Care of Systems and Species
The Creator God through Wisdom and Power fashioned this vast ocean system and the universe of billions of stars and planets (Genesis 1-2). It came about through natural processes designed and initiated by the Creator, in God’s own time. The ocean system is so far beyond us – beyond precise measurement, inestimable, and unfathomable -- that as creatures, our only genuine response is one of humility, repentance, and thanksgiving before that great Mystery. A miniscule glimpse of this vastness and power is made manifest in the oceans – in their extreme depths and unseen enormity, containing 98% of the planet’s water and 300 times the habitats by volume as on land.
In Genesis of Judeo Christian Scripture, humans were then put in charge to tend and keep the garden in good shape, honoring God’s values that all of creation is good. This responsibility was never taken away. Through the rest of Genesis and other books in the Torah (first five books) and books of wisdom, these mandates for caring for the earth and giving it rest are emphasized. The covenant of creation made after the Great Flood include all species, including the fish of the sea. The Qur’an emphasizes the same responsibilities: "It is He who has appointed you viceroys in the earth … that He may try you in what He has given you." (Surah 6:165). Other religious cultures have integrated creation care principles throughout the cultural teachings, rituals, and daily observances.
We recognize and honor that every element of this planet is animated and maintained in existence with the spirit and energy of the Creator, which is why energy is in constant states of atomic movement, exchange and transformation, moving through food chains and cycles of life and death, changing states of being. In the oceans this transferring of energies is continually at work in exchange of moisture and energies from the atmosphere to the seawater and back; in the currents, winds, and cycles of evaporation and rain; in aquatic nurseries in tidepools and estuaries, animals of land and sea, and human and wild animal interactions with those of the sea; in the lives and deaths and scat of marine life being part of the food webs so complex that they extend to the birds of the air and to the humans and other animals who inhabit the land.
Many marine species, such as salmon, sea turtles and horseshoe crabs, lay eggs in freshwater streams, tide pools or on shore in which they offer some food for birds and other species with enough naturally remaining for for reproduction. We recognize that spiritual energies are also transferred in the beauty of landscapes and marine life; the affection between species, such as humans who love whales, dolphins, and sea turtles in general or particular marine animals they see often, and vice versa; human acts of restoration and care for the ocean species and systems, which feeds them with new energies that extends to other parts of their lives
As all living beings share the animation of spirit of life, we are all connected spiritually, which mirror our physical and ecological connections (Job 38-40).
This corresponds to the scientific understanding that all forms of life share salt water, minerals, cellular makeup, and different combinations of DNA. In fact, humans share over 90% of similar elements of the land (minerals) and water and genetic materials with other forms of life. We are made of mud, so to speak. Some beings, like us, breathe in O2 and exhale CO2. Trees, algae and phytoplankton take in C02, retain the carbon and release the oxygen. In this sense, we share God’s breath of life which on our planet includes both carbon and oxygen and extends throughout creation.
All things, even the smallest creatures, have intrinsic value by virtue of their very existence and origin from a single Creator—and God called them “good” and holds them in existence for God’s own uses or for those of the systems of nature God founded. This is clear through the Genesis story of creation which Jews, Christians and Muslims all respect and which declares that when God created each element, “God saw that it was good.” For this reason, all parts of creation, must be respected and honored as good and necessary and loved and cared for, even the “least” of our species. By honoring God’s spirit in all things, each species, and each individual of a species, people of faith do not worship matter but we worship the Author of all matter and all organisms who calls us to serve and protect (dress and keep) creation, caring for it all in a manner that (Gen 1, Gen 2:15, Isaiah 6:3, Acts 13).
Nature is an incalculably varied theophany -- or expressed glimpses of God’s awe inspiring power, majesty and natural art. From the nano particle through the bacteria and amoebas to sea slugs to whales to forests of sea kelp, all are filled with energy and spirit. For instance, there are 15,000 species of sea fungi. The principle of biodiversity is mirrored in the diversity of spiritual gifts and talents needed for harmony in the human community. In the vastness of creation, each species has unique and essential values, and is necessary for the integrity and health of the planet. No ocean species or individual is without value as each has a function in life’s design or a place in God’s choir of creation. Each culture, people, and religious tradition also has unique voices in the songs of creation.
The task of each species in cooperation with the whole is often referred to economically as “nature¹s services” when humans tally the cost of the benefits to their quality of life or economy. Each ocean ecosystems, habitats, and species performs tasks that provides some needed functions, such mangrove swamps absorbs metals, toxins, and sewage that filters water that flows into oceans; sea grass beds filtering water and offering some shore protection; sea otters keeping the sea urchin population from overpopulating to the point of harming coral beds. Sharks, tuna, swordfish, and sea turtles hold jellyfish populations in balance. Bioluminescent fish and tube worms offer light sources in the depths beyond sunlight. Tubeworms scavenge on whale bones and scat. Species on land and see contribute to the restoring of damaged habitats, the cleaning of water or air, or the recycling of natural waste into materials that promote natural productivity.
