For those of us who champion justice the words of Amos 5:24 “let judgment run down like waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream” are our marching orders.
They are the marching orders to fight racism, gun violence, the lack of affordable housing, health disparities, political mayhem, and so many other woes in our society.
But what about the waters from which God has ordained the justice to flow from? Environmental Justice, the right to clean air and water, unpolluted land, and food that nourishers our bodies instead of killing them - overlap with every other issue.
The group Christians For Social Action cites the example of one plastic bottle dropped on the ground. Combined with other trash it sends the message that our neighborhoods are less valued and not worthy of a tree planting campaign that would reduce heat and clean the air.
The poor air quality causes asthma in children, which forces them to miss school and their guardians to miss work in order to care for them. The same bottle ends up in the ground water that washes into the river, contaminating the water and making it unsafe to fish or swim.
Ultimately the bottle dissolves in the ocean, leaving tiny particles that kill fish, thereby reducing the catch of fishermen in another country, which in turn exacerbates hunger, unemployment, and social unrest that spill over borders.
This story of one bottle helps us see the interconnectedness of our actions and unintended outcomes. Underscoring that environmental justice touches on all the other injustices we are fighting for.
While environmental justice is woven throughout the scriptures, from Genesis to Revelation few communities and people of faith have focus on it. Perhaps climate change with disastrous weather events happening almost daily around the world will be the wakeup call for people of faith to finally realize that justice is not possible if the waters from which it flows are polluted.
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