Description
The reading from Joel 1:8-10, 17-20 set for this week has quite a lot of words that women and men from all backgrounds who live and work the land in our vast land mass we call Australia could easily write or sing or paint at various times in their lives. This is especially true as we face up to the onslaught of the rapid changes happening because of climate change.
Where I live in the South West of Western Australia, the couple of hundreds years of settlement by people who do not know the rhythms of the peoples who have managed these lands for millennia have caused an enormous drop in rainfall. This is due to the deliberate removal of millions of acres of ancient native trees, the filling of natural water soaks and the introduction of flora and fauna that have no natural predators to keep them in check and many of these introduced species have forced the elimination of native species that have helped keep and till the soil naturally.
Psalm 18:6-19 will also resonate with many peoples around the world, including some in our own land where they experience the realities of earthquakes.  Earthquakes are a normal everyday part of life in Australia, but are very often under reported by the media because of the tiny population we have in our enormous land mass. This means that the regular reeling and rocking of the earth and the trembling of the mountains (verse 7) is only experienced by the plants, animals, birds and insects that live in the affected areas instead of every part of our scattered and limited population.
This ancient hymn gives expression to the understanding the people in those times had between the regular natural rhythms of seasons, storms and movement in the tectonic plates of our planet and their relationship with the Divine – being good or bad. The use of this ancient Jewish song provides an opportunity to open exploration of the way in which our contemporary community might see the natural rhythms of our planet linked to our relationship with the Divine. The Psalm also offers the chance for your community to wonder how these two might be related, and then if there is a linkage recognised to dig deeper to see if there are opportunities for your group to be actively working for climate change.
Romans 8:18-27 will also have echoes of deep truth and lived experiences for those around the planet who are experiencing the life altering challenges of human induced climate change.
Members of my congregation who were born in Papua New Guinea report that in their 50 years of life they have seen such enormous seas rises that their villages have had to migrate up the hills away from their traditional village space on the river banks. They have shared with our congregation photos of the cemetery from their villages now being under water and of land areas where crops once grew also being inundated with ocean water. Yet their faith in God, their participation in Christian life and their ministry in ensuring everyone has a safe place to sleep, adequate food, education and health care engages people of all ages in their villages. They continue in the hope of the reconciliation of the whole creation through the life of Christ Jesus.
Matthew 3:13 – 4:2 shares the importance that these two communities found in the story of Jesus being Baptised.
Was this simply a symbolic action for the community to encourage people to be Baptised or did this in fact signal the man Jesus committing himself to the call that God had placed upon his life and which it seems was affirmed by those around him who know him and recognised his giftedness for ministry?
The use of this passage opens the possibility for your group to talk about the way in which your tradition practices Baptism. Are you are community who practices Baptism of people of a certain age or are you a community who practices Baptism of all ages?
This can also open an opportunity for people to share experiences of witnessing a Baptism perhaps of a sibling or other family member or friend or it may be a chance for those who have been Baptised as older people to share their stories of Baptism. What led them to ask for Baptism and has Baptism changed their lives and their relationship with God and the church?
