What If?

“There is enough in a mouse to stagger sextillion infidels.” –Walt Whitman

What if all we know of the Creator is Creation? And what if Creation speaks in messages that must be interpreted   through science and reason? What if we could agree that everything in the universe is holy—water,   air, light, gravity, procreation, photosynthesis, adaptation,   instinct, intellect, and knowledge—from a handful of topsoil to   the distant star, from the amoeba to the Nobel laureate?

Would we behave differently? Would we develop a proper awe and excitement and gratitude and   responsibility? Would we be more mindful of the necessities of life, even the things we   don’t even know that we need? Would we have remorse for our profligate use of resources that are now   dwindling and with billions of others asking for their part of what   is left? Would we share with the powerless ones because it would be just? Would our houses have fewer rooms, our cars less horsepower, and   would we suppress our wants so that others might at least live? Would we give what we save through a more rational lifestyle to charity   or the tax collector to promote the common good and to protect   Creation? Would we expect from corporations honesty and decency toward   people, other creatures, and the natural world? Would we require government at all levels to ensure that all who take   and use from Creation to make our lives and comfort possible, to   do so with a minimum of damage? Would we conserve to meet the needs of future generations? Would we be a better people, and would we unite to protect the miracle   and marvel of Creation?