In this way, intact nature provides ecosystem functions and humans with food, materials and medicines – the forests absorb carbon and help combat ocean acidification, they also store moisture for rain and keep land from eroding into watersheds and eventually into oceans in addition to providing oxygen for breath, home for wildlife, besides wood products and just plain beauty (the many essential gifts of trees is why they are sacred in the Bible and in most cultures); coral reefs protect coastlines from storms and harbor marine life. Just as a hand and an ear are different but just as essential to the working of the human body, so are these different parts essential to the body of nature of God’s creation.
The land and the oceans provide sustenance for all living things. They will continue to do so only if we, as servants of God, nurture and care for the biological systems that sustain life, taking what we need, but not as much as we want or want to sell. History has proven that species that are hunted or fished commercially without limits below that of reproduction have gone extinct, such as well known passenger pigeon, but also North America’s only parrot, the Carolina Parakeet, Dodos, and Stellar Sea Cows. Besides many fish species, various monk seals, such as the Hawaiian Monk Seal and Mediterranean Monk Seal, Great White Shark, various sea turtle and whale speciess and so many other marine species are all swimming against the same fate. We have been given the great privilege of caring for the land and oceans and all the creatures as a great and humbling responsibility (Leviticus 26).
All life systems – ocean currents and weather, rivers and lakes, water cycles, food webs, ecosystems and economic systems and social systems – are connected and affect each other in God’s creation. Rain on land started out as sea water evaporated over the oceans and carried by the wind; the rain flows to the rivers which flow to the seas. As one part of nature is diminished, the absence and negative effects wave out through all of the other systems and species. As the fish of the sea are reduced in numbers, so are the sharks, a chain of consequences follows that affects all humanity and all creation. We must work in every sphere of life and livelihood to repair the earth and restore justice, temperance and respect in our human affairs and extend these virtuous qualities to all creation. This includes reforestation for the mountains, maintenance of wetlands, frugality with fossil fuels, restraint in our behavior, and the alleviation of poverty and hunger, among other necessary corrections.
Genesis 1-2, Job 42, Psalm 8, 19, 24, 33, 104, 136, 139, 147, 148,).
Job 38-40; Gen 1; . Psalm 8, 19, 24, 33, 104, 136, 139, 147, 148, Sirach 39, 42:15-25, 43; John 1:1-3, Luke 12:22-31)
Gen 2:15, Isaiah 6:3, Acts 13).
Gen 1::24; 2:7,9,19
Leviticus 26, 1Corinthians 12: 26)
Matthew 19:16-22; Luke 8:20-21,36-38
Gen 1;
Psalm 8, 19, 24, 33, 104, 136, 139, 147, 148, Sirach 39, 42:15-25, 43; John 1:1-3, 1 Corinthians 12: 4-26)
Sirach 39, 42:15-25, 43;
1 Corinthians 12:4-26
Revelations. 11:18,
In Genesis of Judeo Christian Scripture, humans were then put in charge to tend and keep the garden in good shape, honoring God’s values that all of creation is good. This responsibility was never taken away. Through the rest of Genesis and other books in the Torah (first five books) and books of wisdom, these mandates for caring for the earth and giving it rest are emphasized. The covenant of creation made after the Great Flood include all species, including the fish of the sea. The Qur’an emphasizes the same responsibilities: "It is He who has appointed you viceroys in the earth … that He may try you in what He has given you." (Surah 6:165). Other religious cultures have integrated creation care principles throughout the cultural teachings, rituals, and daily observances.
We recognize and honor that every element of this planet is animated and maintained in existence with the spirit and energy of the Creator, which is why energy is in constant states of atomic movement, exchange and transformation, moving through food chains and cycles of life and death, changing states of being. In the oceans this transferring of energies is continually at work in exchange of moisture and energies from the atmosphere to the seawater and back; in the currents, winds, and cycles of evaporation and rain; in aquatic nurseries in tidepools and estuaries, animals of land and sea, and human and wild animal interactions with those of the sea; in the lives and deaths and scat of marine life being part of the food webs so complex that they extend to the birds of the air and to the humans and other animals who inhabit the land.
Many marine species, such as salmon, sea turtles and horseshoe crabs, lay eggs in freshwater streams, tide pools or on shore in which they offer some food for birds and other species with enough naturally remaining for for reproduction. We recognize that spiritual energies are also transferred in the beauty of landscapes and marine life; the affection between species, such as humans who love whales, dolphins, and sea turtles in general or particular marine animals they see often, and vice versa; human acts of restoration and care for the ocean species and systems, which feeds them with new energies that extends to other parts of their lives
As all living beings share the animation of spirit of life, we are all connected spiritually, which mirror our physical and ecological connections (Job 38-40).
This corresponds to the scientific understanding that all forms of life share salt water, minerals, cellular makeup, and different combinations of DNA. In fact, humans share over 90% of similar elements of the land (minerals) and water and genetic materials with other forms of life. We are made of mud, so to speak. Some beings, like us, breathe in O2 and exhale CO2. Trees, algae and phytoplankton take in C02, retain the carbon and release the oxygen. In this sense, we share God’s breath of life which on our planet includes both carbon and oxygen and extends throughout creation.
