26 November 2008
LIVING SIMPLY THAT OTHERS MAY SIMPLY LIVE
The most recent Chapter of the Christian Brothers held in Munnar, India earlier this year issued a call to “open our hearts to the cry of the poor and the earth and to be moved to prophetic action through advocacy and works of justice”
Most of us are well aware of the poverty and suffering that afflicts most of the world’s peoples and we are becoming increasingly aware of the ecological crisis we now face.
The challenge is how to respond.
A point at which the cry of the poor for justice, the urgent need to address the sustainability of life on our planet and the call for prophetic action all intersect is in the challenge for us to change to a simpler lifestyle.
The quotation at the head of this article has been variously attributed to Mahatma Ghandi or Elizabeth Ann Seaton, the first canonized saint born in the United States.
Over 80% of the worlds resources are consumed by just 20% of the world's population. The world’s resources are finite so the more that we consume, the less is available for others.
Quite apart from the inequity of the above situation it is also increasingly clear that our current western lifestyle is unsustainable.
For further reflection on this you may care to measure your ecological footprint; see where you fit in the Global Rich List; or especially as the Christmas season approaches, to consider ethically responsible shopping. (a US focussed website but with information abut multi-national brand names) or to explore other possibilities for living a simpler lifestyle.
Most of us are well aware of the poverty and suffering that afflicts most of the world’s peoples and we are becoming increasingly aware of the ecological crisis we now face.
The challenge is how to respond.
A point at which the cry of the poor for justice, the urgent need to address the sustainability of life on our planet and the call for prophetic action all intersect is in the challenge for us to change to a simpler lifestyle.
The quotation at the head of this article has been variously attributed to Mahatma Ghandi or Elizabeth Ann Seaton, the first canonized saint born in the United States.
Over 80% of the worlds resources are consumed by just 20% of the world's population. The world’s resources are finite so the more that we consume, the less is available for others.
Quite apart from the inequity of the above situation it is also increasingly clear that our current western lifestyle is unsustainable.
For further reflection on this you may care to measure your ecological footprint; see where you fit in the Global Rich List; or especially as the Christmas season approaches, to consider ethically responsible shopping. (a US focussed website but with information abut multi-national brand names) or to explore other possibilities for living a simpler lifestyle.
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