Reply #4: Worthy of discussion it seems

[Jcrowley]

Here is what Susan Griffin says: “Long ago we gave up ourselves.. .we have traded our real existence, our real feelings for a delusion. Instead of fighting for our lives, we bend all our efforts to defend delusion. We deny all evidence at hand that the civilization which has shaped our minds, is also destroying the earth.”

For western civilization, the world consists of a pyramid, with God and angels on the top, and earth and everything in it, underneath. And on the earth, nature is at the bottom, while white human males are at the top of this hierarchy. And the most privileged occupation is the objective, scientific investigation and manipulation of nature—bereft of emotions. Religion and science have combined to deepen our alienation from this earth. “If the church once offered the denigration of incarnate life as a solution to the human condition, now science offers us the Control of Matter as our rescue.” (Susan Griffin, Eco-Feminism).

The thought process that allows us to believe that we are above the earth is our intellectual response to our deep- seated fear of being overcome by nature. We have learned to think that we must take control of our environ-  ment in order to survive. As early as the 14th Century, witch burning bears evidence of man’s fears, which was utilizing the (then) recent scientific discovery about the cosmic order as a justification. In the 16th Century, the slave trade is a demonstration of the white man’s condescension, viewing the black people of Africa as primitive and inferior, and manifested by their close connection to nature.

We have denied our essence and forgotten who we are. Unfortunately, we are still engaged in breaking the heart and spirit of nature, which is actually our very own heart and spirit. I sincerely believe that in our own secret knowledge, and our collective unconscious mind, we remember that nature is an essential part of us, our society, and our culture. Our memory of this natural attachment to life still exists. Maybe even our own breath reminds us of a time when we were curious - and when nature felt like an integral part of who we are.

Our insecurity does not need to be encouraged as it creates the need to control our surroundings instead of cohabitate with it. We so dearly need peace for people, animals and this earth, that we must become active participants in saving our Earth, thus saving ourselves.