My first encounter with the word “ecology” was on a poster stapled to a utility pole when I was a college sophomore. Since then, climate change has been at the epicenter of ecological conversation, an inconvenient truth for the current rendition of the Know-Nothing Party.
Ecology enriches theology by connecting us to all things, an inter-relatedness rooted in a more unitive consciousness. Last week in Michigan at the Muskegon State Park, we saw 9 inches of rain in 24 hours. It was memorable, but nothing compared to those in the wake of Hurricane Helene.
At the Petoskey and Straits State Parks, we had idyllic fall weather. But, winters are rugged. In January, the average high is 27°F and the average low is 14°F, with 37 inches of snow. As I grow older, theology, cosmology and ecology are more tightly woven together.
The Universe is 13.7 billion years old (give or take 200 hundred million). Earth is 4.5 billion years old (plus or minus 50 million). Those numbers were on my mind as Friar, Cathey and I enjoyed a Petoskey sunset. Two days later, in downtown Petoskey, we heard, “Friar!” A young woman we met that sundown snapped this picture as she left the platform overlooking the beach. She said, “Let me send you a photo.” It was one moment of ecological grace among many during in the past 13.7 billion years.
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