August 1,
2008 The
Poor and Environmental Solutions
Reality
speaks forthrightly, and becomes the atmosphere for testing our
maturing spirituality. When the reality of life is hidden through
denial, excuse, or escape, spirituality lacks an authenticity, and
keeps us withdrawn from the blessings of the needy and often
forsaken; we have fewer opportunities to offer thanks for the
blessings of the poor that are all around us.
We crave
models to pattern our lives. How about looking to the poor? The
poor generally have their feet on the ground when it comes to
essential needs, far more than do affluent people. Because the poor
generally live closer to ravaged areas of environmental degradation,
they have experienced the effects in the form of precarious health
and lower quality of life. Insofar as they endure unhealthy
conditions, they do not always complain about maladies and
discomforts. Others coming from states of greater comfort may
voluntarily take on poverty, become sensitive to needs, and
articulate the chasms between the haves and have-nots. All who
enter or continue in the poverty condition of our world experience
the vulnerability that comes with living among and with the poor.
The
affluent and the poor have fundamentally different ways of
perceiving the same situation. That is especially true where the
problem areas call for immediate and fundamental conversion and
change. The affluent are blessed with a greater mobility, more
influential connections, and more access to material and
informational resources. However, all of these privileges do not
guarantee eco-success. In part, this is due to lack of sensitivity
(the sin of affluence) to the needs of others, and an unwillingness
to work together as equals in problem-solving.
In
recent years we have seen the rise of "junk" science, which contains
"findings" paid for by special interest groups. These hack
scientists are hired to say that Earth is not undergoing global
warming, or that some so-called environmental problem is overblown.
Such conclusions generally work to the benefit of
resource-exploiting industries, which do not want further
regulations or critical attention. These organizations and their
wealth work together with affluent colleagues to muster resources to
deny an impending catastrophe; they escape to less threatening
locations; they excuse themselves by saying that the question should
be handled by experts at some future time usually beyond our
lifetime.
Environmental problems call for cooperative action at all economic
levels. Although the poor are handicapped by lack of resources,
they have certain advantages: they know the harm first hand; they
see current situations as life and death struggles; they need to
make a living and thus are quite practical about solutions; they
are confident that God is with them; they are the grassroots; and,
finally, they know history is on their side.
Prayer: Lord, lift up
the lowly.
Witnessing sunset at the end of a beautiful day.
(*photo
credit)
August 2, 2008
Water Fountains
People long for a harmony
of water and land, especially in times of drought -- for bubbly
springs, for showers in the fields, and for clear water flowing past
verdant tree-lined shores. Some are blessed with observing from
their home a lake or river or even the ocean; others settle for a
small farm pond or nearby creek; and still many more have no
naturally occurring moving water, but settle for the artificial;
they substitute water circulating in fish tanks or ponds, interior
waterfalls, or water fountains. The gurgling water fountain gives
the appearance of bubbling springs, or the life force coming from
the Earth itself to refresh us. In parts of Europe, where water
flows by gravity down from nearby mountains, residents treasure
centuries-old fountains that furnish water via springs or
aqueducts. The town fountain becomes a gathering place as well as
the essential source for potable water.
Only rarely today is it
possible to have an on-going flow of water from a mountain source.
Interior or exterior fountains with recirculating water are designed
to fulfill the same aesthetic purpose (water sound and sight), but
these are not water sources as such. This modern fountain is
generally located in a protected and enclosed patio where the sound
reverberates from the surrounding walls; the environment stays cool
by means of surrounding vegetation, the shade of which prevents
water evaporation. The soothing sound along with the sight of water
amid potted or in-ground plants produces the atmosphere of a cool
(even tropical) forest. A well-designed fountain has a magic touch
that draws people to congregate, rest, and relax in its vicinity.
It is moving water; it springs as though from the Earth, giving a
sense of abundance, fertility, and release of forces that has been
caught for centuries by poets and artists.
