The Sun is Losing Strength
I just finished reading a totally engrossing and fascinating book called Hail Mary by Andy Weir. The sun is losing strength, seemingly caused by something sapping the sun’s energy by slow degrees. In 30 years, it will be up to 5 degrees colder on earth, with disastrous consequences for all inhabitants. The world’s leaders come together as one to save humanity. They bring the world’s best and brightest scientists, engineers, astronauts, project managers, inventors, and researchers to figure this out. As one, they plan a mission, and for the next 3 years, all earth’s efforts are used to create an exploratory spaceship to go into the outer reaches of space.
Why am I telling you this fictional story? Because it’s not fiction from my perspective, though the protagonist is different. We are hurtling towards a disaster of another kind, a disaster caused by conflict and disunity. We see others as different from ourselves, people, organizations, and governments actively working to divide people, governments covertly and overtly trying to overthrow other governments, people are distrustful of our institutions and governments, and disagreements between people now result in hostility and violence. If this continues, with the ability to destroy ourselves as we have, what can we expect our future to be like for our children and grandchildren?
In reality, we are all God’s children, created out of love, one who yearns for us to be unified and one with Him. If we work so hard to hate and divide, what can we achieve when we work together to hope for a better world? So what is stopping us? Hope for a better future? Apathy at the thought of changing and growing ourselves and helping those around us? Believing that we can change what appears to be human nature for conflict? Being so self-absorbed in our own lives, we can’t see what is going on? Not knowing how to change?
My involvement in the interfaith community is my belief that we can learn and share with each other, grow and change, and make the world a better place. But it takes work. Actively trying to understand each other, communicating beyond barriers of prejudice, assumptions, and stereotypes. Supporting each other in times of need. In these ways, I hope to bring a little bit of empathy, encouragement, and cooperation between people and congregations in the Sacramento area.
Serene Erby
President