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I read a post screaming with frustration. A “belief” of frustration towards those who “believe”. And the first comment below that post was another “belief”. A belief that “believers” don’t believe in global warming or evolution. A belief that is its own evidence for a belief that “believers” are bad for this planet and, therefore, that those believers who believe “believers” are bad for the planet are helpful to this planet.
I used to be a “believer” and then came to believe that “believers” were wrong.
And then came to believe that my beliefs were so fluid that what I believe was not the issue. What is, and was, the issue is simple kindness and love.
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Beliefs ARE fluid … Beliefs DO change … Beliefs ARE an amalgam of fact, fiction and preference.
And for me global warming falls into “evidence”. Evolution the same. Plate-tectonics too. Along with the earth’s core being very hot “stuff”. Along with me being a lot of fluid and space! And these thoughts being a bunch of chemicals and electrical flow. Science stuff we call that. Separate from God stuff. I must choose which to believe I am told.
And we are back to belief.
“And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” 1 Corinthians 13:13 gets quoted a lot. I have quoted it a lot. Probably will in the future:
“Belief, belief and belief. But the greatest of these is belief.”
Can I love without faith in something greater than me? Can I love without hope in anything at all? Can those beliefs be “tested” … ? Like as in the “broken-hearted” … those “lost to love” … or when “I have nothing left to live for” … ?
A love belief so strong it can and does change me and those around me. Can “lift me up by my bootstraps” … can “begin a new chapter” … can “put it all behind me” … can “save me from myself”.
We swim in a sea of belief. We breathe and ingest belief. We take what works and expel the rest. Beliefs are organic and dynamic. They are our very lifeblood. And yet we (believe we) have evolved to become superior “land mammals”.
We left the sea and made our home on dry land. We walk on two legs. Think with dry humour. Have territory to fight over and defend. Greater resources to exploit. Different beliefs called evidence (so we think). We have evolved and become science and fact. We have left simplistic “belief” behind. And we now rule the land, sea and air. We are top of the evolutionary pile.
Which I find has a very “biblical ring” to it:
“Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” Genesis 1:26
Evolution is something I believe. Global warming is something I believe. I have seen enough evidence to convince me to believe. I am a product of evolution. And our children’s children will be the recipients of global warming unless …
But one thing I believe above all else.
The evolution of love. An evolution of faith, hope and selflessness. That love is its own reward. That love is my lifeblood. Because I desire to swim in a sea of love. I desire to ingest love. I desire more and more “science” electrical impulses and chemical flows of love. I believe in love.
“And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”
As a mantra to live-by that works for me. After I evolved from “What is mine is mine, and what is yours is mine” to … What is mine is ours, and what is ours is yours.
Because love connects. Love changes. Love uplifts. And because I have evidence (every day) that static “me me me” beliefs are NOT of evolution or science or even of God. They do not work for this planet and they do not work for me. Whereas …
But the greatest of these is love.
Does.
If I allow.
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Just me being curious 
I have never understood the Western alienation of religion and science. You would think the Protestant churches would have learned from the Catholic church’s mistakes (back in the Galileo age). The Eastern church belief is that God made everything, science attempts to tell us how, religion attempts to tell us why.
I am not 100% sold on global warming, at least as a purely man-made event, and certainly not as simple as “believers” make it out to be. I see too many “GW believers” doing things contrary to solving the problem to feel they actually “believe”. The plant is changing, it has always changed; man is influencing that change, but the causes and solutions are far more complex than the steps that are currently being taken.
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Wow, this is electric, one of your best. As to Global warming, it is getting hot but that’s because it’s our watch, we weren’t there when the Ash took the terrible lizards away. We will know how they felt,those of us still here when we go.
The good God knows how and when and why and wonders ‘what fool am I’
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Andrew, thank you.
As for “we will know … ” I have seen enough Hollywood apocalyptic blockbusters to think we already know. Just that we prefer to keep it as “fiction” and a couple hours of entertainment than to face-up to an alternative.
Perhaps we also paint evil too much as “evil”. Perhaps we should paint evil more as a polite and complacent “I’m okay jack – leave me alone, please. Thank you.”
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I agree that it is getting warmer, no doubt. But I think scientists (environmentalists in this instance) are spending too much time looking for a single culprit, ignoring what else is happening, hence my statement that the situation is far more complex, and they are being far too short sighted. Looking strictly at what we are doing to create CO2, and not the other things we are doing, is not going to solve the problem. We need to look at man’s activities overall, and determine what we can do to reduce those activities and reverse the situation.
Think of it as coming home and finding all the fish in your tank dead, an analysis shows that the ammonia levels were too high. You clean the tank, replace the fish, this time you add vinegar to the water to neutralize the ammonia. Your fish die. you solved the problem (ammonia) but did not make things better. Same here, the solution, like the problem, goes far beyond cutting vehicle and plant emissions, as we have done far more to increase temperatures than generate more CO2. We can shut down all of our methods of generating CO2, but that does not mean temps will start to drop.
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Would agree with most of that. Particularly “We need to look at man’s activities overall, and determine what we can do to reduce those activities and reverse the situation.”
My concern is in everyone making this so “complex” that inertia rules. Because we aren’t doing nothing. The complex behaviours can be summed up very simply: we consume more than we replace. We discard more than can be broken down and reabsorbed. We live for today … just because we can. And a temperature increase – along with earnest complex inertia – whilst all the other behaviours continue unabated – may not be our finest moment (as seen always with hindsight).
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Agreed.
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Mike, my evidence is of seeing a culture of “take take take”.
Having run our household numbers for decades, looked after the aging bricks and mortar (and paint and plaster and fixtures and fittings), seen the “resources” in and “resources” out … how we think ourselves “above all that at a global level is beyond me. Looking at Chernobyl and the recovery of the planet when left to recover … is evidence for me of the same. When we “split hairs” and talk one degree or two … talk tipping point versus no need for commonsense right now … that is my evidence. Would this planet heat-up or freeze without our help? Yes. Evidence there as well. So complex … ? Yes. But also very simple.
“take +take = consequence” just as “nurture + nurture = consequence”
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There is information held by Jessica and her contemporaries concerning(Given her past in the Sectret Service) all manner of natural pehomena pointing to what the pair of you are saying.The government of Australia has stifled research ( Results) here which points to the FACT that what we, ourselves do to contribute is so small against the large scale of what the Earth is doing to itself. The hype about Climate change is far more lucrative than simple common sense.
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And – despite all the facts and evidence (congruous and incongruous) – despite all the statements of “fact” … all we always end up with is belief – our own personal take on what we know, what we think we know, what we want to be true, what we …. all the cocktail of personal preference.
Hello God!!
😂😂😂
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hello my child
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