‘Throw away’ society contradicts Christ

By Archbishop Raymond Roussin

Archbishop Raymond Roussin, SM, continues his reflections on the ecological problems facing our planet and how ignoring the warning (warming!) signs will likely affect how we leave our earth to future generations. In fact, the lack of love and respect we give our planet, says the archbishop, is profoundly linked to our lack of love and respect for our fellow human beings.

The B.C. Catholic: How do Catholics strike a balance during political elections? Can they vote for political parties with a well-thought-out environmental agenda but which have policies differing in some respects from Catholic teachings, or should they support parties which have policies in line with Church teaching but which fail to address environmental concerns?

Archbishop Roussin: This is a difficult problem, because no one political party has all the right answers, so we are called to vote to elect a government with policies which are most closely aligned to the Church’s views.

However, one of the things I see happening all the time is that people leave far too many of these issues up to the politicians. Rather than asking what we all, as individuals, can do to solve the energy crisis, for example, we expect the politicians to fix it.

This is a “grass roots” problem. Christians and other people of good will can do a lot more. We must be outspoken about the selfishness we see around us and set a good example by taking seriously the scientists’ concerns about the environment. We must initiate discussions with our friends and family and do what we can on a personal level. If our cars and the other items we purchase do not make an efficient use of energy, we must question our choices.

Yes, we can work politically, but each of us also has a role to play in saving the environment. People may say they are not ready to make changes, that they work hard and should be able to have what they want, but we Christians are asked to let go of selfish and self-serving attitudes. If it means we sacrifice buying an item because it would not be good for the environment, we do it rather than cause harm to our planet.

BCC: Is this the call to stewardship?

AR: Yes! and it’s not an easy call to answer, because often when you start speaking up about these things, such as how many people drive around by themselves in SUVs, you will encounter hostility. Nevertheless, with the reports of global warming coming at us from every angle, it’s time that we Christians ask ourselves the hard questions.

We are called to follow Christ, and that has never been easy. The crucifixion is a call to die to selfishness and doing the things that we shouldn’t be doing. If that means buying things on the basis of whether or not they harm our environment, so be it!

BCC: Is this also a call to the simple life?

AR: Absolutely. However, when you look around, you soon realize that everything is working against this. Even if we decide to simplify, to scale down and do with less, we are surrounded by advertising encouraging us to buy more. We are told that not to buy more would harm the economy. Sharing is actively discouraged.

The abundance which Jesus spoke about in Scripture is not about buying more things, but about having deeper and richer and more loving relationships; first with God and then with our fellow human beings as well as our earth. Christ’s call was to leave anxiety behind: to “consider the lilies of the field,” to trust to God for our good.

He gave us the example in the Beatitudes of how to share our goods with one another. To live in a respectful ecologically sound way is to adopt a simple, wholesome, prayerful way of being. It is the way of the saints based on the teachings of Christ.

BCC: Last week you spoke of marriage and family life as under the same kind of threat as the environment. Could you expand?

AR: When we live in a society which encourages us to adopt a “throw away” attitude to our material goods, we should not be surprised when we see especially younger people applying the same standards to their human relationships.

We choke our landfills with discarded electronic equipment when a new model comes along, and we buy it even when we cannot pay our bills at the end of each month. This kind of living only promotes anxiety and family instability.

Our courts are filled with married people who are there to discard a husband or wife in favour of a new and more appealing “model.” We buy a new toaster rather than fix the old one and we also refuse to fix the problems in marriage.

Catholics can take advantage of the Church’s programs like Marriage Encounter, Engaged Encounter, and Retrouvaille, which is designed for marriages in trouble. However many decide instead to divorce, although the effect on families is devastating.

Just as St. Francis of Assisi was close to all of creation and loved all that he saw, we are called upon to be good stewards, to pay attention to how we can help heal our families, our community, our country, our world, and our planet. If any part of the picture is missing or neglected, it affects everything else.