EARTH DAY

The Answers To Earth Day

I feel that with all the flak alternative religions often recieve, and Paganism being nature based, I must respond to the fundamentalists' remarks and criticisms. Tammy Ritchie has an essay entitled, "The Evils of Earth Day." A group of parents recently sued a New York school district on 12 counts, citing that their curriculum included "instructing children to worship graven images and 'false gods.'" (The students were being taught earth worship, as well as making little Buddhas and worry dolls in class.) They won on four of the twelve charges. I am a supporter of Separation of Church and State, and that should include ALL religions. But at the same time, some people want my children to have to recite the Commandments in school. (?!?) I guess that teaching children to personify the earth and it's fragile ecosystems, in hopes that they will treat our world with the kindness and respect they would show people or animals, is just more of that ol' satanic Pagan worship, huh??

Earth Day traditions began back in Spring of 1989. It was put into practice annually, so that every April 22nd, organizations and activists could rejuvenate public awareness in such projects as recycling, pollution, and preservation.

Present evidence suggests to me that the message "Pagans worship Mother Earth" is clear to most people. So could the logic then be, "We think Pagans are evil, and Pagans worship nature, therefore, to respect and care for nature is evil?" Maybe some people yearn for the Biblical Armageddon; the time when they can rise up to the Heavens, cursing down damnations upon the rest of us. After all, if the earth ceases ability to be fruitful or sustain life, isn't that the end of the world??

Wake up, earthlings. As of yet, there is no other lush and rich planet in the universe like this one. We are killing this one, and we cannot return it for a new one when it breaks. It should be a no-brainer that we put aside religious persecutions and stigmas, and do what we need to do: Clean up our messes and protect this environment. If we don't, we won't have a place to live to worry about our spirituality.