FRIENDS,
“I will put it in just a few short sentences…
To be admired in her loveliness.
To be tasted in her delicious fruits.
To be listened to in her teaching.
To be endured in the severity of her discipline.
To be cared for as a maternal source from whence we come,
a destiny to which we return. It’s very simple.”
At a Gaia gathering in 2003, philosopher, ‘geologian’ and Gaia ancestor Thomas Berry was asked ‘what does the Earth desire?’. This poem was his response.
Thomas’s great gift was the foresight and clarity with which he was able to distill the essence of the transformation required of those of us born of and living in industrial societies at this time of crisis.
He called on us, our movements, to “transform the western industrial institutions of religion, education, governance and politics from anthropocentric preoccupation to an Earth-centred understanding of our role and responsibilities as humans.”
This way of living in right-relationship with our planet home is what Thomas called‘Earth Jurisprudence’.
To mark the 10th Anniversary of Thomas’s passing, and his great legacy, from 1-7th June we will dedicate a week of communications to exploring Earth Jurisprudence. We will celebrate Thomas’s legacy and the potency of his message at a time when we are called to take a stand for life.
You can help us to reach as many people as possible with Thomas’s poetry and his potent message. Here’s how:
This is the start of a longer, more in-depth exploration of how Earth-centred movements are emerging around our living planet, affirming the need to obey a higher law – to protect life for generations to come – at this critical moment.
In solidarity with the larger community of life on our beautiful planet,
Liz Hosken, together with the Gaia team
