Volcanoes & Creation

 On the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, as well as a thick cloud on the mountain and a blast of a trumpet so loud that all the people who were in the camp trembled. Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet God. They took their stand at the foot of the mountain.  Now all of Mount Sinai was wrapped in smoke, because the Lord had descended upon it in fire; the smoke went up like the smoke of a kiln, while the whole mountain shook violently. As the blast of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses would speak and God would answer him in thunder. 

Exodus 19: 16-19 NRSVue

Holy Moses, I am not a vulcan-ophile. I'm not referring to Mr. Spock and his ilk, rather lovers of all things related to volcanoes and other eruptive wonders of the Earth. 

I realize I do have something of a personal history with the mysteries of the underworld in various ways. We lived in Sudbury, Ontario, for eleven years, a city which sits on the edge of a huge meteor impact crater formed two billion years ago. While there isn't seismic activity in the area I had opportunities to go deep into mines and the Sudbury Neutrino Laboratory.

While on a course in Wyoming I was able to scoot up to Yellowstone National Park and hike amidst the geysers and bubbling hot spots of what is a supervolcano waiting to erupt one day. 

One of our favourite trips was to the Azores, an semi-tropical archipelago on the same tectonic fault line as Iceland in the Atlantic Ocean. On Terceira we walked down into the largest hollow dormant volcano on the planet, as well as visiting several calderas on other islands. 

And, yes, we've been to Iceland as well, a remarkable place which has the raw feel of recent formation, where hardened lava fields spill down to the black volcanic sands of ocean beaches. 

I have been thinking about the residents of the Reykjanes Peninsula who have been evacuated as they pensively await a volcanic eruption in their region, one which is expected at any moment. Icelanders don't scare easily. There are more than 30 active volcanic areas so everyone is aware of the volatility of their homeland. They go about their daily lives as best they can. Still, destruction is a tragedy for those affected. 

                                                        Mt. Etna in Italy is currently active 

As Christians we speak of the Creator and Creation and its tempting to consider this as something from the distant past and benign. Yet during October there were 46 active volcanoes around the Earth, some of them close to human habitation.

When I hear about these circumstances I often  consider the phrases from the New Creed of the United Church "We believe in God: who has created and is creating..." and "to live with respect in Creation..." This is a dynamic planet which at times invokes terror but also awe and wonder.

We can certainly pray for the residents of the fishing village of Grindavik in this time of crisis.We want them to "live long and prosper."  At the same time we might ponder the power of Creation and re-creation which never ceases. 

Maybe we need a few good vulcan hymns...