Reverence for the Creation

When I came to the farm I never realized how much my life would be changed by being immersed in the Creation.  To be honest is to admit that I never thought much about it.  I guess I thought of Creation as a  benign factor in the equation that holds the universe together.  I never really thought much about a rock, a tree, or dirt being brought into being by the same Creator who brought me into being.  I never considered that such things were holy simply because they passed through the creative hands of the Creator.  It never crossed my mind that God might speak, or reveal Himself through the Creation.   

What I have been discovering in these fifteen years on the farm is a growing reverence and respect for the Creation which surrounds me and all of us.  This is not to say that we should hug every tree and save every animal by becoming vegetarians, but that we are called to live with a spirit that is caring instead of exploitative.  There is in the Native American culture a reverence for the Creation.  They did not see themselves as owners of the land, but those who lived on it.  When they killed an animal for clothing and food, it was not some wanton slaughter, but a taking of life that was accompanied by words of reverence for the life being given to sustain their own.  

In today's culture it seems that little thought is given to the rippling effects some overuse of natural resources is going to have.  In today's culture people who make land usage decisions do not usually make them with reverence for the land.  Instead, the land's value is not seen to be intrinsic, but according to the amount of money it can put in someone's pocket.  It is often said around these parts, "They are not making anymore land," and whoever they are is  right.  The Creation is not some inexhaustible resource for us to exploit, but a means of bringing glory to the Creator.