Exploring environmental justice

In Genesis God says that man shall “have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” I’m not a big fan of the word “dominion.” It sounds so ghastly doesn’t it? It may as well read, “You shall have a choke-hold over all the earth and dominate everything on it.” Yikes! Until I read The Green Bible a few years ago, I thought this was just another Old Testament verse filled with discomforting language. But God isn’t telling us that we can overpower this land and do whatever we want to it. In this text he’s saying that the trees, the birds, the water are ourresponsibility. We’re to care for the planet, God left its fate in our hands. On Oct. 8 a workshop will be held atSt. Aloysius Parish called, “Care of Creation & Environmental Justice.” Representatives from the Catholic Coalition on Climate Change, Earth Ministry, Franciscan Action Network and the Faith & Environment Network will discuss “how to integrate care of God’s creation with prayer, advocacy and practice,” according to the event flier. The workshop is sponsored by Catholic Charities of Spokane. Cost for the workshop is $15 and attendees are asked to RSVP by Oct. 1. For information call 358-4273 or e-mail scooper@ccspokane.org.

Tracy Simmons

Tracy Simmons is an award-winning journalist specializing in religion reporting and digital entrepreneurship. In her approximate 20 years on the religion beat, Simmons has tucked a notepad in her pocket and found some of her favorite stories aboard cargo ships in New Jersey, on a police chase in Albuquerque, in dusty Texas church bell towers, on the streets of New York and in tent cities in Haiti. Simmons has worked as a multimedia journalist for newspapers across New Mexico, Texas, Connecticut and Washington. She is the executive director of SpokaneFāVS.com, a digital journalism start-up covering religion news and commentary in Spokane, Washington. She also writes for The Spokesman-Review and national publications. She is a Scholarly Assistant Professor of Journalism at Washington State University.