Does Isaiah have anything helpful to teach us
about the climate crisis?
1.
(יד) חׇדְשֵׁיכֶ֤ם וּמֽוֹעֲדֵיכֶם֙ שָֽׂנְאָ֣ה נַפְשִׁ֔י הָי֥וּ עָלַ֖י לָטֹ֑רַח נִלְאֵ֖יתִי נְשֹֽׂא׃ (טו) וּבְפָרִשְׂכֶ֣ם כַּפֵּיכֶ֗ם אַעְלִ֤ים עֵינַי֙ מִכֶּ֔ם גַּ֛ם כִּֽי־תַרְבּ֥וּ תְפִלָּ֖ה אֵינֶ֣נִּי שֹׁמֵ֑עַ יְדֵיכֶ֖ם דָּמִ֥ים מָלֵֽאוּ׃ (טז) רַֽחֲצוּ֙ הִזַּכּ֔וּ הָסִ֛ירוּ רֹ֥עַ מַעַלְלֵיכֶ֖ם מִנֶּ֣גֶד עֵינָ֑י חִדְל֖וּ הָרֵֽעַ׃
(14) Your new moons and fixed seasons
Fill Me with loathing;
They are become a burden to Me,
I cannot endure them. (15) And when you lift up your hands,
I will turn My eyes away from you;
Though you pray at length,
I will not listen.
Your hands are stained with crime— (16) Wash yourselves clean;
Put your evil doings
Away from My sight.
Cease to do evil;
(כ) ה֣וֹי הָאֹמְרִ֥ים לָרַ֛ע ט֖וֹב וְלַטּ֣וֹב רָ֑ע שָׂמִ֨ים חֹ֤שֶׁךְ לְאוֹר֙ וְא֣וֹר לְחֹ֔שֶׁךְ שָׂמִ֥ים מַ֛ר לְמָת֖וֹק וּמָת֥וֹק לְמָֽר׃ {ס}
(20) Ah,
Those who call evil good
And good evil;
Who present darkness as light
And light as darkness;
Who present bitter as sweet
And sweet as bitter!
According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), an annual average of 21.5 million people have been forcibly displaced by weather-related events – such as floods, storms, wildfires and extreme temperatures – since 2008. These numbers are expected to surge in coming decades with forecasts from international thinktank the IEP predicting that 1.2 billion people could be displaced globally by 2050 due to climate change and natural disasters.
https://insideclimatenews.org/news/02112021/climate-refugees-international-law-cop26/
Around 450 million children live in areas of high or extremely high water vulnerability. This means they do not have enough water to meet their everyday needs.
https://www.unicef.org/stories/water-and-climate-change-10-things-you-should-know
2.
(יד) יְהֹוָה֙ בְּמִשְׁפָּ֣ט יָב֔וֹא עִם־זִקְנֵ֥י עַמּ֖וֹ וְשָׂרָ֑יו וְאַתֶּם֙ בִּעַרְתֶּ֣ם הַכֶּ֔רֶם גְּזֵלַ֥ת הֶעָנִ֖י בְּבָתֵּיכֶֽם׃ (טו) (מלכם) [מַה־לָּכֶם֙] תְּדַכְּא֣וּ עַמִּ֔י וּפְנֵ֥י עֲנִיִּ֖ים תִּטְחָ֑נוּ נְאֻם־אֲדֹנָ֥י יֱהֹוִ֖ה צְבָאֽוֹת׃ {ס}
(14) The LORD will bring this charge
Against the elders and officers of His people:
“It is you who have ravaged the vineyard;
That which was robbed from the poor is in your houses. (15) How dare you crush My people
And grind the faces of the poor?”
—says my Lord GOD of Hosts.
(ד) מַה־לַּעֲשׂ֥וֹת עוֹד֙ לְכַרְמִ֔י וְלֹ֥א עָשִׂ֖יתִי בּ֑וֹ מַדּ֧וּעַ קִוֵּ֛יתִי לַעֲשׂ֥וֹת עֲנָבִ֖ים וַיַּ֥עַשׂ בְּאֻשִֽׁים׃ (ה) וְעַתָּה֙ אוֹדִיעָה־נָּ֣א אֶתְכֶ֔ם אֵ֛ת אֲשֶׁר־אֲנִ֥י עֹשֶׂ֖ה לְכַרְמִ֑י הָסֵ֤ר מְשׂוּכָּתוֹ֙ וְהָיָ֣ה לְבָעֵ֔ר פָּרֹ֥ץ גְּדֵר֖וֹ וְהָיָ֥ה לְמִרְמָֽס׃ (ו) וַאֲשִׁיתֵ֣הוּ בָתָ֗ה לֹ֤א יִזָּמֵר֙ וְלֹ֣א יֵעָדֵ֔ר וְעָלָ֥ה שָׁמִ֖יר וָשָׁ֑יִת וְעַ֤ל הֶֽעָבִים֙ אֲצַוֶּ֔ה מֵהַמְטִ֥יר עָלָ֖יו מָטָֽר׃
(4) What more could have been done for My vineyard
That I failed to do in it?
Why, when I hoped it would yield grapes,
Did it yield stinkberries? (5) “Now I am going to tell you
What I will do to My vineyard:
I will remove its hedge,
That it may be ravaged;
I will break down its wall,
That it may be trampled. (6) And I will make it a desolation;-a
It shall not be pruned or hoed,
And it shall be overgrown with briers and thistles.
And I will command the clouds
To drop no rain on it.”
