Let the Wise Teach

January 29, 2010

The world mourned the loss of the remarkable ‘giant of a man’, yet small in stature, Mahatma Gandhi, on January 30th, 1948 – 62 years ago. Gandhi was an early personal hero of mine, and during my sojourn in India I made a pilgrimage to his simple shrine in August of 1963. Today, he is one we need to clone, not Dolly the sheep.

I have found that when in critical periods in a person’s life journey the ability to draw upon the wisdom keepers becomes essential in rising from the challenge. All of us have those significant role models who have spoken to us during our lives and it is important that their eternal life be acknowledged through our reflection upon their words and deeds. Turning back the pages of time to reflect on the teachings from those who came before us is prudent and guides us through turbulent times. History should never be forgotten or dismissed, but built upon thoughtfully, and consistently. Personal history with our unique mentors is especially critical to tap into on a regular basis.

I was lucky, both my parents were well liked by me and others, and brought different gifts to the table in our home. I have always counseled others when examining their life script to take the good, discard the bad from the past, and build one’s own story. That is good advice about one’s own family story.

Other voices have spoken to me through my journey and Dr. John Seeley, my mentor and friend for 30 years emboldened me to seek the highest good in all that I do. His life was exemplary on many levels, and his perspective on the world shaped who I am today. I was fortunate to be able to sit at his feet for 30 years. Today, because of my Tribrach (3 footed poetic symbol) of maladies I feel the highest good is to affirm the teachings of my mentors and write until my carpel tunnel syndrome debilitates me.

All of us, I imagine, look to individuals who we’ve never had the chance to meet personally, but in some way influenced our lives or have honed our understanding of the human story; one such individual for me, as I mentioned, was Mohandas K. Gandhi of Kenya and India. History most often reflects that his actions spoke louder than his words, but he had some pretty remarkable statements that became part of the public discourse. One such gem:

“It has often occurred to me that a seeker after truth has to be silent,” he once wrote.

I have never been surer of that ‘pearl of wisdom’ as I am right now in the year 2010. The noise around us is ever present, increasingly contradictory, often inflammatory, and on a regular basis not helpful to discerning truth, in any area. Thus, taking the gift of silence, or rather having me seek the opportunity to find silence, has become essential in wading through the volumes of rhetoric, just from blogs alone.

The idea that silence could be a viable option and a useful tool for me personally was probably when I was seated in a room with six other individuals and Dr. John O’Hearne in Kansas City Missouri in 1970.

Granted I knew the concept from scripture about being quiet so the still small voice of God could penetrate, and this was always in the back of my mind, but when Dr. John stood and faced me and stated: “Kreitler, what you need is 10 minutes a day to restore your island quality” I took notice. I have never forgotten the admonition from my 5 year guide in my personal transactional development training. He recognized my type A personality, or my hyper-activity, and cautioned that I better get in touch with my inner self and allowing myself a simple 10 minutes a day should do the trick. Nothing fancy or esoteric, a simple slow day, smell the roses and set aside time was all that he promoted for me.

An island is a beautiful thing to behold – restore your island quality - and a metaphor for peace, tranquility and a place to which many of us wish to travel for our time of relaxation and renewal. How many times we long to go to the Islands be they in the Caribbean, off Cape Cod, or in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. There is a reason we like islands – our time there restores us.

Ironically, it is now the island states of the world that are raising their voices the loudest at international conferences because sea level rise is starting to compromise their very existence. If we lose the islands of the world are we not losing a part of ourselves as well?

Thus, being quiet like an island has therapeutic and metaphorical value for all of us. If we are seeking truth; or attempting to educate ourselves to truths in many sectors, are we remiss unless we set aside time to be silent? Can I, can any of us, find truth unless we meditate, pray, reflect, or quietly muse about life’s challenges? Gandhi obviously devoted much of his energy to being still – perhaps the key to his inner strength that enabled him to confront power so eloquently in word and deed.

The dilemma for me recently becomes how to deal with the anger I feel when in silence? My mind races with the idea, for example, that another island community may disappear under the waves, as did Lohachara in 2007, or an indigenous plateau tribe in the Andes losing their source of water and having to relocate; I feel angry that inter-generational environmental equity is no longer possible for many in the world. Yet, the silence helps me return to equilibrium – the silence helps me restore my own island quality.

Like any person of hope, who sees the glass half full, I will try time and time again to absorb the wisdom of those who have come before, who during difficult times rose above the clamor and found new direction; and resonate with these words in particular:

“I have learnt through bitter experience the one supreme lesson to conserve my anger, and as heat conserved is transmuted into energy, even so our anger controlled can be transmuted into a power which can move the world.”

