"Extinction" by tarale is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0.
Alas for the day! For the day of the Lord is near, and as destruction from the Almighty it comes. Is not the food cut off before our eyes, joy and gladness from the house of our God?
The seed shrivels under the clods; the storehouses are desolate; the granaries are torn down because the grain has dried up.
How the beasts groan! The herds of cattle are perplexed because there is no pasture for them; even the flocks of sheep suffer.
- Joel 1:15-18, ESV
I published the first of this series on September 13, 2022. Seven months later, the world has made little or no progress in fighting climate change, while oil companies continue their devastation of our planet. I have argued here that biblically, Christians are responsible for caring for the earth. But most--at least most conservatives--continue to deny climate science and keep electing corrupt fossil fuel front-men and climate deniers as their political leaders. They are unmoved by the curse of Revelation 11:18: "God will destroy those destroying the earth." Apparently their respect for Scripture is only a concern where it does not contradict their oil-soaked ideology they learned from conservative media. They are deceived but don't know it. All this while the climate bad news continues to worsen.
Carbon Dioxide is a major greenhouse gas and is now at historic levels and continues to increase. As Arctic tundra thaws, it is releasing massive amounts of methane, a much more powerful greenhouse gas. Europe is in the middle of a major drought and water shortage. The Colorado River in the USA, which supplies water to seven states, is drying up. The Arctic and Antarctic glaciers are melting at much faster rates than predicted, and sea levels are rising accordingly, leading to more coastal flooding. Species are going extinct at alarming rates. We are headed to an El Nino ocean system which will cause more warming this year and next. Some parts of the Global South now have wet-bulb temperatures so high that humans cannot survive there. Dr. Guy McPherson, a world class conservation biologist, has warned us that we are in the midst of ecological collapse globally. When there is no habitat left, there is no life--including human life. He is now 'cancelled' by mainstream media for his efforts.
So what are our so-called leaders doing about it? Little or nothing. The USA is consumed by its 'exceptional' lust for world rulership: fighting Russia via a proxy war in the Ukraine; encircling China with military assets; forcing its allies to align themselves against Russia and China or face US sanctions. And Russia and China, through their BRICS association, are aligning against the West to avoid dependence on the US dollar and its sanctions. Most countries are more interested in securing their fossil fuel needs than moving to renewables--even though energy from renewables is now less expensive! Oil companies continue to sow doubt about climate science knowing fully well they are lying. And lying for what? To stuff as much money into their pockets before the people of earth realize they and their children and grandchildren have been sold down the river. I could go on and on--and here is a summary from 2021--but it should be obvious by now: the leadership of this world is incapable of addressing the very existential crisis it created. And this existential crisis is now snowballing out of control.
So what should we do as Christians and others who are concerned about the demolition of earth's ecosystems for the profit of a few billionaires? We should continue to bear witness to this travesty. We should align our lives according to renewable principles as an example to others. We should vote only for politicians who are dead serious about climate action. We can join an environmental group, like Third Act, and work with others for more impact. And for Christians, we need to pray emphatically that God's Kingdom will come soon, and His will be done on earth as in heaven (Matthew 6:9-13). Humans cannot--or will not--solve the problem they have created--this much is obvious. Only God can save us now, and He will, if we let Him.
See Rebel Jesus Band "Creation Cries" for a creation care song.