All things, even the smallest creatures, have intrinsic value by virtue of their very existence and origin from a single Creator—and God called them “good” and holds them in existence for God’s own uses or for those of the systems of nature God founded. This is clear through the Genesis story of creation which Jews, Christians and Muslims all respect and which declares that when God created each element, “God saw that it was good.” For this reason, all parts of creation, must be respected and honored as good and necessary and loved and cared for, even the “least” of our species. By honoring God’s spirit in all things, each species, and each individual of a species, people of faith do not worship matter but we worship the Author of all matter and all organisms who calls us to serve and protect (dress and keep) creation, caring for it all in a manner that (Gen 1, Gen 2:15, Isaiah 6:3, Acts 13).
Nature is an incalculably varied theophany -- or expressed glimpses of God’s awe inspiring power, majesty and natural art. From the nano particle through the bacteria and amoebas to sea slugs to whales to forests of sea kelp, all are filled with energy and spirit. For instance, there are 15,000 species of sea fungi. The principle of biodiversity is mirrored in the diversity of spiritual gifts and talents needed for harmony in the human community. In the vastness of creation, each species has unique and essential values, and is necessary for the integrity and health of the planet. No ocean species or individual is without value as each has a function in life’s design or a place in God’s choir of creation. Each culture, people, and religious tradition also has unique voices in the songs of creation.
The task of each species in cooperation with the whole is often referred to economically as “nature¹s services” when humans tally the cost of the benefits to their quality of life or economy. Each ocean ecosystems, habitats, and species performs tasks that provides some needed functions, such mangrove swamps absorbs metals, toxins, and sewage that filters water that flows into oceans; sea grass beds filtering water and offering some shore protection; sea otters keeping the sea urchin population from overpopulating to the point of harming coral beds. Sharks, tuna, swordfish, and sea turtles hold jellyfish populations in balance. Bioluminescent fish and tube worms offer light sources in the depths beyond sunlight. Tubeworms scavenge on whale bones and scat. Species on land and see contribute to the restoring of damaged habitats, the cleaning of water or air, or the recycling of natural waste into materials that promote natural productivity.
In this way, intact nature provides ecosystem functions and humans with food, materials and medicines – the forests absorb carbon and help combat ocean acidification, they also store moisture for rain and keep land from eroding into watersheds and eventually into oceans in addition to providing oxygen for breath, home for wildlife, besides wood products and just plain beauty (the many essential gifts of trees is why they are sacred in the Bible and in most cultures); coral reefs protect coastlines from storms and harbor marine life. Just as a hand and an ear are different but just as essential to the working of the human body, so are these different parts essential to the body of nature of God’s creation.
The land and the oceans provide sustenance for all living things. They will continue to do so only if we, as servants of God, nurture and care for the biological systems that sustain life, taking what we need, but not as much as we want or want to sell. History has proven that species that are hunted or fished commercially without limits below that of reproduction have gone extinct, such as well known passenger pigeon, but also North America’s only parrot, the Carolina Parakeet, Dodos, and Stellar Sea Cows. Besides many fish species, various monk seals, such as the Hawaiian Monk Seal and Mediterranean Monk Seal, Great White Shark, various sea turtle and whale speciess and so many other marine species are all swimming against the same fate. We have been given the great privilege of caring for the land and oceans and all the creatures as a great and humbling responsibility (Leviticus 26).
All life systems – ocean currents and weather, rivers and lakes, water cycles, food webs, ecosystems and economic systems and social systems – are connected and affect each other in God’s creation. Rain on land started out as sea water evaporated over the oceans and carried by the wind; the rain flows to the rivers which flow to the seas. As one part of nature is diminished, the absence and negative effects wave out through all of the other systems and species. As the fish of the sea are reduced in numbers, so are the sharks, a chain of consequences follows that affects all humanity and all creation. We must work in every sphere of life and livelihood to repair the earth and restore justice, temperance and respect in our human affairs and extend these virtuous qualities to all creation. This includes reforestation for the mountains, maintenance of wetlands, frugality with fossil fuels, restraint in our behavior, and the alleviation of poverty and hunger, among other necessary corrections.
Genesis 1-2, Job 42, Psalm 8, 19, 24, 33, 104, 136, 139, 147, 148,).
Job 38-40; Gen 1; . Psalm 8, 19, 24, 33, 104, 136, 139, 147, 148, Sirach 39, 42:15-25, 43; John 1:1-3, Luke 12:22-31)
Gen 2:15, Isaiah 6:3, Acts 13).
Gen 1::24; 2:7,9,19
Leviticus 26, 1Corinthians 12: 26)
Matthew 19:16-22; Luke 8:20-21,36-38
Gen 1;
Psalm 8, 19, 24, 33, 104, 136, 139, 147, 148, Sirach 39, 42:15-25, 43; John 1:1-3, 1 Corinthians 12: 4-26)
Sirach 39, 42:15-25, 43;
1 Corinthians 12:4-26
Revelations. 11:18,
