Nothing is more important than stopping climate change
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Nothing is more important than stopping climate change

A pair of activists recently threw soup at a famous painting by Van Gogh. A week later, protesters threw mashed potatoes at a painting by Claude Monet. The reason for these actions? The protestors wanted to see if the protection of art is more vital than the protection of our climate. Whether you agree with…

Coal and the greatest commandment
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Coal and the greatest commandment

Larry was the last holdout. Years ago, the local coal company had purchased mineral rights from the inhabitants of Kayford mountain to blow it apart – to tap the coal seams and bleed the mountain of its precious payload. One by one, Larry’s neighbours had sold their rights and moved – driven away in some…

Muscular Ecological Hope
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Muscular Ecological Hope

We are living in high-stake times. Recent studies indicate that young people are especially aware of this. As many as 60 percent of youth and young adults are extremely worried about climate change and more than half report feeling anxious, angry, powerless and even guilty about the state of the environment. The scariest part is…

‘Bees for Peace’
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‘Bees for Peace’

All humanity has this in common: we rely on plants to provide us with nutrients. We also, by extension, rely on the creatures that help our plants flower. Bees play a vital role in pollinating our fruits and vegetables. In short, we all need bees. This simple fact is what fueled Carrie Dohe to start…

Net zero ethics
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Net zero ethics

Last month, world leaders convened in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, for COP27. COPs have been held annually since 1995 by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. This year’s was the fifth to be hosted in an African nation. Africa is increasingly the focus in climate related news, and not for the normal reasons. Last…

Cathedral Grove
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Cathedral Grove

“Mount Doug is a good short hike. If it’s a clear day you should be able to see the Olympic mountains in Washington,” Meghan texted me. “You’ll find lots of arbutus trees – a rare species only on Vancouver Island and parts of Vancouver. They have funky multicolour bark and look almost biblical.” I’m writing…

Mystical Realism and Hope for Creation
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Mystical Realism and Hope for Creation

Why is it so hard to get meaningful action on climate change, even after droughts and storms hit us over the head with its real impacts? Many environmentalists now recognize that scientific knowledge is not enough to motivate the required changes. Humans can know what is needed without being motivated to do it. Changing the…

Mail-order tree
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Mail-order tree

This morning, my doorbell rang, and a man handed me an apple tree. I’d ordered it from the local nursery and been surprised to learn that they could deliver it by mail. Now it is sitting in my kitchen, all wrapped in brown paper with red cotton stitching at the top like a bag of…

High hopes
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High hopes

A kid in a candy shop – there I stood in front of the rack of flower seeds. Any of them would look spectacular in my garden. Decisions, decisions. But really there was no contest – sunflowers were the obvious choice. Tall. Tenacious. Irresistibly cheerful. They would stand rustically elegant in front of the cedar…

Hey church, ‘go take a hike’
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Hey church, ‘go take a hike’

“Where do you feel closest to God?” I was asked this question during staff devotions at a Quadra Island summer camp back in July. My eyes found the ocean’s horizon and on the crest of a sun-tinted wave came my answer: right here. For me, creation often elicits an emotional response – a rush of…

How I spent my summer vacation
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How I spent my summer vacation

We were lucky to spend much of August on Vancouver Island with my parents-in-law, celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary. The celebration should have been last summer, but we’d had to postpone travel due to the risks of covid and changing regulations. This year, plans were easier to make, and my in-laws’ anniversary coincided with our…

Canadian Summer Psalm 23
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Canadian Summer Psalm 23

“Loving God, to whom / we flock, from whom / I wander…”