“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble” (Psalm 46:1)
We reel under the shock of what is happening to our fellow man in our beloved state of Kerala. The unexpected and unprecedented floods have shaken Kerala in the last few days. Homes have been destroyed, people displaced, hospitals shut down, livelihoods lost and there has been unspeakable damage to people, homes and belongings. The damage and destruction cuts across all boundaries of religion, caste, social status and wealth. As we look upon the extent of damage, we rest on God’s promise in Psalm 46:1-3,
“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear… though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging.”
We need to spend time in prayer, interceding for God’s safety and provision for the people of Kerala. At the same time, we need to reach out in practical ways. Those who have not yet submitted the Kerala flood relief and rehabilitation offering may please give their contributions in the coming Sundays. The Pastorate Committee is still firming up plans on how to utilize the collections but the intent is to work alongside the CSI Kerala diocese(s) once the floods have subsided. We will update once we have firmed up the plans.
“Everything depends on everything else” is the scientific philosophy of ecology. Human beings entrusted with the stewardship of creation have proved to be a failure in managing the resources of planet earth. We are on the edge of destruction. The need of the hour is to educate the people to coexist with God’s creation in the universe and not to exploit it to make easy money. God affirms life on earth but man destroys life by polluting and exploiting it as a commodity. The ecological crisis is created by modern industrial and technological growth and modern life. In this consumerist economy, the controlling logic of growth is greed and not need. This profit-oriented growth, which destroys the eco-balance, is engineered and controlled by multinational companies and nations.
The Church is cosmically oriented and participates in God’s cosmic mission. The mission is not for human alone, but for the whole of God’s cosmos. We need to see ecological crisis as a justice issue. The threat is to life in general. The life of the planet is endangered. We today want to affirm that the liberation or transformation that is witnessed in the Bible includes liberation for creation. We need to evolve a form of spirituality that takes seriously our commitment to the earth. It is freedom and food, dignity and equality, community and sharing of resources. Spirituality is contemplation and praxis. It is all that can contribute to the balance and blossoming the healing and wholeness of life, of the human race, the earth, the cosmos.
The fifth Sunday in September is celebrated as Women’s Sunday. Let us thank God for the enthusiasm and commitment of our Women’s fellowship members. Wishing you all a very happy women’s fellowship Sunday celebration and on behalf of our Parish, I take this opportunity to thank all our women’s fellowship members for all things you are doing for the benefit of the Church and society.
Yours in His Ministry, Nebu Achen
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