The world's wealthiest 10% were responsible for around half of global emissions in 2015, according to a 2020 report from Oxfam and the Stockholm Environment Institute. The top 1% were responsible for 15% of emissions, nearly twice as much as the world's poorest 50%, who were responsible for just 7% and will feel the brunt of climate impacts despite bearing the least responsibility for causing them.
https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20211025-climate-how-to-make-the-rich-pay-for-their-carbon-emissions
Scientists estimate dozens of species of plants and animals currently go extinct each day — nearly 1,000 times the natural rate. By mid-century, as many as 30 to 50 percent of the total species found on Earth will have disappeared.
https://www.earthday.org/5-terrifying-climate-change-facts-scare-halloween/
3.
(א) הִנֵּ֧ה יְהֹוָ֛ה בּוֹקֵ֥ק הָאָ֖רֶץ וּבֽוֹלְקָ֑הּ וְעִוָּ֣ה פָנֶ֔יהָ וְהֵפִ֖יץ יֹשְׁבֶֽיהָ׃ (ב) וְהָיָ֤ה כָעָם֙ כַּכֹּהֵ֔ן כַּעֶ֙בֶד֙ כַּֽאדֹנָ֔יו כַּשִּׁפְחָ֖ה כַּגְּבִרְתָּ֑הּ כַּקּוֹנֶה֙ כַּמּוֹכֵ֔ר כַּמַּלְוֶה֙ כַּלֹּוֶ֔ה כַּנֹּשֶׁ֕ה כַּאֲשֶׁ֖ר נֹשֶׁ֥א בֽוֹ׃ (ג) הִבּ֧וֹק ׀ תִּבּ֛וֹק הָאָ֖רֶץ וְהִבּ֣וֹז ׀ תִּבֹּ֑ז כִּ֣י יְהֹוָ֔ה דִּבֶּ֖ר אֶת־הַדָּבָ֥ר הַזֶּֽה׃ (ד) אָבְלָ֤ה נָֽבְלָה֙ הָאָ֔רֶץ אֻמְלְלָ֥ה נָבְלָ֖ה תֵּבֵ֑ל אֻמְלָ֖לוּ מְר֥וֹם עַם־הָאָֽרֶץ׃ (ה) וְהָאָ֥רֶץ חָנְפָ֖ה תַּ֣חַת יֹשְׁבֶ֑יהָ כִּֽי־עָבְר֤וּ תוֹרֹת֙ חָ֣לְפוּ חֹ֔ק הֵפֵ֖רוּ בְּרִ֥ית עוֹלָֽם׃ (ו) עַל־כֵּ֗ן אָלָה֙ אָ֣כְלָה אֶ֔רֶץ וַֽיֶּאְשְׁמ֖וּ יֹ֣שְׁבֵי בָ֑הּ עַל־כֵּ֗ן חָרוּ֙ יֹ֣שְׁבֵי אֶ֔רֶץ וְנִשְׁאַ֥ר אֱנ֖וֹשׁ מִזְעָֽר׃
(1) Behold,
The LORD will strip the earth bare,
And lay it waste,
And twist its surface,
And scatter its inhabitants. (2) Layman and priest shall fare alike,
Slave and master,
Handmaid and mistress,
Buyer and seller,
Lender and borrower,
Creditor and debtor. (3) The earth shall be bare, bare;
It shall be plundered, plundered;
For it is the LORD who spoke this word.
(4) The earth is withered, sear;
The world languishes, it is sear;
The most exalted people of the earth-a languish. (5) For the earth was defiled
Under its inhabitants;
Because they transgressed teachings,
Violated laws,
Broke the ancient covenant. (6) That is why a curse consumes the earth,
And its inhabitants pay the penalty;
That is why earth’s dwellers have dwindled,
And but few men are left.
Wealth might just buy you a comforting blanket of denial — that even if everything goes horribly wrong in Bangladesh, surely wealthy Americans won't be allowed to suffer. Right up until the flames crest the ridge behind your house.
https://theweek.com/articles/808106/wealth-cannot-save-from-climate-change
A recently published study in peer-reviewed journal Nature Communications found that climate change would cause 83 million excess deaths by 2100.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/dishashetty/2021/07/30/climate-change-would-cause-83-million-excess-deaths-by-2100/?sh=38d856045c4f
4.
“Woe is me; I am lost!
For I am a man of unclean lips-b
And I live among a people
Of unclean lips;
Yet my own eyes have beheld
The King LORD of Hosts.”
(6) Then one of the seraphs flew over to me with a live coal, which he had taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. (7) He touched it to my lips and declared,
“Now that this has touched your lips,
Your guilt shall depart
And your sin be purged away.”
(8) Then I heard the voice of my Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I; send me.” (9) And He said, “Go, say to that people:
‘Hear, indeed, but do not understand;
See, indeed, but do not grasp.’ (10) Dull that people’s mind,
Stop its ears,
And seal its eyes—
Lest, seeing with its eyes
And hearing with its ears,
It also grasp with its mind,
And repent and save itself.”
(11) I asked, “How long, my Lord?” And He replied:
“Till towns lie waste without inhabitants
And houses without people,
And the ground lies waste and desolate— (12) For the LORD will banish the population—
And deserted sites are many
In the midst of the land. (13) “But while a tenth part yet remains in it, it shall repent. It shall be ravaged like the terebinth and the oak, of which stumps are left even when they are felled: its stump shall be a holy seed.”
Maybe the song that is to be sung through us is the most beautiful requiem for an irreplaceable planet or maybe it’s a song of joyous rebirth as we create a new culture that doesn’t destroy its world.
But in any case, there’s absolutely no excuse for our making our passionate love for our world
dependent on what we think of its degree of health.
Joanna Macy
https://www.themarginalian.org/2014/12/10/joanna-macy-a-year-with-rilke-death-mortality/