Message: For the Love of Creation / Psalm 23 & John 10:11-18

I begin the sermon today with one of the inspiring stories from Greek mythology. Once upon a time, Erysichthon was a king of Thessaly. In his city, there was a big tree behind the temple of Demeter, the goddess of farming and abundance. People loved and respected this tree a lot. The king was jealous of how much people cared about the tree. Without any respect or regret, he ordered to cut it down. And this made Demeter angry, so she decided to punish Erysichthon.

Demeter went to Limos, the goddess of hunger and famine, and asked her to punish the king who did not respect nature or the gods. Even though Limos was the opposite goddess of Demeter, she agreed to help. When Limos gave Erysichthon her curse, his never-ending hunger started. No matter how much he ate, he was still hungry. His hunger got so bad that he ate everything he could, using all his money and resources to fill his stomach.

His hunger kept getting worse. He even sold his daughter for food. But it did not help his endless appetite. He kept eating everything, getting weaker and more desperate every day. He asked other gods to stop his hunger, but they could not help him. His never-ending hunger made him go crazy and lose hope. Eventually, Erysichthon ate himself because he could not find anything else to eat.

We are facing a serious ecological crisis: global warming. As we produce more greenhouse gases, the earth gets hotter. According to the United Nations, the warmest decade on record were from 2011 to 2020, and each decade since the 1980s has been hotter than before. This leads to more heatwaves, warmer oceans that raise sea levels and threaten coasts, and faster wildfires. Climate change makes storms more powerful and frequent in some places and water scarce in others. Because of it, we are losing species faster than ever. It harms our health, with bad air, diseases, and food shortages affecting about 13 million people each year. Moreover, it makes poverty worse by damaging homes and jobs, causing about 23.1 million people to move each year.

Greenhouse gases are the direct cause of global warming, but its roots lie in people's never-ending hunger. Our planet provides the resources and space for everyone to live fully and happily, but it is never enough to satisfy our endless desires. When we fail to appreciate the material and spiritual gifts from creation, when we do not value each piece of bread and each cup of water, and when we focus only on having a bigger house, a better car, and fancier clothes, we are not much different from Erysichthon.

According to the Bible, God created the world with the Word (Genesis 1, John 1:1-3) or Wisdom (Proverbs 8:22-36). The first creation story in Genesis says seven times, "God saw that it was good," which means God saw the creation as perfectly beautiful and good. God wanted all creatures that contained God’s word and wisdom to be fruitful and multiply (Genesis 1:21). Because of this, God created humans and said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth" (Genesis 1:28).

The problem began when God’s first command to humankind was misused. Some church leaders in the Middle Ages twisted this command, arguing it meant they could exploit nature however they wanted. They saw everything in nature as a tool to fulfill human desires. They lost their reverence and gratitude for the creation filled with the Word and Wisdom. Instead, they encouraged digging up stones and cutting down trees to build larger cathedrals. They cleared forests and fields to create more pastures for sheep, aiming to earn more money from wool. They also built huge artificial gardens and fountains in their cities to show off their wealth and power.

Eventually, all of Europe was full of Erysichthons. They did not hesitate to exploit natural resources. Their hunger stained the earth with blood. When they used up their own resources, they went to other continents, which hurt both Indigenous peoples and creatures around the world. When they discovered oil, the black gold, their never-ending hunger grew even faster. Today, the world is facing the consequences of that hunger.

However, God will never give up on this creation and us. Today's Psalm and Gospel readings emphasize that God is a good shepherd. A good shepherd never gives up on his sheep. A good shepherd risks his life to care for them. A good shepherd uses a rod and staff to protect his sheep when they walk through the darkest valley. 

When the people of God were in crisis, the Good Shepherd sent prophets to share God’s message. These prophets warned people about God's judgments. But their messages did not always end with bad news. They also proclaimed the hope that would arise when people turned to God.

When I was in seminary in Korea, I learned about the environmental crisis and started studying it. But the more I learned, the more worried and helpless I felt. Most books and resources about the issue made it seem hopeless. Then, in 2006, I read a book called “Good News for A Change” by Canadians David Suzuki and Holly Dressel. It showed me how people worldwide make a difference by protecting the environment in various ways. That book gave me hope and made me believe that if we trust God, our Good Shepherd, and continue working for a better world, God will guide us to fulfill our mission for creation.

We are facing a big problem: climate change. It is a worldwide issue that no single person can fix alone. However, humanity has a history of coming together to solve serious environmental problems. In 1987, in Montreal, 197 countries agreed to reduce and eventually stop using harmful chemicals that damage the ozone layer, like CFCs. The ozone layer acts like Earth's sunscreen, protecting us from harmful UV radiation from the sun. Too much UV radiation can cause skin cancer, harm plants, and affect marine life. Scientists in the mid-20th century found that the ozone layer was getting thinner because of CFCs. It was hard to solve because CFCs were already used in many things like fridges and air conditioners. But people worked together to make the Montreal Protocol, and now we know the ozone layer has recovered since then.

We are not Erysichthon, but God’s stewards. Our God is not Demeter, but the Good Shepherd. God would never allow us to consume ourselves with never-ending hunger. God sends out prophets for us and creation. Earth Day on April 22 is a great opportunity to listen to God’s message through the prophets today and commit to returning to God. If we do not give up on God's dream for creation, God will reveal the Word and Wisdom to us through the blue and pale dot, the Earth.

Thanks be to God. Amen.

Rev. Min Hwang

South Stormont Pastoral Charge

Ingleside-NewIngton United Church & St. Andrew's-St. Mark's United Church