8.3.1 The Purpose of Creation.pdf

THE PURPOSE 8.3.1 OF CREATION This chapter presents the following key learning points: Creation affects people and provides for human needs People respect the forces of creation People rec...

THE PURPOSE 8.3.1 OF CREATION This chapter presents the following key learning points: Creation affects people and provides for human needs People respect the forces of creation People recognise they are unique within creation Stewardship of God’s creation is an important Christian responsibility. Creation affects people and provides for human needs Every person experiences creation. This includes the earth and everything in it – the plants, animals and people, the sun, stars and other planets. As people grow to appreciate and understand creation they realise that they are part of it. Creation affects them and they affect creation. This leads people to question: ‘What is the basic purpose of creation?’ Creation affects people in many ways. From an early age people are aware of the world in which they live. People of all ages are struck by spectacular scenes in nature. People express their appreciation for creation in many ways. Some paint, others take photographs. Some compose poems, songs or symphonies. Others simply enjoy their surroundings. People who appreciate creation often find themselves stirred to ask questions, such as: How can there be so much beauty in the world? How can there be so much detail? What is the purpose of it all? YEAR 8 | COME FOLLOW ME 1  In Class Work Take an aspect of nature that inspires you and attempt to depict it in any artistic form. You may even choose to write a short ‘shape’ poem. Display your work in class. Journal Activity Have you ever been moved by something you experienced in nature? Describe what happened. In Class Work Using magazine images, photographs or your own drawings, create a montage of your favourite parts of the natural environment such as the beach or the bush. Under each image, explain why this aspect of creation is so important to you. Display these around the class for further class reflection. 2 YEAR 8 | COME FOLLOW ME Creation provides for human needs People rely upon creation for the basic necessities of life – heat, light, food, water, clothing and shelter. This reliance on creation leads many people to ask: How could we live without the earth’s resources? Will they run out? Does everyone have a fair share? How can we make sure that there are sufficient resources for future generations? In Class Work Working with the person next to you, try to answer the questions people ask about creation. Do you have any other questions about creation? People respect the forces of creation One of the most important forces in creation is life. It is shared by all living organisms. There are many other forces in creation. These include gravity, storms, earthquakes, ocean currents, winds, the movement of stars and planets. People have learned from creation that laws and balances exist in creation. As they come to understand and respect these, they learn new ways to enjoy and benefit from creation. People have also discovered that to ignore or abuse nature’s laws and balances leads to harmful consequences. In Class Work List examples of how abuse of laws of nature leads to harmful consequences. As people learn to respect the forces within creation they ask questions such as: How do we need to treat creation to preserve its beauty? How can we avoid being harmed by creation? YEAR 8 | COME FOLLOW ME 3  All people share the basic resources needed for life including the air they breathe, water, light and the heat of the sun. People recognise they are unique within creation As people appreciate and understand creation they realise that they are a unique part of it. They share basic resources needed for life with the many other living creatures on earth; including the air they breathe, water, light and the heat of the sun. Like the galaxies, people are formed from natural elements that came into existence billions of years ago. At the same time, human beings are different from all other creatures. Human beings can keep growing in their understanding of creation and learn more by studying what they do not understand. They can appreciate its beauty and find joy and laughter in different aspects of it. People can demonstrate good qualities such as fairness, honesty, loyalty and courage. They admire these qualities in others, and as they Journal Activity learn to recognise and accept these qualities In your journal, write about what they discover goodness within themselves. makes you a special and unique People are capable of loving and enjoying part of creation. different life-long relationships. Their love for others can be so strong at times that it can move them to make sacrifices, even to the point of being willing to die for others. In Class Work Who are the people you find inspiring? List all the qualities that you think are admirable in the people you have chosen. How have these people influenced your life? 4 YEAR 8 | COME FOLLOW ME People are capable of making choices rather than being compelled to follow instincts. They are capable of working out right from wrong. As people realise that they are unique they ask themselves these questions: Why are humans different from the rest of creation? How am I different from others? How should I treat others and how should I expect others to treat me? As they realise they are unique, people recognise the need to respect life in different ways. This has led them to make laws T forbidding murder, to punish those who kill others through carelessness, expect governments R I G H to legislate in ways that will protect their environment as well as to provide for human needs such as hospitals, schools, police, and other services. It can also motivate WRONG individuals to risk personal health and safety to rescue others in serious situations. Stewardship of God’s creation is an important Christian responsibility Reasons why people neglect and harm creation People have the potential to live in harmony with creation. Unfortunately, neglecting and harming the natural environment has become a way of life for many people. There are various reasons why people contribute to environmental destruction, why they fail to wonder at and admire creation and why they adopt exploitative standards of living. In Class Work List reasons why people neglect and harm Unfortunately, neglecting and harming the natural environment has become a way of life for many people. YEAR 8 | COME FOLLOW ME 5 The tendency to take creation for granted People often take creation for granted I’m too busy and ignore its beauty and variety. Often to stop and this is because they are too busy to stop and appreciate creation. The less society smell the roses. cares about creation, the more likely it is to cause environmental damage and to deprive future generations of its beauty. In Class Work List some reasons why people do not allow time to appreciate creation. List ways in which the natural environment has been damaged. Discuss in small groups the consequences of these actions. The unfair use of resources Many people think of the resources of the earth solely in terms of making money. The result is that these resources are often exploited. There are problems also caused by countries that misuse and abuse the earth’s resources or take more than their fair share. Money, money, money... In Class Work Research some of the consequences of unfair use of the earth’s resources. Find newspaper examples of the ways in which the resource use of wealthy countries, groups or individuals has had a negative impact. 6 YEAR 8 | COME FOLLOW ME Developing a sense of stewardship for God’s creation For your information... People can learn the purposes of various A steward is a person entrusted with the aspects of creation in order to better care management of another’s property, such for and protect creation. They can restore as a house or estate. They are expected to natural resources and use the world’s act as the owner would act. ‘Stewardship’ resources in ways that are good for the means taking proper care of a resource whole of humanity. and never treating it only as personal property. Today many people in the world as well as many Catholics and other Christians believe that the earth belongs to the whole human family, including future generations. They should therefore relate responsibly to creation as its stewards. In Class Work In small groups list the various ways people show respect for the natural environment: at home at school in the wider community. Share your findings with the class. As a steward for creation, what do you think can be done to care for the natural environment? Stewardship played an essential role in the lives of the original inhabitants and custodians of Australia. So important was creation for the Australian Aboriginal people that they came to believe that they were part of the land, not just people who inhabited the land. This belief connected the Aboriginal people to their ancestors, to the animals and plants, to each other and essentially to the land itself. This connection is called the ‘Dreaming’. The stories that Aboriginal people tell about the Dreaming have been passed down orally for thousands of generations. Many stories have also been preserved in paintings, writings and through dance. To the Aboriginal people these stories about creation are sacred. The characters of the Dreaming are real people and human beings, who still influence Aboriginal Australia. These stories preserve the teaching that the landscape is the result of actions by spirits. These stories help to explain to Aboriginal Australia what life is all about. YEAR 8 | COME FOLLOW ME 7 Aboriginal people’s sense of oneness with creation has fostered a strong spirit of stewardship. It determines their laws about what they can eat, where they can live, whom they can marry, what they should teach their children and how to deal with problems they encounter. This connection with the land helps to explain why people feel so strongly about the destruction of sacred sites. In Class Work Discuss places that hold significance to both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people. Suggest a place from your own experience of the natural environment that you consider to be sacred. 8 YEAR 8 | COME FOLLOW ME