Running a water fountain
need not be wasteful, for the water can be recirculated with a small
expenditure of energy for a solar water pump. Much depends on the
fountain's evaporation potential -- and that can be lessened by
planting vegetation so that increased humidity and protection from a
direct breeze will reduce evaporation immensely. Lower quality
water can be used, provided it has no unpleasant odor. The jets for
the fountain can be adjusted so that the stream flow is reduced or
ultimately turned off during drought. Allowing the water to flow
over rocks or other surfaces may increase evaporation, especially if
in a sunny location. As mentioned, the operation of the small
circulating water pump and accompanying night ornamental lighting
can be achieved using solar energy. The small water pump does not
need much storage capacity, since circulation after dark can be
suspended. Daylight is perfect with fountains though some like the
atmosphere of longer night lighting which they achieve through
storing excess solar energy through additional batteries.
Prayer:
Lord, You are the fountain of life, our treasure. Help us to be
springs of life to others so that your goodness may be better know
by them.
A trio of hummingbirds, gracing the summer sky.
(*photo
by Walt Para, Sunrise Ridge,
Stanton Kentucky)
August 3, 2008
Feeding People
The one who comes to me
will not go away hungry. (John 6:35)
People need to be fed
spiritually and materially. One cannot expect to do one without the
other, for we need a balance of the spiritual and material. We
could hardly expect a hungry person to give much attention to a
spiritual lecture; nor do we expect the overly sated to beg God for
daily bread. Spirituality means we are concerned about the poor.
Thus sharing of resources is a moral demand, without which there is
no spiritual life. We can hardly receive Communion worthily if we
allow many at our doorstep to go hungry -- and the world is at our
doorstep.
Part of this spiritual
mandate consists in helping to solve pressing human problems. One
of these is the loss of food producing land. We know that urban
sprawl and industrialization are a worldwide phenomena, and prime
agricultural land is in short supply -- and growing shorter as vast
nations like China and India move more to the automobile-based
economy with highways and parking lots. To lose an intensive rice
paddy in Japan or Korea means that valuable productive agricultural
land is being converted with no replacement. On a worldwide
perspective we ask: Can we continue to feed growing populations on
essentially less and less farm land?
Relatively affluent Pacific
Rim lands are experiencing a shocking loss of productive land to the
pressure of new consumer activities and industrialization projects.
Upward economic mobility encourages farmers to use land formerly in
crop production for new types of food (e.g., eggs and meat and
specialty items) that require more land than does pure grain or
edible oil-bearing plants. Today 70% of farmland is used for
livestock and one third of all grain is used as animal feed. Less
grainlands for staples and rising demands for resource intensive
foods in newly affluent lands put essential foods beyond the reach
of the poor. Recall the book: Who will Feed China? by
Lester Brown, Worldwatch Institute, 1998, Washington, DC. Add to
this situation the turning of corn and sugar fields into production
of biofuels and we have a perfect food crisis that has surfaced in
2008.
Conservationists seek land
use restrictions because industry and housing are sprawling over
once productive farmlands. The patterns are similar throughout the
world: farmland is ripe for development; its economic value
escalates to the point that the farmer is encouraged to sell and
retire. Governments at different levels must make meaningful land
use restrictions. Conservation easement programs that pay
landholders for leaving land undeveloped are now in place in more
conservation-minded areas. Furthermore, returning land to food
production and subsidizing small farmers with loans and equipment
are part of a comprehensive food production program of which we all
must consider as part of our spiritual mission.
Prayer:
Lord, inspire us to feed the hungry.
The glow of sunset on a mobile home in
rural Kentucky
(*photo
credit)
August 4,
2008 Mobile Homes
Earlier this year
the spotlight focused on the thousands of FEMA trailers used for Katrina victims
and others, because their interiors contained worrisome amounts of outgassed
toxic formaldehyde. About forty percent of lower income urban and rural
Americans live in mobile or manufactured homes. These people find these mobile
or manufactured structures more affordable and consider them "instant" homes,
which can be hauled from one place to another and installed in a short time.
However, these housing units have disadvantages that include:
* Purchase of
manufactured homes sends out of the community money that would have gone to
local builders. Bringing in a mobile home causes problems for local drivers,
but that is minor compared to the fact the local construction company loses
another job, and the community has less local spending money, for much of the
money goes for construction at a distant factory.
