Animated Dirt

 

Soil Creatures

“So God causes springs to come up from the earth itself, makes a clay, and forms a man (adam) from the ground. God breathes into him and gives life to this ‘soil creature.’ God places Adam in the garden, to grow it and to care for the rivers and plants and animals, and eventually draws Eve (havah, meaning ‘to become,’ ‘to breathe,’ or ‘life’) from Adam’s body to be his partner. Thus, Adam and Eve, not a literal first couple, but rather Soil and Life (their names from the Hebrew words) marry, and their union produces the human race.”

Diana Butler Bass (Grounded: Finding God in the World: A Spiritual Revolution, p. 42, Harper One, 2015)

          As I read this in Christian historian, Diana Butler Bass’ book, Grounded, I’m wondering why Protestant children are not taught the true meaning of these names from the creation story in Genesis. We know earth is the prima materia, or original material of the universe, yet we never connect it with the names Adam and Eve, the first humans. As Diana Butler Bass says, “We are animated dirt. Soil and life joined together.” It gives new meaning to the words, “ashes to ashes, dust to dust,” doesn’t it?

          So here we are in 2022, with all our scientific knowledge, and we still don’t connect these dots. Every week there are new articles and new information about the state of the planet, about climate change, about chemical pesticides and agricultural fertilizer polluting our waters, and micro-plastic particles found in the blood and lungs of human beings. Yet somehow the Oscar’s slap is more meaningful, more important to us—at least, it’s what we’re focused on. We soil creatures were put in the garden to care for it, to protect it from harm, not to use it up and destroy it.

          The doomsday clock is done with hours and minutes now—it has moved to seconds. Mere seconds until midnight when it will be too late to save the garden and ourselves. I guess that’s why Elon Musk is trying so hard to get to the moon and set up housekeeping. Here’s a reminder: When we were in lock down for a few weeks during the pandemic, when people were not driving to work on overcrowded highways, change happened. The air cleared in a matter of weeks. Pollution levels came down. Wild animals came out of hiding and strolled beaches; it was the peaceable kingdom. Proof that if we were to work together to reduce human pollution, change would happen rapidly.

          Humanity faces only two existential crises: climate change and nuclear war. Both are problems of our own making, therefore solutions to them must come from us. We can do it—in fact there is very little we can’t do—but we must first make it a priority. I call upon all you soil-creatures to join together in this work of helping Mother Earth to recover.

                                                  In the Spirit,

                                                  Jane