Jackson Free Press

I didn't go to church Sunday, but I did recycle. It wasn't until after dark when Todd and I made our twice-weekly (thrice lately as we've been moving into a new place) foray to the alley behind the Rainbow Coop. We love doing this. We started and recycling years ago in Colorado Springs, where we would stop off at the microbrewery next to the recycle plant and get a refill of our "growler" of amber beer.

As I walked up with a box full of newspapers, I saw Skipp Coon, one of my favorite rappers and people in Jackson. He's mounted a campaign to run for mayor in 2009. "At least he ain't Frank" is his campaign slogan.

Skipp rocks. He also recycles, driving to Rainbow from his home in South Jackson.

We chitchatted about his recent wedding and the house he and his wife are buying in South Jackson from his mother. You could call it fellowship of sorts over the recycling cans.

Call me silly, but I feel a little closer to the Spirit when I'm doing something to protect this amazing earth s/he has rented us. Regardless of the religion you follow, or don't follow, one thing is for sure: If we can't figure out how to care for the amazing resources we've been allowed to use, to repay our debt by sustaining it for the future, then we're not worthy of spending a minute on this great planet.

Wonderfully, more and more people are realizing this.

I love to listen to Krista Tippett's "Speaking of Faith" at 9 every Sunday morning on MPB (91.3 FM and their site). Being that I'm a bit of a spiritual freelancer who seeks to glean the best from all the traditions from Christianity to Buddhism, this program introduces me to spiritual thinkers I might not otherwise get to know.

A number of them are evangelical Christians, and I admit the stereotypes I've bought in the past about the "religious right" are not always accurate. And they are increasingly crumbling as evangelicals are turning away from personal morality issues like homosexuality and investing more energy into real human-rights issues such as poverty, AIDS and, yes, the environment.

Let's put it this way: The Bush administration and corporate Republicans might have just gotten this global-warming thing in the last month or two, but many evangelicals have been trying to green their constituencies for years. They've already stopped ignoring that "inconvenient truth" that it took Al Gore to get much of the U.S. to take seriously.

(I think it had a lot to do with watching some of our cities just be flooded off the digital map representing the future in his film. Or, more urgently, Hurricane Katrina came knocking and taught us that the severity of hurricanes, exacerbated by warmer oceans, can be deadly and horrifying right now.)

Regardless, right now is the time to think green. It is way 20th century to assume that problems cannot touch us where we live. Katrina did right in our state. Sept. 11 did right in our country—and that had more to do with the U.S.'s greed for resources (especially oil) than many people care to admit.

You might think that buying recycled toilet paper will not change the inevitability of climate change. Or that the inconvenience of turning off the faucet when you're brushing your teeth doesn't amount to much. Or that taking cloth bags, and helping train shopping clerks to respect your decision, can change the world. Or that creatively "wrapping" your gifts, and then recycling all the wrap, will help your grandchildren breathe clearer air.

Or that rejecting gas-guzzlers (and glaring at selfish idiots who drive Hummers) is more vital than showing the world that you can afford hundreds of dollars in gas a month.

But it can. It's the only thing that will, in fact. Just think about Dr. King. Or Fannie Lou Hamer (see Jere Nash's book review). Or Jackson's own Medgar Evers.

They were just people who did not like how the future was shaping up. Mrs. Hamer could have sprawled in that jail cell while white men beat her, and thought, "It's not worth it. Little ole me can't change the world."

Or, she could have sat on her porch and went along with segregation. That's what the powers-that-were wanted her to do.

But she knew that she was part of the solution. Or, as Medgar told his wife, Myrlie, once: "If not me, who?"

Here in Mississippi, we know that individuals can change the world. They did for us. And now it is time for all us Mississippians, of all races and economic backgrounds, to join together to save the world for future generations. Sure, your grandson might crave an iPod for Christmas, but I promise you that he also will want to breathe clean air and raise healthy children in the future.

And all those plastic bags you're bringing home from Target can keep that from happening. Or the car you drive.

Why not give gifts for now and for his and his family's future?

Recycling and reusing is not just for the rich and trendy. (I learned the re-use part from my factory-toiling mama, a mistress of yard sales and thrift stores.) It does not matter where you live in Jackson or your income level. You can join us on the green wagon.

It's not hard to get some cloth bags to take to the grocery store. (I get mine at NUTS and Salvation Army.) You can buy cool used gifts and books. You can walk more and drive less, and share rides. You can tell your elected officials you care about the environment.

On that note, I'd like to issue a warning message to politicians: While you're bickering and lying about each other, and fighting over who owns God, the Green Revolution has arrived. And guess what: It's not for free-love hippies anymore.

If you want votes in the future, it is time to refocus on an issue that is going to increasingly matter to your constituents: their children's future. And if you're not clear on what people of faith are thinking about in the 21st century, here's a good place to figure it out: creationcare.org.

The Evangelical Environmental Network is on the cutting edge of where politics is headed: "Worshiping God. Loving his people. Caring for his creation."

And the party that figures that out first, well ... wins.