* Environmental
building associations make a list of certain preferred materials to be used in
housing, and certain materials that are less desirable (plastics and aluminum)
because of resource expenditure, distance from place of construction,
instability under certain climate conditions, or flammability. Some materials
require enormous amounts of energy to obtain, process, manufacture, ship and
store, whereas others, especially local native materials like clay, stone, and
wood have less resource cost.
* The air in new
manufactured homes is perhaps somewhat better now than it was a few years past
when the pronounced smell of the formaldehyde (a volatile chemical found in many
fabric and plastic interior decorations) would escape from the materials to the
surrounding air. The formaldehyde has made the boxed-in effect and lack of air
exchange of insulated mobile homes all the more problematic. These units ought
to be aired out thoroughly, especially when new fabric and plastic furnishing
have been added.
* The inherent
design of mobile homes leads to their being destroyed by heavy winds far more
frequently than stationary homes. Insurance companies know this, and so do
those who buy and sell homes. Generally, the type of construction, the
deterioration of materials, and the inability to maintain them properly, lead to
rapid depreciation. Low-income rural counties experience deteriorating tax
bases due to widespread depreciation of cheap mobile housing. To counter this,
one solution is to convert the mobile home to a stationary one through
additional foundation, siding and new roofing. I directed the covering of a
mobile home's outer walls with cordwood and have since received praise for the
improved looks and for the building's stability. Naturally the value stops
sliding towards total depreciation, and the structure is less susceptible to
wind damage.
Prayer:
Lord, help us champion affordable housing for all, and especially for a billion
people living in poor conditions.
A quiet resting place for a hot summer day
(*photo
credit)
August 5,
2008 Family Reunions
August is an ideal
time for family reunions, for it is vacation time and a new school term has not
yet begun. Those of us from large families know that these reunions can be
difficult to organize and facilitate. I went to the one-hundredth anniversary
of my mother's great grandparents' coming to America from Germany, and at that
occasion we found the family tree had grown to about a thousand descendants and
spouses. I later went to the one hundred and fiftieth of the same group and the
tree was still further expanded to perhaps two thousand people. With such
expanding affairs planners must consider the following points for a successful
reunion:
1. Have the reunion
infrequently. People find fuel prices too high for frequent trips. Maybe the
bigger, the more infrequent. When it is only two or three generations the
gathering is more manageable. When it goes back to five or more, many of the
descendants simply don't know each other.
2. Select a good
organizer who will accept the work required to plan and call families together
for a reunion. Phone calls, letters, e-mails and persuasive conversation, the
determination of a gathering place, and arrangement of the schedule are
necessary. Much of the work can be reduced by assigning specific duties and
having everyone bring his or her own potluck dish or particular lunch and
sharing with others.
3. Find an adequate
meeting place. Often people want to return to the small house or farm where it
all began. Nice, but the place is not equipped for massive parking or with
toilet facilities. A better suggestion is to go to a nearby public facility
capable of handling the crowd. Visit the simple house as part of the program.
Some guests need air conditioning or ramps for accessibility. Have adequate
drinking water as well.
4. Prepare the
agenda well. Some people will not like specific events: raffles, formal games,
or worship services. Give enough space for variety. Included music and dancing
require special attention as well. Sometimes the informal may prove the most
entertaining and space ought to be allotted for it. However, some people are
not natural mixers and find so many unrecognized guests intimidating. Name tags
are needed even though some people know most people; many have a difficulty
with immediate name recall. Consider prizes for the most distant traveler.
5. Document the
event. Photography is important, as is audio or video history. The charting of
the growing family tree requires a dedicated manager who works for accuracy and
maintenance of current records. Consider a follow-up letter and a sharing of a
web site or e-mail addresses.
Prayer: Help us Lord to hold our
families together even in times of great mobility and family troubles.
A gardener's daylily
(*photo
credit)
August 6,
2008 Transfiguration
This
is the second time this year we read the Transfiguration narrative. Is this
because the event has many facets: we need to focus once on the glory of the
Lord in high summer; and we need to experience the consolation in approaching
Calvary during Lent.
The Transfiguration
is recorded in the three synoptic gospels and in the Letter we have from St.
