Our relationship with nature - out of therapy?

For thousands of years, people have lived in harmony with nature. At some point, for whatever reason, they stopped doing so or no longer accepted the boundaries that need to be observed in a healthy relationship.

Subdue the earth and have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, the cattle and all animals..."

Genesis 1:28

This is the instruction in the biblical creation hymn, according to which Homo Sapiens could now prove to be the crowning glory of creation.

Like everything in the Bible (and in life), this is of course a matter of interpretation.

However, it is, admittedly, quite flattering to see oneself as the pinnacle of all life. In the industrialized countries of the global North, this was certainly understood in this way and industrialization was set in motion with this in mind. The resulting distance, if not alienation, from nature was unstoppable.

Unlike in agriculture, the chopping up of work into small production steps as well as mass production meant that the view of the big picture was blurred. Harmony with nature and its seasons was no longer important. Profit and the greatest possible added value ruled.

Last but not least, the rapidly increasing CO2 emissions caused by the mass combustion of coal should be mentioned.

Industrialization - blessing and curse

However, the fact that many goods became accessible to many people also had other effects on ecosystems:

The oceans, which are not only drowning in microplastics, but are also over-acidifying, the extinction of species, which has taken on threatening proportions due to monocultures, the degradation of living beings to disposable goods, the wasteful consumption of raw materials that have grown for millions of years in just a few decades.

How could we save our relationship (with nature)?

First of all, it's always good to reflect on old values - along the lines of "How nice we used to have it"... but of course that's not something to joke about. Besides, going backwards is so hard to do, so we could try to rebuild our relationship and swing down from the pedestal to get on an equal footing.

That is always beneficial.