Contrary to what may seem obvious, this post is not about environmentalism. A very large (and legitimate) concern in many cultures today is concern over the environment. We are concerned about the quality of the air, the quality of the water (both fresh and salt water), we are concerned with the quality and health of the atmosphere, we are concerned with climate change. With the exception of the last one (a buzzword really), we ought to be concerned with the creation that God has given us.
But I believe, even more importantly, is the spiritual environment in which one lives. It is very easy to see the quality of air (smog), the quality of water (clear or clouded) and the changes in global temperatures. But what is not easy to see, unless one has been trained to see, is the spiritual quality of life. This is especially true in the US. The United States, supposedly a Christian county, presents an image of freedom. But with freedom comes responsibility and we are not responsible. We use the freedom we have as a license for sin.
When someone is free to flaunt sexual perversion as a right, the mentality of the culture has gotten away from thinking Christianly. The last thing I am arguing for is a draconian state that crushes anyone and anything that disagrees with it. That would be bad. We no longer live under the law as they did in the Old Testament. But this does not mean we are then free to indulge in whatever our imaginations can conceive.
Ask yourself, what is the spiritual environment in which you live? Does love for God and love for neighbor control and direct the culture? Or is the culture motivated by comfort and entertainment? Try to step back, look at the spiritual health of your environment by comparing to the life Jesus taught and the life that the Orthodox church teaches. We are all a long ways away from faithfulness.
But I believe, even more importantly, is the spiritual environment in which one lives. It is very easy to see the quality of air (smog), the quality of water (clear or clouded) and the changes in global temperatures. But what is not easy to see, unless one has been trained to see, is the spiritual quality of life. This is especially true in the US. The United States, supposedly a Christian county, presents an image of freedom. But with freedom comes responsibility and we are not responsible. We use the freedom we have as a license for sin.
When someone is free to flaunt sexual perversion as a right, the mentality of the culture has gotten away from thinking Christianly. The last thing I am arguing for is a draconian state that crushes anyone and anything that disagrees with it. That would be bad. We no longer live under the law as they did in the Old Testament. But this does not mean we are then free to indulge in whatever our imaginations can conceive.
Ask yourself, what is the spiritual environment in which you live? Does love for God and love for neighbor control and direct the culture? Or is the culture motivated by comfort and entertainment? Try to step back, look at the spiritual health of your environment by comparing to the life Jesus taught and the life that the Orthodox church teaches. We are all a long ways away from faithfulness.
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