Peak Oil - Imposed by Nature

This is something that will effect us all, and sooner than we think. This film, produced by Amund Prestegard and recommended by Dr. Colin Campbell, 'Peak Oil - Imposed by Nature' is an excellent 4 minute introduction to the causes and consequences of the terminal decline of global oil production as we reach the global Peak, which is now. This is a preview of that documentary. In the documentary retired world experienced geologist Dr. Colin Campbell, founder of ASPO, the Association for the Study of Peak Oil, explains the aspects of oil discovery, the production increase and the subsequent decline on a local as well as on a world scale. Peak oil is a fact that the majority wish to ignore, it will not go away and there are no quick fixes but the sooner we grasp that fact and act on it then the better are our chances and the better are the chances for the poor, the exploited and the hungry.

The "servant" of the ground...

... despite the popular translation in Genesis C2v15 being 'till' [the earth] the usual meaning of the Hebrew word used here is serve [the earth.] In this way we reflect the position of Jesus, God in human form, who had dominion over us and yet came to serve us. God the creator is the soverign over creation, our environment. His creation, our environment exists to reveal Himself to us and to damage the environment is to damage creation and so prevent it from carrying out the reason for its existence.

The Bible IS easy to understand,...but...

... we Christians are a bunch of scheming swindlers. We pretend to be unable to understand it because we know that the minute we understand, we are obliged to act accordingly. Take any word in the New Testament and forget everything except pledging yourself to act accordingly. "My God" you will say, "if I do that my whole life will be ruined. How would I ever get on in the world?" So said Soren Kierkegaard, Danish philosopher and religious thinker. 1813 - 1855.

"I've realized that I can't do it by myself, but the world can't do it without me" - Anna from Australia

A YOUTUBE VIDEO OF THE LONDON CLIMATE CHANGE SERVICE & MARCH 08-12-07

A Fact Worth Remembering

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed people can change the world: indeed it's the only thing that ever has!"-- Margaret Meade

THE WORLD’S LARGEST “LANDFILL”

There is a large part of the central Pacific Ocean that no one ever visits and only a few ever pass through. Surprisingly, this is the largest ocean realm on our planet, being about the size of Africa, over ten million square miles. A huge mountain of air, which has been heated at the equator, and then begins descending in a gentle clockwise rotation as it approaches the North Pole, creates this ocean realm. The circular winds produce circular ocean currents which spiral into a center where there is a slight down-welling.

Because of the stability of this gentle maelstrom, the largest uniform climatic feature on earth is also an accumulator of the debris of civilization. Anything that floats, no matter where it comes from on the north Pacific Rim or ocean, ends up here, sometimes after drifting around the periphery for twelve years or more. Historically, this debris did not accumulate because it was eventually broken down by micro organisms into carbon dioxide and water. Now, however, in our battle to store goods against natural deterioration, we have created a class of products that defeats even the most creative and insidious bacteria. They are plastics.

This area is the size of a continent, and it’s filling up with floating plastic waste. This has effected all types of creatures that inhabit this area. Circular ocean currents with contrary rotation create long lines of material, visible from above as streaks on the ocean. Normally these are formed by planktonic organisms or foam, but recently one was discovered made of plastic. Everything from huge hawsers to tiny fragments were formed into a miles long line, hundreds of pounds of netting of all types bailed together in this system along with every type and size of debris imaginable. There is, however, an even darker side to pollution of the ocean by ubiquitous plastic fragments.

As these fragments float around they accumulate the poisons that we manufacture for
various purposes that are not water-soluble. It turns out that plastic polymers are sponges for DDT, PCBs and nonylphenols -oily toxics that don’t dissolve in seawater. Plastic pellets have been found to accumulate up to one million times the level of these poisons that are floating in the water itself. These are not like heavy metal poisons which affect the animal that ingests them directly, rather, they are what might be called second generation toxics. Animals have evolved receptors for elaborate organic molecules called hormones, which regulate brain activity and reproduction. Hormone receptors cannot distinguish these toxics from the natural estrogenic hormone, estradiol, and when the pollutants dock at these receptors instead of the natural hormone, they have been shown to have a number of negative effects in everything from birds and fish and, as if you hadn't guessed, to humans.

We can grow pesticide free organic produce, but can nature still produce a pesticide free organic fish? After what scientists witnessed first hand in the Pacific perhaps not. The battle to change the way we produce and consume plastics has just begun but it is essential that it be fought now. Plastics do have their place in creation, but not in the sea or buried in the ground.

Just to be here...

"The living earth, where Jesus walked, reconciling to God all earth creatures, is itself a grace, an amazing grace. Just to be here, where Jesus walked on this rain watered planet is a gratuitous gift of God." Edward Echlin 'The Cosmic Circle.'

And Jesus compared hell to...

a rubbish tip! In His preaching, Jesus described hell as being like ‘Gehenna.’ Gehenna is a place in the Valley of Hinnon, which was used as Jerusalem’s municipal dump; it’s interesting to note that Jesus idea of hell on earth was an unsustainable rubbish tip.

Jesus vision of the world to come was of a place where things do not disappear from creation, where consumption does not destroy, or, in the words of theologian Bishop James Jones of Liverpool, “The new world is a realm of sustainable consumption.”

The best description of sustainability flowed from the pen of environmental theologian Edward Echlin and I quote it here. “Sustainability means taking from the earth’s resources what is sufficient for today’s needs, for all creatures, without compromising the ability of future generations, of all creatures, to live with sustainable sufficiency.” (Earth Spirituality)

Surely, the only people who could possibly disagree with that are they who believe that those who follow us have no rights whatsoever?