>Thanks for your stewardship outline, Keith. One knee jerk response I had
>was to the Stewardship of Human Knowledge section 2(b) where you say we
>can't be stewards of what we don't know and understand. We can be stewards
>and are stewards over things we don't know and understand. As stewards
>over God's creation there are many things we don't understand yet watch
>over and protect. Also as stewards of the church we are given the
>mysteries of God in trust (ICor. 4:1, etc.). So it is that even though our
>knowledge isn't perfect and our understanding is faulty - the call to
>stewardship will embrace even those things.
Yes, I take your point. However, part of stewardship should be seeking
knowledge where it can be found, and applying that knowledge to our
management of the creation.
Also, part of my meaning in the above was that we cannot steward what we
don't even know exists. That is the case for many of us with regard to the
creation. In our western technological culture we have been removed and
isolated from the natural world to such an extent that we are largely
unaware of it. For many people, the natural world is divided into large
categories such as "trees", "bushes", "grass", "weeds", and "flowers".
Unaware of the teaming diversity of life and its complex interactions, how
can we possible be proper stewards. It would be like being given a large
inheritance, but never knowing what it contained. How could you manage it?
Keith
Keith B. Miller
Department of Geology
Kansas State University
Manhattan, KS 66506
kbmill@ksu.edu
http://www-personal.ksu.edu/~kbmill/
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