The Role Of The Church In The Fight Against Land Pollution (Part 2)

WE ESTABLISHED in the first edition that God is the supreme owner of the earth and so He makes absolute claim to the ownership of the land. Thus God warns men never to pollute the land He has graciously given them. He commands humans to be responsible and learn to respect the laws He has given concerning proper land management. God warns against polluting the land by shedding blood on it, defecating on it, littering it with garbage.

In Genesis 1:1 it is written, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” And then in Psalm 115:16, the Scripture says, “The heavens are the LORD'S heavens, but the earth he has given to the children of man,” (Psalm 115: 16).

Thus God had the authority and power to command the congregation of the people of Israel, “You shall not pollute the land in which you live, for blood pollutes the land, and no atonement can be made for the land for the blood that is shed in it, except by the blood of the one who shed it,”(Numbers 35:33-34).

These passages of Scripture above as indicated in the previous article clearly point out that all the lands which kings, monarchs, governments and chiefs boast of owning actually belong to God. Men and women who have acquired parcels of land ought to understand that they are mere stewards of God's precious resource and that on the day of reckoning they will be required to give accounts of their stewardship.

There is no doubt that the land is the most important resource available to man. It is, therefore, no surprising that when God led the people of Israel out of Egypt, and made a covenant with them He made the land a central issue in it. But God did not just promise and give them the land. He also gave laws or rules concerning how the land must be managed and used.

Indeed, land must be deemed as a significant gift from God to every nation. And every family and individual who have purchased or acquired parcels of land must have similar mindset. We have just looked at God's statutes regarding how He wants His land to be managed, used and kept pure and unpolluted. God says people should “not pollute the land. Bloodshed pollutes the land…”

Commenting on this, Emmanuel Twumasi-Ankrah, a lecturer at the Theology Department of the Christian Service University College (CSUC) in Kumasi has observed in his work, “The Old Testament Theology” that “A crime of murder is not only offense against the sanctity of life but also a pollutant to the Lord's sacred land.” …Apart from bloodshed, insanitary activities also abuse the land of God.”

Jerry A. Nathanson, professor of Engineering, Union County College, Cranford, New Jersey, defines land pollution as, “The deposition of solid or liquid waste materials on or underground in a manner that can contaminate the soil and groundwater, threaten public health, and cause unsightly conditions and nuisances.”

Now, what could have moved God to warn the people of Israel against land pollution as indicated in the passages of Scripture above? Twumasi-Ankrah asserts that “It is clear from the text that the people of Israel were committing murder” and also defecating indiscriminately on the land without covering their excrement.

Are the people of Ghana guilty of the same evil the people of Israel committed? Does God's Word or command apply to Ghanaians also? If about 70% of Ghana's population is counted to be Christian believers as indicated by the Statistical Service of Ghana, then, the Word of God really applies to Ghana. This means ministers of the gospel, who use the Bible for preaching and teaching have a role to play in the fight against land pollution in the country.

Just as the prophets of God as stated in the Bible taught the congregation of Israel to do, obey and live by the Word of God, so Ghanaian Christians if not the non-Christians are required to do same. This is because the Word of God applies to all children of God everywhere in every generation. Christians will be seen to be hypocritical men and women if they respond positively to a command of God which tells them to pray but respond negatively to another command which tells them not to pollute the land.

A critical observation about land management practices in Ghana show that most Christian believers have not been properly trained to protect the land from pollution. Clearly, the people have greatly sinned against God by disrespecting His Word through land pollution. The reason for the prevalence of this situation is the fact that the Word of God concerning land management has not been effectively communicated in the local churches.

Most ministers especially the prophets have failed to warn Christians and even non-Christians against land pollution and its consequences. The Bible is silent on the galamsey and several other human activities in Ghana which threaten the purity of the land and public health. But there is no doubt that included in God's condemnation of land pollution is all forms of pollution which many have written about today.

In the words of Nathanson, the waste materials that cause land pollution include nonhazardous garbage, rubbish, and trash from homes, institutions (e.g.schools), commercial establishments and industrial facilities. He lists hazardous wastes as including “harmful and dangerous substances generated primarily as liquids but also solids, sludge, or gases by various chemical manufacturing companies, paper mills, automobile repair shops…”

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By James Quansah