reflecting and trying in your own lives to make a difference. I think that we as a community want to make a difference in this crucial area of the planet's future.
One of major problems we face is that consumers are encouraged to do things they know are harmful to the environment. The government subsidizes fossil fuels 10-15 times more than renewable sources of energy such as wind power and solar energy. As a result, the market cannot adjust to the future. Were all these subsidies to be phased out and a marketplace established with a level playing field, the energy alternatives would soon become competitive. There are hosts of subsidies that promote the car culture, over-intensive agriculture, wasteful use of water, overlogging of forests, and overharvesting of marine fisheries. Worldwide, these subsidies total almost $1.5 trillion dollars. These subsidies induce massive distortions in our economies and do massive damage to the environment. Although it is always hard to change consumption patterns, it is possible over time to do so.2 For example, over the past thirty years, forty million Americans have permanently quit smoking.
Indications of our current situation
I do not want to make an exhaustive case that as a planet we are in serious trouble, but I will simply tick off some fundamental indicators. If today is an average day on the planet we will: lose 116 square miles of tropical rain forest, erode 71 million tons of top soil, add about 15 million tons of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, add 2,700 tons of chlorofluorocarbons to the atmosphere, increase the deserts of the earth by perhaps 72 square miles. At the end of the year the numbers are staggering. The area of tropical rain forests lost will be roughly the size of the state of North Dakota. Human-caused deserts will increase by the size of the state of West Virginia. World population will increase by 90 million. The point is that the vital signs of the planet are not good. The big numbers of our time are running against us.3
The Christian tradition
Our tradition at its best speaks of all created life as gift. There is a sense of wonder at the created world from the first pages of Scripture. Psalm 104 celebrates the interdependence of all of nature.
You feed springs
that feed brooks
Rushing down ravines
Water for wild beasts
For wild asses to drink
Birds nest nearby
And sing among the leaves.
You make grass grow for cattle
Make plants grow for people
Food to eat from the earth
And wine to warm the heart
Oil to glisten on faces
And bread for bodily strength.
One of the striking moments of the journey to the moon in the 1960s was a new vision of ourselves and the planet we live on. Even non-believers, looking back on the planet earth from a space-craft, were suddenly aware of how special it was, of its aching vulnerability, its unity. Suddenly our language changed. We began speaking of spaceship earth, as if to emphasize the interdependence, the finiteness of the earth's systems. The sense of wonder is rooted in the trust that the world is, on balance, a friendly place full of interesting life beyond the boundaries of human existence."4
Our tradition, from the first pages of scripture, affirms the goodness of creation. In our own time we express this in terms of the complementarity of created life; the diversity of created life; the regenerative/dynamic character of biological systems.
Our Christian tradition is characterized by a call to simplicity and moderation. We are called to live in community with a spirit of discipline and sacrifice (Matt 5.25). Over and over again, we are counseled about the fragility of life, the sense that we are pilgrims on the earth, that like the flower of the field we bloom and then in the noonday sun we fade away, only to be put into the fire at night.
Jesus shows a wonderful attitude toward created things by using water, bread, fish, wine, light, creatures such as birds of the air, foxes, seed and mud. The parables show that Jesus assumed the worth of the created universe, the dependability of nature, the recurrence of the seasons, the normal pattern of sowing and harvesting, of planting a vineyard and caring for it, of seeing the clouds and counting on the rain. The natural world is the stage where the reign of God is enacted, the place where faith in God with all of its dimensions is lived out. The reign of God is not so other-worldly that we can treat the earth badly or with contempt. Acts 3:42 reflects on the early communities devoting themselves to a community of goods and prayer.
We are convinced of the aesthetic value of creation. We are convinced of the peace/serenity, the restorative/regenerative character of creation. Some human beings seem to have a deep resonance frequency within themselves that puts their being to rest when they are next to water. It seems to be a remembrance of being in the womb.
We need to teach our young to love nature. It seems to be a fitting time to pledge ourselves as communities not to do violence against creation. In another way we are deeply connected to nature and the movement of the seasons. Our liturgical life is richly interwoven into the natural cycles of the year, the ebb and flow of light, the definition of color and its patterns, the plants which grace our spaces as prayer and life move on each day. The liturgy roots us, grounds us in the earth and its cycles of birth, growth, maturation, death, and regeneration. Liturgy triggers our awareness of the natural cycles that operate in our search for and response to God.
Some considerations for the future
Conservation
Conservation tends to be the cheapest way to be good stewards of resources used. We have already done an enormous amount of work in this area by systematically replacing all of the windows in our buildings. In addition, we have adopted energy systems that reduce the airflow in spaces that do not need full ventilation when not occupied. We have installed motion detectors to switch on lights for the sake of safety and sanity, and then to switch them off again.
Vincent James and Associates have done an excellent job of proposing a design for the guesthouse that takes into account the ferocity of prevailing northwest winds in the winter time and aligns the building for maximum solar warming from the south. In addition, he has reviewed the document on Green Buildings prepared by the Environmental Studies group on campus. Going forward, it will be important for any proposed new structure to be built with these guidelines in mind.