Guess Who? Mahatma Gandhi

50 Million Blogs

January 22, 2010

The democratization of the internet has happened. Every second of every day two more blogs are created. There are 1.6 million postings each day; that is 18 per second daily. How on earth amidst the cacophony of voices offering millions of words does one discern truth from fiction, wisdom from opinion, and sound reason from shoot from the hip verbiage? If there are 50 million plus blogs and growing the still small voice will be increasingly hard to hear; much less being able to listen to meaningful reflection by thoughtful people on the world around us. Discerning truth has become a full time job.

The time has come for writers to become activists, professors of thought doers of deeds, and those who pen these mountains of material conscientious patriots for the common good. Recapturing the ‘lost mind’ will require the concerted efforts of thousands of like minded people willing to risk much for the sake of the whole.

It has been said that a patriot is one who loves his or her country both in word and in deed. I like patriotism. Not knee jerk jingoism based on empty slogans like ‘love it or leave it,’ but loving the virtues of this nation so much that we rise above the petty discourse and speak truth to power; wherever and whenever needed. Criticism, direct, confrontational or couched in politically correct terminology may also be a valid expression, or a patriotic gesture when confronting misdeeds of individuals, institutions or parties. And today, the Lord knows, there is enough malfeasance in many sectors requiring millions to become heroic, blow the whistle, sound the alarm, and become frankly, unreasonable; but with peace, and non-violence in our hearts at all times while holding the pen used to benefit the whole.

As a 40 year priest of the Episcopal church, and one who is proud of our heritage of honoring scripture, tradition and reason, I feel perhaps what is really needed is a re-writing of all religions scriptures to reflect the times; yes, putting effort into defining God’s will, or the creator’s intentions, in line with the reality of today. The Old Ten Commandments should not be thrown aside with disdain, but rather re-worked to help us cope with the changing times. What about #6 that says Thou shall not kill: We have so many caveats with that one that perhaps it no longer belongs. Heck we justify war, self defense killing, blowing up our enemies who have done us harm – while forgetting that all of that goes against the whole idea of turning one’s cheek or forgiving. Violence always begets violence and leads to escalation and annihilation eventually; that is especially relevant today as technology has produced un-intended consequences; i.e. it looks like we are destined to have everyone obtain weapons of mass destruction. And then how about thou shall not commit adultery – heck, 50 per cent of the population, and many self proclaimed ‘lovers of Jesus’ or ‘devotees of the Almighty’ have broken that one; and many on many occasions. Let’s start be saying ok – there are 8 commandments that I can buy into. Is it time to dump the Torah, or at least put it aside and start again? If we believe that God is a God of history then God did not stop acting in the lives of people thousands of years ago. Historical criticism demands that we put the story of the people of Israel in the context of the times.

In similar fashion, let’s select just the passages from the New Testament that are relevant for today. Narrowing down the text from 66 books to let’s say 7 might be the best place to start. Genesis, Psalms, Job, and Amos for starters; then a little Mark, one of Paul’s letters and something from the Apocrypha. That should be sufficient to get the idea of our Judeo-Christian heritage.

Truth or tongue in cheek; or simply a way to get noticed amidst the 50,000,000 voices world wide who are venting, sharing opinions, presenting good science and important facts, challenging entrenched ideologies, or sounding off annoying somebody? I can remember the pundits telling me repeatedly that I needed a little controversy on Earth Talk Today – you know counterpoint to the environmental information; I resisted because the argument is not 50-50, but rather 3% vs. 97%

Who has time to read 50 million blogs, much less 50,000 or 500 or even 5 a day when we are so busy writing our own? Thus, I will try and reflect on the wisdom of others gleaned from 67 years of observing the human story from within. Experience does not count unless we reflect on our experiences, so my 156 week offering is basically built upon reflections.

The next few paragraphs may get me in trouble, but the good books of the past need to be approached with respect and reason. Professors from Brown and Virginia Theological Seminary encouraged historical and literary criticism making sure we understood the context of the ancient writings. Warned repeatedly that there are many who take the Bible literally, I could understand, but not accept, those who justified slavery based on the book of Philemon and Onesimus, the slave who was told to be loyal to his master? In addition, the story of Adam and Eve was a myth that pointed to truth but was not true. Thus, scripture required being ‘handled’ thoughtfully. In so doing the commandment from Genesis to Avodah and shomer creation became instrumental in defining my writings, readings and thought processes from the very beginnings of my life. Keep and serve the gift was the clear directive to all Adams and all Eves forever.

