The students at Union Theological Seminary worshipped a display of plants and confessed their sins of climate change in a recent ceremony!
Of course, mankind has always misguidedly worshipped nature and inanimate objects. But one would not expect such behaviour at a seminary! After all, a seminary is an institution of higher learning where students are trained in theology and religious education, and prepared for the ministry for the priesthood or pastorate.
With regard to Union, parts of its mission states that “faith and scholarship walk together to be a moral force in the world. Grounded in the Christian tradition and responsive to the needs of God’s creation, a Union education prepares its students for committed lives of service to the church, academy, and society,” (www.utsnyc.edu).
That is why the practice of praying to plants is so unbecoming and unbelievable. Actually, it is part of the class, “Extractivism: A Ritual/Liturgical Response,” taught by professor Claudio Carvalhaes.
These ideas and the practice of plant worship caused quite a stir on social media, with many commenting negatively on Twitter, and holding up the seminary to ridicule. One person quipped, “Jesus spoke to a plant once… didn’t go too well for the plant.” (See Mark 11:12-25).
However, Union Theological Seminary, which became the US’s first independent seminary in 1893, has stoutly defended the peculiar chapel service.
“We are in the throes of a climate emergency, a crisis created by humanity’s arrogance, our disregard for Creation. Far too often, we see the natural world only as resources to be extracted for our use, not divinely created in their own right—worthy of honour, thanks and care” (www.christianpost.com).
It is true that man has shown utter contempt and disrespect for God’s creation. Man has polluted the atmosphere, depleted the rainforest, and flooded the ocean with contaminants. Surely, this is not what God intended when He placed man on earth. He expected man to be good stewards of the divine creation. However, there is no instruction anywhere in the scriptures that we must worship plants and nature.
As another person on Twitter rightfully said, “We worship the Creator NOT the creation. James 5:16 [Confess your faults one to another and pray one for another…] is referencing PEOPLE of the church not plants. Y’all need Jesus!!”
The Creator is the “Most High. God is sovereign, the maker of heaven and earth,” (The Revell Bible Dictionary). As Creator He has given man all things on earth for his enjoyment and satisfaction. Because God loves and cares for us so much, “He made food and resources for shelter, warmth, and medicine,” (article in New Living Translation’s Touchpoint Bible).
Note that all these provisions originate with plant life and nature. God has given us permission to extract the earth’s resources for our use and welfare. In spite of what the professors at Unity think and teach, plants are not “divinely created in their own right – worthy of honour, thanks and care.” It is true that we are to wisely manage and use the resources of the earth. But we are not to worship them!
The leadership at Union Theological Seminary ought to be aware of the consequences of worshipping the creation rather than the Creator. The Apostle Paul could not be clearer when he wrote:
“Instead of believing what they knew was the truth about God, they deliberately chose to believe lies. So they worshipped the things God made but not the Creator himself, who is to be praised forever. Amen. That is why God abandoned them to their shameful desires…” (Romans 1:25, 26 NLT).
