Landscapes of Desire / Open the Kingdom for a Cottonwood Tree
This chapter ponders on the ethical implications of the proposal to include trees in the communion of saints. It suggests the following corollaries that flow naturally from the acceptance of a principle of inclusivity that welcomes trees into the community of the faithful: we must recognize trees as sharing an intimate, even sacramental relation with us in the Body of Christ; we must extend justice to the creatures that sustain human life, using their products with gratitude and respect; we must honor wood, whether cut or uncut; and we must attend, finally, to the distribution of gifts within the community of living beings, recognizing the unjust advantages enjoyed for so long by First-World humans.
Keywords: trees, communion of saints, Christian symbolism, sacramental relation, human life
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