“Our Bodies and Our Land”

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[“SHARE” APR – JUN 2018 ] BACK TO THE BIBLE

Written by: Dr. Bernard Wong (Assistant Professor (Theological Studies) and Associate Dean of China Graduate School of Theology, Board Member of CEDAR Fund)

 

During Joseph’s tenure as Egypt’s prime minister, he managed to keep his country fed while all the other lands experience famine from the great drought. People were buying food from Joseph, and with their livestock when they ran out of money. When they finally ran out of things to offer, they told Joseph,

“We cannot hide from our lord the fact that since our money is gone and our livestock belongs to you, there is nothing left for our lord except our bodies and our land. Why should we perish before your eyes—we and our land as well? Buy us and our land in exchange for food, and we with our land will be in bondage to Pharaoh. Give us seed so that we may live and not die, and that the land may not become desolate.” (Genesis 47:18-19)

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Week 7: Shalom and Creation Care

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(This article[1] was extract from Live Just.ly, published by Micah Challenge in 2014.)

 

Written by: Ben Lowe, Jason Fileta, and Lisa Graham Mcminn

 

We hope to take this article published by Micah Challenge as the closing ePrayer article for the Lent season. Echoing to week 1’s article and the theme of “Reconciling with the Land”, let’s continue to look at the passage from Colossians chapter 1 and reflect together when we talk about shalom, we should not neglect caring for God’s creation.

 

When we think of the need for shalom in the world, it is easy to think first and mainly of human concerns such as the conflict in Syria, southern Sudan’s crisis, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

 

We rarely think of environmental issues such as pollution, animal suffering, deforestation, and a scarcity of water. But Jesus Christ is the Lord of all, and he is bringing peace and reconciliation to all levels of relationships through his blood shed on the cross:

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Week 6: Busyness is Not an Excuse

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As Lent is coming to an end this year, it’s our hope to have aided you in the journey of loving God, one another, and the land with this “Reconciling with the Land” ePrayer series, through the promotion of mindful uses of resources and ending our habits that would exploit the environment God has given us. However, taking care of the land is not a festive activity! We shall never neglect the consequences of our actions on the environment at any given time, no matter how busy we might be. Our partner, SATHI, and the slum community in Bangladesh, set an example for us in loving the land daily.

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Week 5: No Backyard is Too Small

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Our thoughts and values guide our everyday life and decision we make. The same applies to farmers and pastors.

 

“You’ve never been a farmer so you may not know, but that tiny piece of land of his could never have anything good grow out of it!” said a pastor to our project staff, Pui Shan, after visiting an impoverished Palaung family in northern Thailand and saw their backyard. If you were that farmer, you might not want to pick up that plow again after hearing the pastor’s words.

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Week 4: When the Drought Hits…

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In the past two weeks, we have examined two farming methods that could help restore the land. However, the nature is not always men’s ally. When abnormal weather happens, what could impoverished farmers do to help themselves?

Drought is a frequent occurrence in central India where climate changes have caused great damages to the local farmers due to scarcity of rains. Climate change is one of the factors that drives farmers into a corner. In 2015 alone, there were over 12,000 farmer suicide cases due to severe financial difficulties in India [1]. Our partner in India, EFICOR, said countless farmers and their families suffered from hunger, and were forced to sell their livestock, or leave their hometowns in the hope of finding a job in the cities. This showed men had completely lost their hope for the land.

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