from Flickr (CC License)

Human population growth – it’s one of the most controversial and difficult aspects of our environmental crisis.  In all likelihood, it is controversial because it’s difficult:  Human beings are precious, especially if you hold to the Biblical teaching that humans are ‘created in the image of God‘ – but even if you don’t have that perspective.  Really, which of us, no matter what our religious (or non-) persuasion, would put a pet or a backyard squirrel on the same plane as one of our children or grand-children? Read more »

I ‘ve had several opportunities this summer to enjoy some quiet moments on porches.  Not too long ago, I sampled my brother – -in-law’s porch in Bethesda, Maryland, not far from Washington DC.  The day was just right – not too hot, not cold, not very humid.  The porch furniture was just right – lovely couches that allowed me to sit up or lie back,  tall glass of sweet-tea close to the elbow.  The surround-sound soundtrack gave me birds, lawnmowers, airplanes, and an occasional car wandering down the street on the outdoor channel, while the murmur of voices reminded me of family members busy at various tasks inside the house.  Light patterns shifted with alternating clouds and sun, punctuated by an occasional summer rain shower that left almost as soon as it came.

It was a perfect place and a perfect time for reading – and I made the most of it. Read more »

Aldrin on the moon (NASA photo)

Today marks 40 years since Neil Armstrong and ‘Buzz’ Aldrin stepped out of the Eagle Lunar Lander and walked on the moon.  It was a day of history – many of those my age remember it well.  The event culminated a decade of technical effort and nationalistic fervor – the ’space race’ was one important aspect of politics in the 1960’s, a period of time  remembered more for other events (wars and assassinations come to mind).

Politics and possibly misguided nationalism aside, there is no question that the achievement was real and historically significant.  ‘Unprecedented’ hardly covers it.  For the first time a human being had escaped the gravity and atmosphere of our home planet and set foot on solid ground ‘in space’.

What we did is clear enough.  But what did it mean?  What does it mean today? Read more »

One of my intentions at Our Father’s World is to create posts that reflect good writing as well as sound thoughts within the general discussion topic of God, creation and our role in creation.  Donn Ring is a friend I haven’t met yet – a man with an eye for beauty in God’s world and a gift that enables him to convey that beauty in words.  Donn sent this email around yesterday, and I have asked him for permission to post it.  Enjoy!

I went for a walk in Middle Wood to welcome the month of July. This Middle Wood is a special place, but visited by few.

In the montane forests of the wilderness West there are the magnificent old growth giants of the lower valleys and the lofty sub-alpine groves that cluster among the broken mountain meadows that descend from spectacular alpine and tundra heights. Most everyone adores the bottomlands with their crystalline cascading rivers, or the pungent copses of weather twisted fir on the high slopes. Read more »