Where art thou Martin Luther
Religion is something we try to avoid here at DTE - kind of like that old saying about what not to talk about at the dinner table. Which is funny because religion's other dinner-talk taboo half, politics, is something we dabble in daily. We're just better versed in talking politics. When it comes to religion, that's an arena we just don't want to spare in. Or better yet, we'll leave it to the expert (our DTE collegue Craig Goodwin and his wonderful blog Year of Plenty).
That said, there was a fascinating article by Anthony B. Robinson that appeared recently on Crosscut. In it, he looked at the idea of carbon offsets and other offset programs and compared them to that of Catholics buying indulgences. Here is an excerpt - read the entire article HERE:
One thing that does strike me as right about the carbon offsets idea is that it recognizes that all of us are implicated, that none of us (to use religious language) is without sin. All of us participate to some degree in increasing the amount of carbon in the atmosphere. We all have an impact.
At their best religions remind us that we too have a part in the evils we deplore and that it is not enough, dangerous in fact, to only blame others. John Calvin, another of the Protestant reformers, famously taught that confession of sin always begins with the house and people of God. Take a look in the mirror. He who is without sin throw the first stone.
At their worst religions neatly (too neatly) divide people into categories of pure and impure, righteous and unrighteous, saved and unsaved. Such easy divides tend to encourage self-deception on the part of those who see themselves as the righteous while sowing the seeds of judgment and division.
So, in a sense, carbon offsets remind us that none are righteous, not completely. I have my air travel problem. You have your own issues. Making a donation to the Canadian site, or another, may help balance things out. We're in this together and we need one another if we're going to make progress on a common challenge.
