Earth Day

(Ezekiel 47:1-12 and Revelation 22:1-5)

Then he brought me back to the entrance of the temple; there, water was flowing from below the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east); and the water was flowing down from below the south end of the threshold of the temple, south of the altar.  Then he brought me out by way of the north gate, and led me around on the outside to the outer gate that faces toward the east; and the water was coming out on the south side.

Going on eastward with a cord in his hand, the man measured one thousand cubits, and then led me through the water; and it was ankle-deep.  Again, he measured one thousand, and led me through the water, and it was knee deep.  Again he measured one thousand, and led me through the water; and it was up to the waist.  Again he measured one thousand, and it was a river that I could not cross, for the water had risen; it was deep enough to swim in, a river that could not be crossed.  He said to me, “Mortal, have you seen this?” 

Then he led me back along the bank of the river.  As I came back, I saw on the bank of the river a great many trees on the one side and on the other.  He said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah; and when it enters the sea, the sea of stagnant waters, the water will become fresh.  Wherever the river goes, every living creature that swarms will live, and there will be very many fish, once these waters reach there.  It will become fresh; and everything will live where the river goes.  People will stand fishing beside the sea from Engedi to Eneglaim; it will be a place for the spreading of nets; its fish will be of a great many kinds, like the fish of the Great Sea.  But its swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they are to be left for salt.  On the banks, on both sides of the river, there will grow all kinds of trees for food.  Their leaves will not wither nor their fruit fail, but they will bear fresh fruit every month, because the water for them flows from the sanctuary.  Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for healing.”                    Ezekiel 47:1-12

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city.  On either side of the river is the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, producing its fruit each month; and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.  Nothing accursed will be found there any more.  But the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him; they will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.  And there will be no more night; they need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.                            Revelation 22:1-5

              You may have noticed in the readings a theme of restoration, the hope that, even in the midst of really hard times, in the midst of the desert, that there is always hope for life, hope for a return to the ideal Garden of Eden.

              The passage from the Book of Revelation relies heavily on Ezekiel’s imagery.  It reefers to the river of the water of life, the trees that produce beautifully throughout the year, and the leaves of which are to be used for healing. 

              Ezekiel gives us quite a picture of the trickle of water that begins around the temple, that eventually turns into a river that is so deep it cannot be traversed.  On the shores of that river grow trees, lush and productive.  Even though there are swamps that flow into the Dead Sea, we know that the salt there is also critical for the survival of the people.

              I’ve chosen to use these passages today as we celebrate the 56^th anniversary of Earth Day because they show us that the survival of human beings is inextricably intertwined with the welfare of our planet.  It also shows us that we can trust God as we turn to the divine in order to be saved—both us and our planet.

              Trees are mentioned in our scriptures over and over.  They are woven throughout as God interacts with us mortals.  Trees stand as witnesses to all that goes on.  They are, often, longer lived than people, God’s gift to both humans and the planet. 

              We know that trees help to cool our cities, filter the air, support psychological well-being; they create diverse habitats for various and sundry species, all the while pulling carbon dioxide from the air. 

An excess of carbon dioxide is the stuff that pollutes our air, trapping heat, causing climate change, not to mention asthma and other breathing diseases.  Of course we need carbon dioxide, but not in the amounts that we are dealing with.  This has been caused by factories that for over 100 years have not, until recently, been given limits.  It’s caused by our insatiable desire to be cooled by air conditioning.  Also, it has been caused by fossil fuel burning cars and trucks, airplanes and trains.  (You may have read that the Cuyahoga Valley Trains will be switching two of their diesel engines to battery.  The amount of pollution these diesel engines have been producing is shocking, so this is such a good thing).

Trees and plants help us to deal with some of the carbon dioxide, but can never keep up with what has been going on. 

Today’s theme “Canopy of Creation” is a chance for us to become aware of the importance of trees for all the reasons I have mentioned.  What you may not be aware of is that trees, or rather the lack of, are a justice issue.

When we drive through the poorer parts of our cities and rural areas and are paying attention, we will see that there is little tree canopy in those areas.  There has been no effort made to replace trees that were cut down willy nilly when our city’s concrete jungles were created and have grown exponentially.  So, in these areas there are higher temperatures, poorer air quality and greater vulnerability to flooding.  There are health issues because people are affected by the air quality and the extreme heat with no relief.

We, on the other hand, can run our air conditioners as much as we want and probably have lots of trees around us to relieve us from some of the extreme weather.

The value of trees to our mental well-being cannot be over emphasized.  Living in the heart of the Cuyahoga Valley National Park, we can easily find big, old trees to hug when we need some solace in a world that has gone mad with power grabbing, anger creating, immorality running amok.  We all need a quiet place to go to sit among the trees, to feel their roots beneath us, to understand that there is something greater than our little lives right now.

 And so, we celebrate God’s creation today, the trees in the Garden of Eden, the tree of life but also the tree of good and evil, the trees that are planted by the water, the trees that grow up by themselves, the trees that seed themselves, the trees that will eventually begin to grow as the golf course down the road is restored to its natural beauty by the National Park, the trees all around us that represent life and beauty and health and healing, the trees that bear witness to all that has gone on, the trees that have suffered our foolishness.

Thank God for the trees!  Well, our church has a history with trees.  Many of you have heard this before, but it bears repeating.  Our ancestors in the faith, Jewell and Ralph Reinhart, moved to Peninsula in the 1930’s and were members of this church.  They were conservationists before it was popular.  They began to celebrate Arbor Day by giving away saplings to the children at the Boston School there on Bronson Ave.  The many dogwood and redbud trees that you see around town grew from those saplings.  Ralph and Jewell also created an arboretum up at the school and also at the school where Jewell taught in Hudson.  Last year we celebrated the Reinharts’ contribution to the environment, and a book about them was published by their daughter, Julie.  Incidentally this year Arbor Day is on this Friday, April 24^th. 

Folks, the need is never over.  The need is before us, now more than ever, especially as we realize that in lower income areas there is at least 26% less tree cover, and people are exposed to temperatures that are at least 6 degrees higher.

I know that we are involved in lots of outreach in our church right now; outreach regarding important justice issues, and this may feel like just one more thing.  But I also know there are those of you who have been waiting for just this moment to commit to something that is near and dear to your heart. 

We know that we can perform the simple act of digging a hole and placing within it a small sapling that will grow to become a life-giving essence for a neighborhood.  It can be a physical reminder of what it is to sow the Kingdom of Heaven in a place.  Because as it says in today’s Revelation passage, “The leaves of the trees are for the healing of the nations.”

If you’re wondering what you can do beyond planting a tree in your yard, you can engage David Shankland in conversation or go to creationjustice.org/canopyofcreation

And go find a tree to hug.  It will be good for your soul and a way for you to connect with the Divine.  Amen.                     

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