Signs of Fierce Commitment to Life

Fourth Sunday of Easter ● May 11, 2025

Rev. Jeff Wells © 2025

Readings: Quotes from Robin Wall Kimmerer, Jane Goodall, Joanna Macy, and Pope Francis

The texts of the readings are in the worship bulletin linked here.

Watch the worship video recording on the Church of the Village YouTube channel here.

For much of yesterday, I sat at my computer on the deck at our home in Pennsylvania. It is a wonderful spot to feel connected with nature and felt very inspiring for composing this message. I listened to the rustle of new leaves on a nearby oak tree, the calls of a dozen species of birds, the constant ripple of water from the Delaware River below. Every time I have the privilege of being in those beautiful surroundings, it reminds me of why and how much I love the other-than-human parts of nature. Why is that so important? Because we will always try to save that which we love. If we love birds and trees and wild mammals and reptiles and river systems and forests, we will give of ourselves to save them. We might even be willing to give our lives to save humans and other creatures on Earth, if circumstances demanded it.

We cannot avoid or ignore what is happening to living creatures and living systems on our planet. The signs have been there for a very long time. I remember reading biologist Paul Ehrlich’s book, The Population Bomb, in the early 1970s. Some of his predictions did not come to pass, but his concerns about the dangers of a rapidly growing human population were right on the mark. Pesticides, supercharged fertilizers, and fossil fuels gave humanity another half century without running short of food. However, the means used to make that possible have themselves created other problems such as huge numbers of dead birds and insects, too much carbon in the atmosphere, and the destruction of massive amounts of topsoil from single-crop agriculture. Already, scientists have calculated that we humans have overshot the Earth’s carrying capacity by 1-1/2 times. It comes down to this: “Ecologically, our civilization sucks out too many of the Earth’s resources for the Earth to replenish, and it pumps out too much waste for the Earth to detoxify.” Meanwhile, the human population continues to explode. Currently, there are about 8 billion human beings and by 2050 – in just 25 years – that number is projected to be 10 billion. 

So, as you can see, there is plenty for us to be anxious about and even scared about. But I have some good news for you today. There are significant signs of deep transformation in human consciousness that I believe should help us keep our hope alive for the future of humanity and all life on our planet.

In 2015, Pope Francis published an encyclical titled, Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home. That document is a plea for a more sustainable, equitable, and just world and a call to action. It emphasizes the critical need to care for the planet and all its inhabitants, including the poor and marginalized. Also, it highlights the interconnectedness of all beings. Laudato Si’ has been hugely influential among the 1.4 billion Roman Catholics in the world, giving them the authority of the church to carry out advocacy and develop theology and ethics around the ecological crisis. Also, it has been applauded and used as a resource by many non-Catholics. I was very relieved that the recent conclave at the Vatican – the most racially and geographically diverse in history – chose a new pope who reportedly is a strong supporter of continuing the emphasis on ecological harmony that Francis initiated.

Possibly the most exciting piece of good news I have to share with you today I learned just three weeks ago. According to a Global Climate Change Survey, completed in 2022, an average of 89 percent of those surveyed in 125 countries believe that climate change is real, it is due to human actions, and not enough is being done to address it. Now, this does not mean they all understand the details of the causes or possible solutions to the ecological crisis, but it does mean they believe humans and our natural environment are in grave danger and they want dramatic action taken to save us and the planet. And, it means that many of them will be open to the more dramatic and radical social and economic transformations that will be required, if we are to survive. 

Overall, 69 percent of respondents said they would be willing to give 1% of their income to fund actions to address climate change. In many countries in Latin America, Africa, Asia, and Europe the percentage was significantly higher. That’s huge! I read this as a sign not merely of self-interest and self-preservation, but of a fierce commitment to all life. The vast majority of humans are waking up and want to make a difference.

However, this huge majority of those who support more climate action, and are willing to help pay for it, believe they are in the minority. I admit that I, too, believed we were in the minority of human beings until I read this study. That’s why I am so excited by it. Because if we could close this perception gap, more people might find the courage to act on their beliefs about the ecological crisis and this could move us to a new tipping point, in which so much pressure would be generated on governments, businesses, religious institutions, and other social organizations that we might yet be able to avoid some of the worst collapse scenarios or at least be better prepared for them.

