THINKING ANEW:"Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness!" Splendid words by John Keats that express the wonder of this time of the year. It is good to be reminded of the constancy of the created order in these uncertain days.
This is also the season of harvest festival and many readers will be familiar with services in country churches decorated with grain and vegetables and flowers, filled with grateful people celebrating that "all is safely gathered in".
In some liturgical circles it is fashionable to devalue these occasions, but they have the potential to make the connection between faith and life, reminding us of our dependence on the good earth.
In a passage from the Book of Deuteronomy often read at harvest festival services there is a warning against overlooking the obligations attaching to wealth and prosperity: "Take heed lest you forget the Lord your God by not keeping his commandments and his ordinances. . . when you have eaten and are full, and have built goodly houses.and everything you have is multiplied."
These commandments and ordinances were not confined to religion, giving expression to a detached spirituality; they laid down demanding social and economic regulations as well. For example, while the Sabbath had a religious dimension, it also said something about workers' rights and animal protection.It was to be a day of rest and recreation for everyone, including servants and animals.
Throughout the Scriptures we are told to look after people with special needs. There is "the widow and orphan", who stand for all those who are excluded from economic opportunities and social justice, and even today women and children are the likeliest victims of injustice and poverty.
Then there is "the stranger", representing those who are outside the majority culture such as racial or religious minorities and immigrants. Finally there is the most difficult group of all: "the enemy", those who are seen as a threat.
It is worth noting that Jesus does not say our enemies are not real, but only that we should love them, which means treating them as human beings made in the image of God.
Sadly, in a world of privatised religion our social conscience for the poor and marginalised has diminished and we have become detached from the earth itself, resulting in the many environmental problems that concern us. We seem unable to handle the responsibilities that go with wealth and prosperity.
Our obsession with "market values" and our devotion to consumerism have destroyed our capacity to understand the scale of the damage we are doing to ourselves, our children and grandchildren.
We must rediscover the theology of enough and reject the idolatrous theology of excess. In the present global financial crisis commentators are suggesting with good reason that the key problem is greed - the greed of individuals and corporations who will never be satisfied with enough. Sadly, those who will suffer most are the poor among us, and those who will become poor by losing their jobs, their pensions and even their homes. And beyond them, conveniently out of sight and largely ignored, are the world's desperately poor, living and dying on the margins of a world where there ought to be enough.
Archbishop Helder Camara, in his book The Desert is Fertile, had this to say about faith and life, prayer and action. "Some believe in and rely on prayer, others think of it as mumbo-jumbo. But we should not allow the word prayer to divide us. Whenever we express our dearest wishes that is praying.
"Let us begin at once to fight our selfishness and come out of ourselves, to dedicate ourselves once and for all, whatever the sacrifices, to the non-violent struggle for a juster and more humane world."
Keats's thoughts on this "Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness" remind us that we have much to be thankful for in this world, but our faith requires that we use it responsibly and for the benefit of all.
"You must be the change you want to see in the world." - Mahatma Ghandi.
GL