Blessed are you who are poor

 "Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of Heaven ... But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation."  (Luke, 6, 17-26) By the standards of the planet, everyone in our congregation is rich. We do not go hungry, we have little to weep about, we are mostly not hated. But our happy situation builds on the exploitation of resources that are pumping carbon into the atmosphere that will eventually make life unsustainable for millions who die from heat or from drought or from floods. We sit in our (somewhat) heated church in good clothes in a safe and comfortable city filled with riches of art and culture, and for an hour on a Sunday morning we feel sorry for the less advantaged. I do too, while confessing  that I am part of the problem that is threatening the planet. 

No single person can prevent climate change, but we can take collective responsibility and  make a few steps to keep the situation from becoming worse. Fiona Harvey wrote in the Guardian (10 February 2022) (LINK) about film maker Richard Curtis who has encouraged  "ministers to follow up the UK’s legal commitment to reach net zero emissions by 2050 by making it mandatory for pension schemes to align their portfolios with the target." Every one of us with money in pension funds can put pressure on the fund managers to switch to investments with lower carbon footprints. It may mean a bit less income in the longer run, but would hardly reduce us to being poor and represents one minor step in helping to save God's creation.

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