How can anyone refute that directive? Pundits, highly paid media personalities, scientists hired by industries and others would lead us to believe it is not necessary to participate in the preservation of creation because either nature will do what she must do or God will intervene to fix the mess. If that were the case I would be on one of those island nations in the Maldives snorkeling with the coral reef fish families. No, we are complicit in the collapse, and right from Genesis is our clear marching orders - take care of our fragile island home; probably the only one we will ever find that can sustain our kind of life.

I believe the precautionary principle is linked to Genesis. My writings for three years will reflect that link. Changing my behavior one day at a time while not being afraid to condemn, criticize, cajole, and correct the behavior of others is a tall order not without its pitfalls and detractors. Yet, if we all sit back and decide not to decide our children and their offspring will say: What happened to Creation?

Environmental Headlines: What does it take to get our attention?

January 15, 2010


Newspaper headlines attract my attention immediately. The headlines about Haiti and the plight of the nation and the people are heart wrenching. My business partner in Optimum Yield, our fledgling organic fertilizer company was to have gone to Haiti the evening of the earthquake. He has worked with the people there for 30 years, speaks their language, has many friends; including the former President Aristide. Parenthetically, my sister-in-law Elizabeth Kreitler, my brother Jay’s wife, is a leading FEMA search and rescue expert and she has been there with her dog Racker since Wednesday. (They were featured on CNN searching the collapsed UN building.) She is no stranger to the chaos following human made or natural disasters as she was on the scene at the Pentagon at 9/11, in New Orleans for Katrina, and Nairobi Kenya after the bombing of our embassy. This will be her most challenging and sad assignment ever; based on the Headlines we have all read. We are very proud of Elizabeth and her dogs (as well as the many search and rescue volunteers from around the globe) for their incredible service to our country, and most especially on behalf of the people trapped in the rubble of collapsed buildings and crumbled lives.

Ironically, I was writing about headlines for today’s Epistle when the tragedy occurred - I continue my thoughts. It seems the bigger they are, The Headlines, the more likely we are to read them. In similar fashion, the more acute the medical report the greater the likelihood we pay attention to our personal well being. A heart attack is the biggest headline, but being told you have an incurable cancer ranks pretty high on the ‘get one’s attention’ list. In our interpersonal lives the headlines can also be dramatic such as ‘honey, I’ve filed for divorce.’ Headlines come at us all the time in life, and yet the 64,000 dollar question remains: What does it take to get us to pay attention?

Listening for a living for 40 years has necessitated reading for information and knowledge. I will never achieve the accumulated wisdom of my 30 year mentor Dr. John Seeley who died at 95, in part because he read every day, beginning at 4:30 am; heck that is usually about the time I make a nightly visit to the bathroom, but I will try and the headlines are always duly noted.

Here are a few headlines that have come across my desk in the past 3 years or so.

“13 Years to Turn Around Global Warming”
London Financial Times, May 5, 2007

“Global Crisis to Strike by 2030”
BBC News, March 20, 2009

“An Island Made by Global Warming”
The Independent, April 24, 2007

“Sea Level Rise Could Flood Many Cities”
Associated Press, September 22, 2007

And now for the bad news!

“Mass Extinction Looming Nearer” with the wonderful subtitle “Carbon Emissions Creating Acidic Oceans Not Seen Since Dinosaurs”
The Manchester Guardian, March 10, 2009

“We are Breeding Ourselves to Extinction”
Truthdig.com, author Chris hedges is a graduate of The Harvard Divinity School

I must admit I have been reticent to share the headlines during the past twenty years. Either branded as ‘chicken little’ crying out “the sky is falling” or simply trying to scare people, it has been a lose-lose situation trying to explain what I have been reading. Even when I share this ‘stuff’ with our well educated, well read daughter she exclaims:

“Dad, you are always seeing the glass half full.”

I can not blame her for this reaction as it mirrors the sentiments of many friends and acquaintances, yet going public with the environmental headlines can no longer be considered optional, but mandatory.

Read the above headlines from reputable sources and spend a moment inwardly digesting the meaning behind the words. Should every single human being be concerned, or should we continue to have the debate that the environmentalists are the fringe element of society? It is strange for me to accept denial as a criteria for letting the collapse of creation continue, but Thomas of Biblical fame doubted even when seeing the evidence – thus, I understand how even headlines are discounted on a regular basis by many.

I have decided to keep reading the headlines and redirecting my actions in accordance with the headlines as our nation, our relief agencies, and thousands of caring souls put down what they are doing and respond to the Headline that reads: The People of Haiti need our help; and respond we must.

The back story about Haiti is that their headlines for years have also read of abject poverty, environmental destruction of forests, soils, coastal eco-systems, and their nation falling into and remaining in 3rd world classification. What will it take to pay attention to the collapsing infrastructure around the globe? What will it take?