Peter as well. Jesus takes the three disciples up the mountain apart from the
rest; this harkens back to Moses going up Mt. Sinai and receiving the Law.
Jesus talks with Moses and Elijah and is in the center stage, thus showing he is
more than the greatest of the lawgivers and the greatest of the prophets. In
the Transfiguration Jesus' face is radiant and shines like the sun. The event
becomes a consoling moment for Jesus before his impending death, just as the
beauty of the consoling verdant Earth comes at the middle of the growing season
in August's glory. We are consoled both through glory all around and in
personal suffering with others.
Peter's reaction is
to say -- "It is wonderful for us to be here." In our everyday language he
could have said -- let's take a picture or make a videotape. Remember, he does
ask to put up a memorial of stone to remember the great event. "Let us make
three tents, one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah." The tents allude to
giving the law at the feast of Tabernacles. True to Peter's words, today
memorials adorn the site of this event.
The voice from
heaven tells us that the Father approves of this sacred event, a sanction by God
of what is about to occur. Jesus is God's chosen one, the suffering servant.
Recall Psalm 7 and Isaiah 42. We too need God's approval. The divine nearness
paralyzes the disciples who are not yet strengthened through the grace given at
Pentecost. "Do not be afraid" is said a number of times in the Scriptures, and
is meant for all of us as well. We see in our troubled world a need to be
fearless in the challenges that face us. We too need God's approving word and
we, in turn, must give these words to others who are fearful as well.
The Transfiguration
event is told with awe and wonder -- a magnificent vision of what is to come.
However, as fellow Jesuit, Walt Bado, points out in his poem, this is also
Hiroshima Day, a time of infamy when a single atomic bomb of blinding light
caused over a hundred thousand casualties. The bombing of Hiroshima and of
Nagasaki were intended to (and perhaps did) shorten World War II. However, the
reasoning has been questioned. The bomb-making project was called "Trinity" and
the delivery plane "Little Babe." What irony -- or blasphemy. We need all the
more to participate in an extended cosmic Transfiguration.
Prayer: Lord, You revealed the
true radiance of Christ in the glory of the transfiguration. Change us into his
image that we may radiate his glory in bring peace to our troubled world.
Abraham Lincoln: Old State Capitol in Springfield, IL.
(*photo
by Mark Spencer)
August 7, 2008
Nuclear Power Versus Wind
Power
Nuclear power was to
be the panacea of the future, back in the guilt-laden days after World War Two
and the August Hiroshima and Nagasaki episodes. With great fanfare the 1960s
heralded the rise of nuclear power in this country -- and from there the power
fad spread throughout the world with nations such as France receiving major
portions of their energy from that source. Nuclear power experienced a hiatus
after rising environmental concerns in the 1970s and the Three Mile Island
(1979) and Chernobyl (1986) episodes, along with problems related to economics,
waste disposal and health and safety issues. Now with all the talk about carbon
footprints and global warming, nuclear power is being resurrected like the
chained Prometheus being allowed to come to life.
It is urgent that
proponents of clean energy look closely at renewable energy sources and compare
them with the temptation for new billion plus dollar nuclear facilities. On May
20, 2008, the U.S. Department of Energy released the 2007 edition of its "Annual
Report on U.S. Wind Power Installation, Cost, and Performance Trends." This
report states that the U.S. leads the world in wind power growth (third straight
year) with capacity increasing by 46% in 2007, with $9 billion invested. This
renewable source is on the way to becoming a significant contributor to the U.S.
power mix. Now this wind source accounts for 35% of the new 2007 U.S. electric
generating capacity. Production facilities capable of generating a total of
over 200 GW of U.S. wind power are being developed.
Nuclear power is not
carbon-free since massive amounts of coal have been used in the past to generate
the electric power needed to operate nuclear enrichment facilities. Disposal of
nuclear wastes is not solved. Decommissioning of nuclear reactors is costly and
may require governmental subsidies. What about the health risk and toll on
uranium mine workers and nearby residents? Are the tempting soft terrorist
targets of stored spent rods near nuclear powerplants given adequate
consideration by energy policy makers?
