Contemplation as Action

Contemplation. What does that word mean for you? What images does it bring to your mind.

It is positive or negative?

For many of us who are task-orientated planners, contemplation can seem like a waste of time - why sit and think, when we can do?

For those of us who are chronic over-thinkers, contemplation seems counterintuitive -why would would make more time for our minds to give us things to think about?

As someone who grew up in an evangelical church environment, even my understanding of “spending quiet time” with God was determined by a to-do list -my list of bible readings to read, my list of people to pray for.

It was a real shock to me a few years ago, that I discovered that actually both my spiritual life and my mental health was better, when I took time to deliberately find somewhere nice to just be still.

I discovered that stillness was not the antithesis to doing. It was a crucial part of refueling to have the energy to keep going.

Climate Justice in light of the pandemic

Many of us are entering 2022 exhausted. The pandemic has thrown out our sense of control and routines for our last 3 years. Our sense of identity may have been shaken. Our reliance on ourselves and our incomes challenged. Our educations systems have been disrupted. Our faith in our health systems exposed to doubt and our trust in government often shattered.

And separate to, but connected to the pandemic, is the climate crisis which reveals our further vulnerability and raises questions about what we are doing, and if we can actually do anything else.

The climate crisis is of such high priority to so many of us because it is so deeply connected to other issues like food security, refugees, water and sanitation, good governance, and the exploitation of workers. It connects us to others and our actions to the lives of others. It is becoming the environmental and social issue that impacts nearly every other justice issue we face.

As Gus Speth says, at the heart, each of these issues are linked not to our behaviours but our core values and beliefs. Selfishness, greed and apathy are not things that we can rationalise our way out of. They are things that are connected to our worldview, our lifestyles and the sheer amount of things we need to do in the week. They are also great catalysts for guilt and self-loathing and attempting to combat them through “better practices” often drives us to shame and inaction.

So how do we hold onto hope?

“Working for change that can rarely be seen in a lifetime, when we only have one lifetime is inherently difficult. There comes a point when you need to withdraw in order to know who you are again. and remember what you are fighting for.” - Victoria Loopz, Church of the Wild

I have written before about how any form of activism built on anger, guilt or shame will cause burnout and apathy. The solution though is not necessarily rest, but by being grounded in who we are and why we do what we do. Some people refer to that as the concept of “wholeheartness”. Some Christians refer to it as concept of knowing your identity in Christ or being part of “the Beloved.” Both understandings are based around the idea that there is a safe space where you can do the emotional work you can do to grieve the injustices of the world or within your life, to ask questions (of yourself or of God), to know who are designed to be, and to care for others from a place of knowing your belovedness, worth and strengths.

Interestingly the Bible is full of stories of people who found that connection by going into “the wilderness” - times of going into nature, away from the daily routines of life and meeting with God there. It is something that Jesus is recorded as doing regularly and it is reflected in the stories of the Israelite community, Jacob, Gideon, Jonah, Elijah and Paul.

So it was with all this in mind that when my friend Rachael asked me to work with her to offer a space for people to connect with nature, with themselves and with God in the company of others, I heartily agreed.

From this coming Saturday, we will be facilitating a quiet space here in Adelaide, at Belair National Park. It is a place of no expectation. It is just a place to come and connect again with nature, and your sense of self, and perhaps your sense of the Divine. It is a place to be restored. For climate activists, it is a place to let nature be a healing place for you, rather than a place you have to always be fighting for. It is a place for you to do the work you need to do, with Nature instead of for nature.

If you are in Adelaide, we would love to have you join us. If you are not in Adelaide, perhaps you would like to carve out a bit of time this weekend for yourself in your part of the natural world.