Tuesday of the Fifth Week in Ordinary Time
(Genesis 1:20-2:4a; Mark 7:1-13)
A number of years ago people started talking about producing
a square tomato. They said it would be
easier to pack and ship. Agriculturalists
took up the challenge with some success.
Today there are tomatoes that are less rounded, but they are mainly used
for processing. Scientists have more
critical projects to work on. In doing
so, they respond to God’s mandate in today’s first reading.
Genesis pictures humans as the epitome of creation. After God creates the material universe, He
sets the earth aglow with life. First plants
then fish and birds followed by land animals inhabit land, sea, and sky. Finally, God creates men and women in His
image. In a sense they are like God because
He has granted them dominion over the other creatures. They are to develop what God has made. But a definite responsibility is implied with
this authority. As they are given only
plants to eat, humans may use animals for labor but are not to kill them for
food.
Eventually, God conceded that humans may eat the flesh of
animals. But we must take care not to abuse
God’s grant of dominion. We do not have
a right to squander natural resources. Nature
was created for us to use, to perfect, and to preserve. God never intended that it be polluted and
destroyed. Where this has already been
done, humans have the responsibility to restore nature as best we can.
