Here Comes the Sun...of Righteousness

 

3 Hail, the heavenborn Prince of Peace!

Hail, the Sun of Righteousness!

Light and life to all he brings,

risen with healing in his wings.

Mild he lays his glory by,

born that we no more may die,

born to raise us from the earth,

born to give us second birth.  R

                                               Voices United 48

Three weeks ago the climate activist and writer Bill McKibben was interviewed on CBC Radio's The Current. McKibben chatted with Matt Galloway about his latest book, Here Comes the Sun. He admitted that his first book, The End of Nature, had a less than cheerful tone but this book has a much more positive outlook because of the possibilities for solar power to change the way we fuel our lives. In fact it's already happening around the planet despite the obstinance of some countries, including both Canada and the United States to stubbornly stick with fossil fuels. China is making the transition to renewables, both solar and wind, with astonishing speed. In Pakistan solar adoption is grass roots, with tens of thousands of farmers installing small scale units, enough so that the government is cancelling some contracts for future fossil fuel purchases. 

I listened wtih interest to all this  because I purchased The End of Nature when it was published in 1989 and it was the book that bump-started my exploration, in my mid-30s, of the ways in which climate change was altering our planet. 

At that time I discovered that McKibben was a Christian and even taught Sunday School in his Vermont congregation so I reached out to him via email and we had a brief exchange now lost in the mists of time. I've read other McKibben books along the way and I'm always interested to see what he's up to, often in the midst of climate awareness events, including occasions when he was arrested during protests. 

                                               Bill McKibben (right) on stage with Jane Fonda

I happened to be reading Here Comes the Sun when I chanced upon The Current interview although I was not much past the introduction. Near the end of the book Bill reminds us of how many songs include the sun, including the most downloaded song ever for the Beatles.

He also describes how many religions look to the sun in worship. He does note that the Judeo/Christian tradition warns against idolatry. Still when he leads the Christmas Eve service in his local Methodist congregation he always includes "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" with the words about the "sun of righteousness". He reminds us, as well, that early Christians borrowed the date of the Roman Winter Solstice festival called Saturnalia to celebrate the birth of the Christ. 

I wish that the connection to faith had come out in the interview, but it's good to know that Bill continues to connect the hope the Son brings as he invites us to consider the possibilities for the Sun.