Americans are losing their vision. Literally. Researchers are learning that the real reason for the dramatic surge in myopia is that we are becoming a nation of dedicated indoorsmen.
Author: rustypritchard
Environmental Stewardship and Virtue
Having ignored environmental issues for so long, we may wish we could simply look up some Bible texts, or trust our hearts, to determine what to do--how to steward the earth well. We can't. We wind up aping the ideologies and practices of the left and the right, without much to contribute ourselves, being either uncritically accepting or unreasonably dismissive of claims of environmental crisis. The way to learn a virtuous approach to creation care, is to begin with small, repeated, steps of faithfulness, knowing that we will make mistakes, but concerned more to develop a virtuous character than to "follow rules" or "follow our hearts".
Climate scientists, skeptics earn a “great big time out”
By now you're bound to have heard of the great "Climategate" scandal of late 2009. Hackers broke into the computer archives of the Climatic Research Unit at the University of East Anglia and stole data and email archives dating back 10 years. Then, somehow (who can say?) these files found their way into the hands of climate uber-skeptics. It was discovered that--shock, horror--climate scientists were saying rude and very unscientific things about their most relentless critics.
Overpopulation: The environmental problem that isn’t
The "problem of overpopulation" is taking care of itself. Public policy should focus more directly on the things that make people better off. Coercive population control is immoral, and other efforts at "regulating population" are less effective than helping families lead productive, rewarding, and flourishing lives.
Should You Worry about Mercury in Swine Flu Vaccine?
Hint: if you wear a seat belt but also believe that thimerosal preservatives in vaccines cause autism, you may be inconsistent. Pregnant women and small children, and others at risk, should get the vaccine when it is available.
No Waste November by Michael Abbaté
A whole month without throwing anything away? Is it possible? Ask Michael Abbaté.
Kids, knives, and creation care
If your eight-year-old doesn't have a pocketknife and know how to use it, you might not be a very good parent. It's a key tool in learning to care for creation and to love nature.
All Creatures Great and Small
Animal welfare is a neglected issue for many creation care advocates. A blind spot perhaps, or an area of carefully-maintained ignorance (as it has been for me). It wasn't so for William Wilberforce. The Christian anti-slavery hero was also one of the co-founders of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. He was a clear example of holistic thinking about mercy and justice.
Christopher Wright on Creation Care
In CT this month, Christopher Wright of John Stott Ministries in the U.S., and author of The Mission of God: Unlocking the Bible's Grand Narrative, included the "world of creation" among the dimensions of the whole world that biblical mission must address (Whole Gospel, Whole Church, Whole World | The Global Conversation http://bit.ly/4Dnm1G): The world … Continue reading Christopher Wright on Creation Care
Taking the Measure of the Real Economy
A healthy economy is a necessary but not sufficient condition for human flourishing. C.S. Lewis would call it a “second thing” rather than a “first thing”. A healthy economy should serve higher goals of justice, peace, compassion, and rest. In the same manner that Wendell Berry asked “What Are People For?” we should always ask, “what is the economy for?”
Tilling and Keeping 