SPIRITUAL LIFE
How Much Is Enough? Lifestyles, Global
Economics and Justice
By Michael Schut
Protestant Channel-Christianity.com -
Stop for a moment.
Pray. Listen to your heart. Listen for God's voice in the longings of
your heart.
I wonder what you find there. Consumer society loudly proclaims that,
no matter your longing or desire, its fulfillment can be found in a product.
Consumer society literally banks on our tendency to continually fill our
hands while ignoring the call of our hearts.
"Repeated opinion polls of people's sense of well-being
show that no more Americans are satisfied with their lot now than they
were in 1957."
However, there is another reality. Christianity proclaims our desires
are met through relationships: with God through Jesus Christ and with
one another through the Church, the Body of Christ. Christianity proclaims,
"Our hearts are restless till they find their rest in thee" (St. Augustine).
If fulfillment were to be found in a product, Americans would be the most
content, fulfilled people on Earth. Yet in spite of our incredible wealth,
many of us share a vague sense that we are "off-center."
Despite the phenomenal growth in consumption and economic output since
the 1950s, "Repeated opinion polls of people's sense of well-being show
that no more Americans are satisfied with their lot now than they were
in 1957," according to author Alan Durning in How Much Is Enough?
Maybe we are willing to admit that our affluence does not provide all
that it promises. And some of us are beginning to see the connections
between that affluence and the overconsumption that goes with it and
the degradation of God's Earth and increasing global poverty.
The links between our consumer habits, others' poverty and the degradation
of God's creation are simple and direct. The reason they do not necessarily
appear so is also simple: Our economic system does not see itself as embedded
in the larger world of nature.
We futilely hope that the waste referred to as "externalities" by economists
created in economic processes will be assimilated by the Earth. However,
we have obviously already exceeded Earth's assimilative capacities. The
pollution our consumptive habits create today show up tomorrow as increased
cancer rates, birth defects and oil-soaked birds.
As Philip Sherrard said, "We are treating our planet in an inhuman and
God-forsaken manner because we see things in an inhuman, God-forsaken
way. And we see things in this way because that is basically how we see
ourselves."
Christians, however, believe that "the earth is the Lord's (Psalm 24:1)
and that to degrade it is wrong. We also believe we are created in God's
image and live most fully when we understand ourselves to be part of a
community (the Body of Christ), not as individuals-in-a-market. And that
perspective, notes theologian John Cobb, is the perspective by which our
globalized world is operating.
Consider our food choices as one small example.
The average morsel travels 1,200 miles to reach our plates. The agribusiness
industry consumes at least nine calories of fossil fuel energy to produce
one calorie of food energy.
In light of global economic relationships, many believe Wendell Berry
points in the direction we must move. He suggests individuals move from
abstract global concerns to concrete local actions to create a more compassionate
and just economy.
It is preposterous to think that any of us can do anything to heal the
planet, Berry says. Instead, each of us can preserve our "humble households
and neighborhoods." Were all such neighborhoods preserved, he says, it
is possible that most planetary problems would disappear.
Consider our food choices as one small example. The average morsel travels
1,200 miles to reach our plates. The agribusiness industry consumes at
least nine calories of fossil fuel energy to produce one calorie of food
energy.
Following Berry's suggestion, we would take care of our neighborhood (local
farmers) by buying locally grown produce. We would care for our soil and
water by purchasing organics, which are grown without the chemicals that
often pollute soil and water.
Notice that, through focusing on local, everyday choices, we also address
a significant global concern. In this case, buying locally shortens supply
lines, thereby decreasing transportation costs, related carbon dioxide
emissions, and a portion of our own contribution to greenhouse gases.
Individual choice, rooted in caring for local people and places, is crucial.
But there is more. Individuals must also join together to create political
will for societal change.
Increasing economic growth is perhaps our most powerful cultural idol.
Idols promise that which they cannot finally deliver.
If growth were the answer to social inequity and degradation of God's
Earth, however, the economic gap between rich and poor would not be growing.
One-quarter of the world's vertebrate species would not be in danger of
extinction and those who so greatly benefit from this growth?
Our hearts would no longer be restless. While many in the world
today certainly require more material wealth, others of us need to ask
the difficult question: How much is enough?
Michael Schut coordinates Earth Ministry's Simpler Living Project and
is editor of the best-selling Simpler Living, Compassionate Life: A Christian
Perspective. Portions of this article are reprinted with permission from
the June 2000 issue of The Witness.
2000 Michael Schut Used by Permission
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