“Then God said, ‘Let us make humankind in our own image,
according to our likeness; and let them ha e dominion over the fish of the sea,
and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild
animals of the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.’”
As many of you already know, my wife and I recently adopted
a new puppy. Melbie is part Australian
Shepherd, a large part Blue Heeler and perhaps some Border Collie. (One might say she’s an Australian Border Heeler…). We don’t own Melbie. At least I’ve never felt that way about any
of the dogs who have shared my life over the years. Melbie is a part of our family. It is our responsibility to care for her,
train her properly, make sure she gets the proper nutrition, exercise, and
health care. Our relationship is not
about possession. It’s about compassion
and forgiveness (especially during house training!) not about control and
punishment.
I think that’s what Genesis 1:26 means when it says that
human beings are to have “dominion” over the creatures of the earth. “Dominion” does not mean “domination.” It does not mean the creatures of the earth
are ours to use (and abuse) as we see fit.
We don’t own the earth. God
does. For centuries we have gotten this
wrong… and the earth bears the scars of
our error. Like an owner who thinks
beating a dog is the best way to control it, like a despotic ruler who murders
his own people, we have left the planet cowering in fear.
According to the Hebrew and Christian scriptures, humanity
was created to reflect the creative love of God and to represent God’s
beneficent rule over creation. That’s
what “dominion” means. It means
extending God’s love, grace, forgiveness and mercy to whatever little piece of
God’s creation is our domain. It means
being in a just and loving relationship with the world around us… from the tiniest creeping thing to our human neighbors.
We desperately need to reclaim this understanding of “dominion”
before we destroy our environment any further, condemn our descendants to the
ravages of climate change, and continue to perpetuate socio-economic systems
that crush some and privilege others. We
might not be able to change the whole world…
but if each of us looks for ways to impact the little corner of God’s
creation we were created to care for, the cumulative effect has amazing
potential.
Nothing belongs to you.
Not really. But, you are God’s
image and likeness, God’s representatives and governors, wherever your life is
lived. That is an awesome responsibility… but God promises to bless us and empower us for
that work. This summer, take some time
to think about the dominion you’ve been granted, the relationships and
responsibilities that implies and what God is asking you to do to care for it.
Peace,
Bishop Mike
Thanks for reading!
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