In the 1940s nuclear
proponents predicted that nuclear power would to be "too cheap to meter." The
persistent difficulty with nuclear energy is that one mishap could be so massive
that it could endanger large populations and areas of the world. Estimates of a
major nuclear reactor accident are as high as 102,000 first-year deaths, 610,000
injuries and 40,000 long-term cancer death and $314 billion in damages (1982
estimates made by Sandia National Labs for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission).
A previous, less-thorough study in 1975 called WASH-1400 estimated 3,300 early
fatalities, 45,000 injuries, 45,000 latent cancer deaths and property damage of
$14 billion. See our Critical Hour: Three Mile Island, The Nuclear Legacy,
and National Security on this website. With all these persistent
difficulties, why the nuclear option? It is time to wind down nuclear and wind
up wind.
Prayer:
Lord, teach us to discern prudently and to satisfy our energy needs by using
environmentally benign energy sources.
Clifty Wilderness Area, Red River Gorge, KY
(*photo
by Harry J. Gensler, S.J.)
August 8, 2008
Solar Hot Water Systems
Today is the
beginning of the Olympic Games and our attention is turned to Beijing.
Observing on television the sweating athletes makes us think about the summer's
solar rays. We hear that even the Chinese hosts are beginning to "think solar"
with a multitude of solar applications, not the least of which is the
tried-and-true solar water heater. Photos of America's 1904 San Francisco
earthquake show damaged house roofs equipped with solar hot water systems,
applications we need to rediscover today.
About one-tenth of
an average household's energy budget is for heating water for showers and
kitchen uses. The cheapest way to heat domestic water is by the most
cost-effective solar application, outside of growing produce using the sun's
rays or drying clothes outdoors. Some solar water heating systems are "active"
varieties (heating with the sun an enclosed liquid which transfers heat to
adjacent water pipes); these are generally more expensive, but efficiency is
improving with time. Homemade "passive" systems (which heat the water directly
in black glass lined metal tanks enclosed in insulated boxes) are also
recommended. The latter have no pumps or extra gadgets except a pressure
release valve.
Solar heaters need
to be of a size adequate for your water needs. Much depends on the amount of
water used, but energy conservation should always accompany solar energy use.
The length and volume of showers are critical. With this in mind, a new
applicant should install water-conserving showerheads and take shorter showers.
The heater design should be visibly pleasing and in harmony with your building.
A site and device should be near where the water is to be used, and yet
accessible to those who wish to inspect the unit close at hand. In areas of
severe winters the ideal is to have a non-solar back-up system that is also
energy-efficient and of low environmental impact. Instant electric back-up
systems work fine, if the domestic water demand is low and the water pressure
sufficient to allow the flow to move smoothly.
Many prefer to save
money and make their own solar water heater. A homemade solar water heater is
straight-forward and can be built by enclosing a used water tank hooked to a
gravity-fed water system. Water is collected in a solar-absorbing black-painted
water tank; the enclosure resembles a glass-covered open-sided snug-fitting
insulated coffin (made with weather-protected wood). Six-inch fiberglass
insulation batts are covered with aluminum flashing to keep solar-heated water
warm through the night. This solar heater is mounted at the selected location
and angled toward the sun. Some designers install an insulated door over the
glassed opening to be closed after the sun goes down. If properly insulated in
an average temperate climate, passive solar heaters will furnish 100 degree F
water for about eight months while active systems go all year.
Prayer:
Lord, help us to benefit from your solar gift.
A grandmother's "plum-granny" plant. Cucumis melo var.
dudaim
(*photo
credit)
August 9, 2008
Intergenerational Gardening
Over and over people
mention that those who lived through the Great Depression are better experienced
to help introduce younger people to the possibly permanent food crisis now
besetting our planet. One way to improve our lot is to grow "freedom gardens"
(see July 15 and 16). How about elders teaming up with younger (youth or
middle-aged) folks to launch their own gardening enterprise? The work, while
not overly burdensome, does involve some exertion, which will demand use of
muscles and exposure to the summer sun's rays unless undertaken in the early
morning or evening. We have entire generations that lack some basic skills
including cooking and gardening -- and while older folks have experience, they
may lack physical energy to complete the tasks. Here teamwork is essential.