New Year’s Revolutions

January 8, 2010

In the good ole’ days January 1 seemed to pack all the football bowl games into one day. Now stretched out over two weeks, the New Year “2010” kicked off with literally dozens of kick offs. We watched Ohio beat Oregon, Florida clobber another Ohio team, an Idaho team come out on top of a Texas team, and a Georgia team lose to an Iowa team; just to name a few; with finally yesterday the culmination of another year of college football as another Texas team dueled Alabama.

State by state we support our teams, and rightfully so, but the commercialization of college football reminds me of a warning I gave to myself years ago in the form of a series of lectures – “we will either entertain ourselves to extinction or educate ourselves to enlightenment.” I am sure this theme will one day be a whole column, but once again this New Year’s resolution is along the lines of more education and less entertainment; though I like watching football – that is with the sound off.

As I reflected on my experience with resolutions I perhaps like most have had some success. Weight loss or exercise promises seem to last awhile, but the big issue resolutions never seem to come to fruition – you know ushering in world peace or changing the paradigm so that all we do fosters the health of creation and its perpetuation.

But, the most telling story happened over 40 years ago.

I was asked to preach at St. John’s Lafayette Square across from the White House around New Year’s. Naturally, I wove the theme of resolutions into my sermon and though nervous felt I had ‘nailed it.’ As we left the sanctuary to de-robe the rector John Harper commented coolly “Peter, did you realize that on more than one occasion you substituted the word revolution for resolution.” Embarrassed, I went from supreme confidence to the goat of the day, one who blew it.

Simultaneous to my Freudian slip of the tongue sermon, Robert F. Kennedy’s little book Promises to Keep was published.

“The great challenge before us is the revolution within our gates” wrote Kennedy referring to the struggle of black Americans for full equality and freedom.

The revolution within our gates must today come in the form of over-throwing the complacency of Americans as a global collapsing of creation accelerates. Webster’s dictionary definition #4 of revolution is: “a complete or radical change of any kind.” Others however, opt for #5 as to defining what the revolution should look like: “overthrow of a government or social system by those governed and usually by forceful means.”

Revolution: peaceful, non-violent over-throw of the prevailing mindset that we are not complicit in the collapsing of God’s creation is the 1st order of business within our country. I, you, we are all contributors to the problem of environmental degradation. In part because of two related choices: We have bought into consumption as holy and we have willingly adopted entertainment as the ‘drug of choice’ that keeps us denying reality. Many even cheer at the buffoonery of ‘reality TV’ where individuals are encouraged to make fools of themselves; as we stand on the sidelines and cheer.

In other words, as Pogo said: “We have met the enemy and they are us.”

Is it really déjà vu all over again as we watch Nero fiddling while Rome burns? Are you and I really just twiddling our thumbs as others rearrange the deck chairs on the Titanic? Are we literally entertaining ourselves to extinction? The answer from many scientists studying the planet is a resounding yes. I hope they are wrong for there is much to be done before the life rafts need to be deployed; but to further the analogy the iceberg has been hit; now what do we do is the question. Revolution of thought, leading revolution in deed is part of my New Year’s Resolution.

Resolving to read more, learn more, and write more, is given high priority. I have no desire to become a monk cloistered from the joy of grandkids, toys, or even TV; but I must be more discriminating while allocating my resources better. If I am going to be part of the change I want to see in the world my dietary, spending, and habits must change over-night. A radical shift of personal behavior is required of all of us leading to the systemic change of systems over-night.

Epistle #1 Genesis

January 1, 2010

This year represents for me the beginning of the trinity of years that will define the future of the human family, and our partners in creation; that is all creatures who have been given life by the ruach elohim, the breath of the Creator. I will write weekly from January 1, 2010 until December 24, 2012. This three year period is the most significant block of time in my lifetime and I will pay homage to those who along the way have lifted me up and emboldened me to write and speak about this wonderful fragile island home we call creation.

I am one small voice amid the cacophony of sound blinding us to the reality of a gifted creation collapsing one calved glacier at a time. My voice may not be heard, and if heard discounted, but I am remiss if I do not ride through the tangled web of information and speak truth to power as I know it; for if I remain silent I let my children and grandchildren down. I have been complicit in the mess we are in; I am contrite and seek with this New Years resolution to do all in my power to reverse the process underway by affirming legendary David Brower’s admonition to bring CPR to our only home – conservation; preservation and restoration.
I look on my inherited garden, and will do so during the next 156 weeks as I write an epistle for your edification or criticism. Your anger at me, appreciation for me, belittlement, or disdain will not diminish nor enhance my resolve for I have with my own eyes witness creation collapsing on Cape Cod, my baseline, benchmark, and environmental point of reference for the last 67 years.