Another survey, called People’s Climate Vote, was done in 2024 by the United Nations Development Programme and the University of Oxford Department of Sociology. Among a lot of other data, it shows that large majorities in 85 percent of the countries surveyed support a quick transition away from fossil fuels to renewable, clean energy sources. This is true even in most of the big fossil fuel producing nations. The authors of this study did not just provide survey data, they also provide ways to help publicize our majority status in the world and to act upon the knowledge that we are many. To learn more about the results of this survey and how you can help to spread the news, go to peoplesclimate.vote. Also, I posted a link to it yesterday on the Church of the Village Facebook page. So, if you are on Facebook, please go there, check it out, and share it widely.

The book I mentioned earlier, The Population Bomb, is the same book that John Cobb’s son got him to read and which caused him to write his 1973 book, Is It Too Late?: A Theology of Ecology. I am so grateful for the huge creative contributions John made to finding solutions to the ecological crisis. Yet, the world has already reached the 1.5 centigrade increase in average global temperature that scientists have been warning us about since the 1960s. Some damage may not be reversed. We have already seen dire consequences and it is going to get worse. It is too late for some things. But I do not think it is too late to do anything. 

The ultra-rich certainly see the writing on the wall. Many are already creating fortified compounds with private armed security forces to escape from climate chaos and social upheaval. Mark Zuckerberg, for example, is spending $100-million on a fortress compound in Hawaii, complete with a 5,000 square foot bunker with concrete walls and an escape hatch. In 2023, the prestigious magazine, Architectural Digest, listed “luxury bunkers” as one of the real estate trends of that year.

Contemporary global civilization as we know it will almost assuredly collapse. We no longer have time to transform it carefully, rationally, and slowly. It will self-destruct from the weight of its own inertia running up against the consequences of its long-held destructive compulsions. The question now is what will follow it? Will humanity descend into chaos of mutually building barricades and arming ourselves against each other? Or, will we find ways to create communities of mutual love and support that work for the common good of all? Will be build a new civilization – a new creation, as the Bible describes it. I believe that God is trying to lead us toward that better future. There are already tens of thousands of organizations and tens of millions of individuals actively working for this outcome.

Climate anxiety and fear are natural and even helpful in keeping us alert, but we cannot afford to allow them to paralyze us. We will face a lot of very hard choices and challenges in the coming years. We will need to continue to learn and grow. We will need to hold onto and grow in love. We will be required to grow in courage, resilience, and agility because we will face a lot of change very quickly. What we want to accomplish is massive and hard to imagine – the transformation of the whole of human society so it can exist in harmony with the rest of nature. Getting through this crisis and collectively creating a new kind of civilization will take billions of people like us speaking out, telling our stories, encouraging others, showing grace toward those who don’t agree with us, and acting in many and various ways to propel the needed transformation on multiple levels and in every sphere of human existence. Each of us and we as a community of God lovers and seekers have to decide what kind of difference we want to make and then act.

In this huge collective effort, I believe the Church of the Village can be a beacon for many across the world. Our congregation, and many others like it, across denominations and faith traditions, has already made the shift to being an Earth-loving, justice-seeking spiritual community striving to contribute to moving humanity toward a more positive tipping point. We are already embracing and sharing both the honest reality of this crisis we are in and the good news that there are still actions we can take to mitigate, repair, regenerate, and heal the harm that human civilization has wrought. 

So, beloved, let us do our part and join with God in leading and inspiring the more than 7 billion people in the world who recognize the crisis and want governments, businesses, and social organizations to take dramatic action not just to move to clean energy, but to learn and create new ways to live together as humans and with all other life on the planet. Let us live into our fierce commitment to life. 

1    Brian D. McLaren, Life After Doom: Wisdom and Courage for a World Falling Apart (Kindle Edition, p. 23).

2  “Globally representative evidence on the actual and perceived support for climate action,” Peter Andre, Teodora Boneva, Felix Chopra & Armin Falk, Nature Climate Change volume 14, pages 253-259 (2024).

3  https://peoplesclimate.vote

4  Andre Mayer, “From luxury bunkers to tactical vehicles, the ultra-rich are preparing for the Big One,” CBC News. Posted: Mar 9, 2024, 4:00 AM EST.