The Prophets and Our Resources

 

Review of the previous post.

The previous post, post number 9 of 13, continued the discussion of what the prophets said and discussed a basis in the Bible for a method of practicing ecotheology which is based in the Bible but differs from the current method of practicing ecotheology

 

Preview of this post.

This post, post number 10 of 13, discusses the Ground Rules (presented in another series) as they apply to the field of ecotheology.

 

III. The Ground Rules[1]

As discussed in the series on God’s Ground Rules, one of the ground rules is:

Men shall share living space and resources with each other.

While it is not a zero sum and while we are creating both wealth and new sources of energy^[2], neither wealth nor resources appear to be infinite. As more and more people take out of the system, either by taking goods and services without putting something back or by taking out natural resources without putting something back, eventually, both will become exhausted. The rate of returning to the system must be at least equal to the rate of removal in order to be sustainable. While the creation of wealth and the creation of new resources would delay the exhaustion, it will not prevent it unless there is return from the users. Thus, to make the two psalms, 24:1 and 115:16 consistent, we should be able to use our resources, but must do so judiciously and with reverence and realize that the resources are not ours alone. The ground rule instructs us to make this balance.

As the ground rule states, we must share with each other. That means worldwide sharing from and with all. Those in Africa must share with those in North America and the like. Accordingly, if those in Africa are taking out resources, someone, somewhere must return some resources in order for the total worldwide resources to be sustainable. This also applies to those within a nation^[3].

 

Preview of the next post.

The next post, post number 11 of 13, begins a discussion of practical considerations for the method of applying ecotheology discussed in this series by presenting a couple of basic questions that must be considered.

 

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[1] For reference, the Ground Rules are different from Guidelines because the Ground Rules cannot be violated by man and apply to both God and to man; whereas the Guidelines such as Noahide law and the Ten Commandments are just that – Guidelines and apply only to man. The Ground Rules which man cannot violate and which God can violate only under the narrowest and most dire circumstances are:

 

Man shall have a finite lifetime

Men shall share living space and resources with each other

Man shall co-exist with other men

Neither God nor Man will have the ability to predict the future

There will be consequences for all actions

Various consequences for any particular action will cover a range of probabilities

Man will have the free will to choose among various options

Man will have the abilities required to exercise his free will

There will be evil in the world

Neither God nor Man can change the past

Neither God nor Man will be omnipotent

Neither God nor Man can control time

 

 

[2] See The Ultimate Resource 2 by Julian Simon, published by The Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ 1996.

 

[3] This approach is somewhat akin to the Consequentialist ethical principle propounded by Jeremy Bentham and J.S. Mill, see J.S. Mill, Utilitarianism in Plamenatz, English Utilitarians, 169    which is the class of normative ethical theories holding that the consequences of one’s conduct are the ultimate basis for any judgment about the rightness or wrongness of that conduct. Thus, for example, from a consequentialist standpoint, a morally right act (or omission from acting) is one that will produce a good outcome, or consequence. In an extreme form, the idea of consequentialism is commonly encapsulated in the English saying, “the ends justify the means”, meaning that if a goal is morally important enough, any method of achieving it is acceptable.

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