As I watch the National Geographic Channel in awe as to what is being documented around the globe, I realize as the huge chunks of ice and snow crash into the sea the attending noise is deafening, yet few are hearing its message. The earth is an intricate puzzle, and as John Donne reminded us years ago, ‘if a clod be washed away by the sea Europe is the less,’ and every crash of ice tells the story of a diminishing planet. The earth puzzle is an inter-related fabric, a design of incredible beauty, awe and majesty containing creatures great and small, in balance with nature’s bounty – an inherited puzzle where all belong, and one that has worked harmoniously to sustain life for eons of time. Today the pieces of the puzzle rapidly cascade in ever increasing amounts through our fingers and to the ground. The human family blessed with reason, memory and skill is unique in this creation, yet even we with our brains of immense ability can not, even with all the kings horses and all the king’s men, put the puzzle back together again. That being said, I honor and affirm the astounding efforts of millions of men and women dedicated to serving creation and creations offerings by living lightly on the planet and consciously recognizing one’s personal environmental footprint matters; but even to those dedicated rainbow warriors I encourage moving from personal change to systemic change as a focus overnight.

Every day is a gift. There is no discrimination when it comes to one day to the next for they all offer the potential for a self-affirming willingness to make a difference.

But, we can no longer rest on words, more scientific studies, or personal behavioral changes – though all are important and should continue. To remain as the ostrich with our head in the sand is equivalent to the behavior of lemmings running headlong into the sea, en masse.

To do nothing:

1. about over-population,

2. the ridiculous policies of church bodies,

3. the corruption within our political system to perpetuate the status quo,

4. industrial agriculture and its grip on world food supplies,

5. the no-limits to growth capitalism that is unsustainable,

6. the selfish consumerism promoted as a right by birth in this country,

7. the misguided belief that personal salvation is sufficient in God’s eye,

8. the discounting of human behavior that has caused climate change and a warming of the planet,

9. the lack of justice where an obese population uses a disproportionate amount of the earth resources while millions are malnourished

10. and the absence of sacrifice, thrift, and service as the cornerstone of any environmental or patriotic ethic

Yes, these are some of the major sacred cows no one wants to talk about and if you do you are labeled, tarred and feathered, and eye contact disappears, even among friends. So here we go – unreasonable, unrelenting, and irascible from age 67 – 70; yes 2010 to 2012.

A commitment on behalf of all grandchildren; including mine: Theo, Belle and Megan.

A brief introduction to a 156 week offering called The Epistle

The day I was diagnosed with an incurable form of lymphatic cancer called ‘mantle cell’ lymphoma I began writing about my experience, feelings and observations. I wrote on a daily basis until the day the doctors told me they could no longer detect any cancer. On that day I rejoiced and ceased ‘the blog.’ I wrote, finding in so doing a catharsis for the soul as well as perhaps offering others hope by following my daily journey with the disease. My body, spirit, and mind all needed a little conservation, preservation and restoration and now I remain cancer free. Halleluiah!

However, the fragile ecosystems that sustain my body are becoming increasingly hostile to my body and to the integrity of the whole we call creation. Contamination of soil and water jeopardizes our ability to sustain a food production system capable of sustaining all 6.8 billion of us on a daily basis. We already lament the cries of millions who have no access to clean water and are living on fewer calories than my mid-day snack. Issues complex and varied challenge even the healthiest among us while the fabric of the earth is being challenged at an ever accelerating rate. As the sea level rises attract the attention of the native Alaskan villagers and the Maldives Island inhabitants simultaneously the Bolivian forest dwellers and the Himalayan Tibetans watch in dismay as their sources of water disappear, global scientific research indicates few pockets or oasis remain not impacted by the collapsing of creation.

I take notice and thus start today with a weekly offering that will focus on the issues related to the environment as well as broader social issues affecting all. Has the earth been given what I was given by my doctors 4 years ago? I was told I had 10-12 years left (hopefully medical advances will push that out further as I attempt to eat right etc. to build my immune system); how many years are the scientists telling the human family we have to live without suffering the unintended consequences of our actions?

The compilation of my readings suggests that 2010 – 2012 will provide the answers to that question. Ironically 2012 marks the end of the early calendars of the Mayan and Aztec civilizations. I am not a superstitious person, but the mere suggestion that at the end of this three year period may offer the human family definitive answers about the direction we are ended is worth noting in light of our Native American ancestors history.

January 1, 2010 today! 156 weeks later is just around the corner. Time to get to work!