People must recognize God's delight in His creation, a prominent theologian told an eager congregation at St. Andrew and St. Paul, Montreal. Lethbridge-raised Dr. Norman Wirzba, currently chair of the Philosphy Department at Kentucky's Georgetown College, said only through that recognition can we fully see the miracles that abound around us everyday with love and respect.
In the wake of the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Al Gore, Wirzba brought a theologically grounded message of environmentalism to the church's annual October series. Gardening, he maintained, teaches us the patient attendance of God's work that has disappeared since agribusiness and urban development took over farmlands, and biochemistry extended food-supply lines around the world. We know neither where all that neatly-packaged supermarket food comes from nor who produced it. Wirzba recommended seeking out producers in local communities, getting to know them, and understanding the link between the food we eat and God's delight in sharing his Creation with us.
Wirzba is the author of Living The Sabbath and The Paradise of God and will be contributing to the Record in coming months. —Keith Randall
