Live Simply So That Others May Simply Live: Reflections on Lent and Environmental Stewardship

Linda B. Rimer, Chair Environmental Stewardship Committee

We all know that Chapel Hill is a great place for provocative bumper stickers. So it was on a bumper sticker in the Weaver Street Market parking lot that I first saw this quote from Mahatma Gandhi: "Live simply so that others may simply live."

Beyond immense respect for a great man, why is the Environmental Stewardship Committee asking you to consider these words during the Lenten season and with special attention to the call that God has given us to care for His creation? The first part is probably obvious. While many of us think of Lent as a time to 'give up' something we like, such as chocolate, or movies, wouldn't it be a wonderful way to prepare for Easter if we attempted to simplify our lives? Would this not be more symbolic of following Jesus into the wilderness and using any newly found time and energy for reflection and soul-searching on how we are living our lives?

The relationship to environmental stewardship may not be as clear. But the current lifestyles of many of us in the developed world are anything but simple. We surround ourselves with "things," many and multiple things: multiple cars, multiple televisions, multiple computers, multiple homes. Analyses by the Earth Council, an organization set up to monitor the recommendations made by the 1992 Rio Earth Summit, demonstrate that humanity as a whole is consuming at a rate 35% beyond the limit where nature can still sustainably regenerate itself.

As a society, we Americans are responsible for an inordinate share of the total consumption of products and materials compared with other countries. From a report by the Union of Concerned Scientists, we learn that Americans use 33% of the world's paper, 25% of the oil, 27% of the aluminum and 19% of the copper - despite representing just five percent of the world's population.

Consider this: the residential space per American was 312 square feet in 1950; in 1993 it was 742 square feet; in 1987, the number of shopping centers in the US surpassed the number of high schools; the waste generated each year in the US would fill a convoy of 10-ton garbage trucks 145,000 miles long - over half way to the moon.

But we need to remember that these are aggregate American numbers. There are many in our community who cannot fill even their basic needs. During the months of January and February, the Environmental Stewardship and Social Ministry Committees cut and delivered wood to families in the surrounding area who depend on wood for their primary heat source. On January 24, we delivered wood to a gentleman who had found it necessary to begin burning his own furniture for warmth.

Collectively, our consumption patterns are stressing our natural resources. But are we happier? Are our lives more fulfilled because of all the things we buy? Isn't Lent a wonderful time to pause, simplify our lives, consume less 'stuff', buy fewer 'things' - and try and answer this question for ourselves?

References available on request: lbrimer@bellsouth.net