The art of gardening
seems fairly manageable even to those with slight infirmities. However, turning
over the soil along with actual planting may take extra effort, and with proper
instruction novice gardeners can excel. The waning physical stamina of elders
is an open invitation to seek cooperative work from more energetic and younger
budding gardeners, though someone else may have to be the networking person for
such intergenerational programs. Seniors have a store of knowledge and pleasant
experiences that deserve to be passed to the inexperienced. All can benefit.
Besides, gardening
does not have to be a summer activity alone; some of the summer herbs and
vegetables can be potted for indoor storage and use by either party in winter.
Potted plants can be cared for even by those with unsure knees, arthritic hands,
and aching backs and they have other benefits: the potted plant gives a sense of
color, purifies the air, often furnishes a good scent, can be edible when an
herb, and affords the opportunity to have something to do in winter.
Older folks can
garden in or out of a greenhouse with an adjustable growing table or with
permanent super-raised beds or trellises. Some crops can be easily tended by
people with disabilities or those who are more confined, e.g., a variety of
greens, strawberries, certain vines and root crops. On the other hand, corn,
squash, watermelons, pumpkins, okra or pole beans may be impossible for the
physically impaired to reach and harvest because of the plants' height or
extensive space considerations. Again, the experienced and the able-bodied work
together. Successful gardening is a sophisticated process and requires planning
and proper seed variety selection. The gardener/artist knows that design is
necessary to execute a mind's eye vision onto stone or canvas or a longer
blooming landscape. The garden becomes our canvas and, through pictures taken
at a definite location for each growing month, gardeners show their artistic
progress to others along with their gardening experience.
Prayer:
Lord teach us to work together, to transfer the wisdom of the senior to the
younger, and do so as a blessing.
Plants of a central Kentucky old field.
(*photo
credit)
August 10, 2004
Spiritual Versus Material Security
Lord, tell me to
come to you across the water. (Matthew 14:28)
We know the
consequences of a Perfect Storm, one where all the conditions combine to
make a massive natural disaster. At the shoreline at Gloucester, Massachusetts
is a monument to all the fishermen who lost their lives at sea. Much like the
apostles the Gloucester folks know something about storms at sea.
We Americans can be
tempted to seek extraordinary security at the expense of other demands in life.
One would expect that the materially endowed would find this less a problem, but
the paradox is that often the greater the material possessions, the less the
security -- for their things can be more easily stolen and need more protective
maintenance. Young people in affluent homes have difficulty sharing, and so do
the old and the middle aged now involved in rat races to seize prestige or
positions. Senior citizens are not immune, for they can grip tightly to that
with which they know unconsciously they will soon have to part company.
Insecurity
accompanies affluence and is a warning sign that something is lacking in life.
To possess much means to hold on to much and to hold on tightly; this creates an
insensitivity to everything that is not being gripped. Of course, the less well
off are not free of insecurities but often know how to cope with them better.
However, some clutching to hard earned possessions and overlooking the need to
share with the less fortunate through a creeping insensitivity can infiltrate
all ranks of people, economic groups, cultural bodies and even churches. What
may be taken away demands an absolute protection plan. Is the insurance
sufficient?
Insecurity goes
beyond the individual. Homes are often racked by dissention and back-biting and
need the healing calm of Christ's presence to bring peace. Communities must
pull together and support those who need special care and attention. The Church
must reform and pray. Our nation requires the security that does not come with
greater military buildup, but with radical sharing of resources with those who
are destitute. Does one billion dollars in weapons give the security that could
be obtained by assisting the global poor? Should we rethink our domestic policy
of national security? An earthquake can occur or a meteor strike us -- though
highly unlikely; in some cases ultimate security cannot be obtained and
ultimately it is in God we trust. We can only prepare so much for natural
disasters, possible accidents or terrorist attacks. However we know that
over-dwelling on possibilities is not healthy. Through sharing we are fortified
for whatever comes our way, and maybe that will make us more sensitive to the
needs of others.
Prayer:
Lord draw our attention to our national motto "In God we trust." Help us pause
a moment and make a deeper reflection both individually and collectively, for in
God and only God do we find our true security.
