I was going to wait on this one but the article by Naomi Klein is so in line that I have decided to submit this today. There will be a link to the article at the end.

I have been praying about Copenhagen. It has been much on my mind. One reason is that while I came here to research the past (how humans manage scarce resources like water) I have found myself participating in a competition to redesign the city for the future. It has been an interesting experience. I am seen as the optimist in the group. I am passionate about addressing climate change and will make big vision proposals. Inevitably the group (all Italian and  residents of the city) explain patiently to me that for historical or political (mostly political) reasons my proposal is impossible. I counter that it is needful, that the time is here, this is it, and old political structures will be gone in 10 years anyway. They then normally spend about an hour discussing my proposal. Back and forth the conversation goes with much gesturing to the city plan. I follow about half of it. But in the end the big vision somehow gets incorporated into the competition submission. They believe this means they cannot win but it is the right thing to do. I have said that a big vision is what people are seeking right now and this might well mean that they win.

So Copenhagen and groundshifts. As I walked home from a competition meeting last night I was thinking about this strange moment. How the past/present/future have all met in a kind of Einsteinian (did I spell that right?) space/time continuum. I believe we are at a very important moment. No matter what agreements do or do not come out of Copenhagen I believe that life will never again be the same. There will be a major, tectonic shift. The ground under our feet will be changed and we will learn to walk differently.

Such moments are full of opportunity and peril. But I am trusting that God’s Spirit is actively involved with this. I believe we will see and hear the Kingdom proclaimed in December in ways many of us might not easily recognize. So we should keep our eyes and ears open.

When I taught environmental science last year I always asked a question of my college/university students when we got to the issue of climate change. I asked them, why they were not out marching in the streets since their futures were at stake here. Generally they explained that they had been uninformed about the issues.  And as many of my students came from all over the globe I could believe it. But I realized I faced the same challenge. I am a middle-aged, reasonably agreeable, generally law abiding, woman. Was I willing to step out and take a risk in terms of their futures, in terms of caring for God’s creation?  So far, that situation has not appeared in my life. But I was fascinated recently that former Vice President Al Gore endorsed civil disobedience as a response to climate change. And the last quote in Naomi’s article is interesting about the costs of obedience. Christians are called to be obedient to God alone, not political systems or governments. When did I become so timid in regards to such things?

Even if you don’t intend to march in Copenhagen (or bike ride or anything else), please pray. It is a most critical moment for all of us. Here’s the article:  (sorry I don’t have my mouse with me so I will have to do this the old fashion and less visually nice way. )

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2009/nov/12/seattle-coming-age-disobedient-copenhagen

Cheryl