In addition, our commitment to have a community of goods is a powerful witness to simplicity. We don't have 160 refrigerators, cars, toasters, ovens, television sets, VCRs, etc. because of our commitment to hold things in common. But the community of goods can never be taken for granted because of the powerful forces in our economy that are working relentlessly to turn every one of us into a good consumer. Only reflection and personal resistance can prevail over the invitation to own or consume more.
New energy management systems
However, there are still things we can do in this area. Some of our buildings are consistently overheated. We have not taken steps to lower the temperature of unoccupied spaces at the end of the day in the wintertime or allow the temperature to go up in the summer time. This does mean that office spaces in the quadrangle would not be as usable in off-hours or over the weekend. But it would result in significant energy conservation.
Impact of proposed changes in the powerhouse
I am thrilled by the proposed improvements to our powerhouse. These changes, if we can adopt them and figure out a way to pay for them, will significantly reduce the amount of sulfur oxides or nitrous oxides expelled into the air, reduce the amount of particulate and fly ash and the amount of elemental mercury released. In addition, the boilers will be more efficient than at present. However, we will still be burning fossil fuel and generating carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas that certainly contributes to global warming.
If we are able to move through a plan to utilize wind technology for generating electricity at a reasonable cost, we will be directly reducing the amount of carbon dioxide produced in the generation of our electricity.
If we were to install some solar panels for the production of electricity on some of our buildings, they would be an excellent addition to other energy systems that are in place. If we were to adopt these changes with an eye towards effective teaching and research on the part of faculty and students at Prep and in the University, not only would we be making a commitment to good stewardship, but we would be teaching the next generation of students how to think well about good stewardship.
Some questions we always have to ask ourselves are:
• How will the graduates of our Benedictine institutions relate to the environment?
• Will they still do old-fashioned economics that cannot assign any value to natural resources?
• Will they never connect the laws of thermodynamics to economic theory?
This fall Dr. Wangari Maathai was awarded the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize for her contributions to sustainable development, democracy and peace. She graduated from Mount Saint Scholastica College in 1964 with a degree in biology. She went on to be Africa's first female Ph.D. and founded the Green Belt Movement in 1977. She is currently serving as Assistant Minister of Environment, Natural Resources and Wildlife in Kenya. She is the first African woman to be awarded the Nobel Prize. She was awarded the prize for organizing and inspiring a massive reforestation project in Kenya.
She writes, "Being a student at Mount St. Scholastica certainly influenced my life. I was surrounded by women who treated me as if I were their daughter. They did everything to help me, educate me and enrich my life. I had already benefited from a full scholarship, yet I continued to receive so much more. I think this is partly where I got my deep sense of service and my detachment from things material. On a daily basis, I saw women working hard for higher goals and inner peace. This must have impacted my own conscience and values as I matured."5
The question of recycling
A question that we need to ask ourselves frequently is:
• How do we as institutions deal with materials, waste, recycling, and purchasing?
• What priority do we give to these recycled materials?
The problem has consistently been the market for what is recycled.
The production of food
The ancient Benedictine ideal is to be totally self-sufficient. That ideal went the way of all flesh in the 1950s when Saint John's grew way beyond the capacity of the dairy herd, the capacity for milk production, and the list goes on. Today we recognize more clearly what the monastery lost in the deal. We lost control over some of the fundamental variables in our diet. Because of the structure of the food market, I don't imagine that we could ever grow the majority of our food. However, could we think of it the way we think of wind power in relationship to the powerhouse? That is, could we grow those things that truly make sense to grow? Could we buy food that is grown and produced locally? Not everything, but supplementally.
Ecological and social justice
We need to combine justice questions with ecological questions. In the past we have spoken of our awareness of needs of the poor. Is there a way for us to connect our stewardship of resources, our commitment to simplicity, to a plan of action on behalf of the poor? Can we build a stronger sense of our community identity with a clearer sense of environmental stewardship and a concomitant commitment to assisting the poor? For example, Brother Paul Richards has suggested that as a community we go through our personal and communal holdings, sort through them for what we really need and hold a huge rummage sale. The proceeds could go directly into funding requests that come to the Peace and Justice Committee.
Some of the things that I have spoken about in this conference are distinctively communal. But our communal commitment to good stewardship is only as strong as our commitment as individuals. For example, remaining faithful to the spiritual search for a rich and full relationship with Christ is a sure path to needing less, to a greater respect for others and for the environment. When our hearts are satisfied, we stop needing to possess so many things and we are more willing and able to be patient, to make sacrifices, to let go of stuff.
Conclusion
I think that the time has come for us as a monastery to renew our commitment to making a difference in creating a sustainable culture. We have already done much wonderful work through the work of Father Paul Schwietz, and now Mr. Tom Kroll, who created, with the help of Brother Dietrich Reinhart the Saint John's Arboretum; Father Bruce Wollmering, who has created a whole network of safe dwellings for birds, Brother Benedict Leuthner who created the first systematic effort to recycle; Brother Urban Pieper who has often labored alone and without a lot of fanfare to provide food for our table. And there are many others whom I am not naming here who have made a difference.
However, the need has never been greater for a clear stance on environmental issues of good stewardship. And I think that many things are converging in a way that will allow us to rethink and reshape our future.
At this point I wish to open this for discussion and comments. And I leave you with a question: What things do you see that we do or not do, or that we could change that would make us better environmental stewards?
Abbot John Klassen, OSB
November 16, 2004
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