By DONALD DeMARCO
Wherever there is a movement, there are sure to be extremists. Environmentalism offers us a case in point. Perhaps the most outlandish of the environmentalist extremist groups is the one founded by the pseudonymous Les U. Knight. It is called the Voluntary Human Extinction Movement (VHEMT).
The philosophical principle that undergirds this group is the notion that the Earth would be better off without humans. Therefore, humans should stop breeding. Its homepage reads as follows: “Phasing out the human race will allow Earth’s biosphere to return to good health.” Human beings, consequently, should “unite,” not to breed, but to become extinct.
Members of VHEMT prefer to read Genesis backwards, moving from the first human beings back to an unpopulated Eden. Apparently, God did not know when to stop. The “apple of God’s eye,” as Scripture often refers to him, would no longer be man, the creature made in His own image, but the literal apple. The apple, as well as the Earth, would belong to themselves. Yet, in the absence of consciousness, health would no longer be of any value.
Nature itself is serenely indifferent to whether it is healthy. In fact, “health” would cease to have meaning. Are the incandescent stars “healthy”? Are tidal waves a sign of health? Are volcanic eruptions better off when there are no human beings around? The plain truth is that intelligence must be present in order to ascribe “health” to anything. Nature is unaware of its health, beauty, violence, or chaos. Without consciousness, the universe remains incomplete.
“Keep me as the apple of your eye,” sings David in Psalm 17:8. The psalmist is happy to be part of a world that is characterized by relationships, one in which nothing is closed in on itself. God creates man out of His generosity and places him in an environment that sustains his life. The apple symbolizes life, nourishment, beauty, and immortality. Man exists for God and the apple tree for man. The entire universe comes to be and evolves as a result of each ingredient making its contribution to another.
The astronomer, Carl Sagan, who authored the popular television series, Cosmos, reminds us that the world is a network of innumerable particles all working together through giving and receiving, when he makes the following observation: “If you wish to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first invent the universe.” The apple, indeed, has a long lineage.
We sit down to enjoy a slice of apple pie and thank God for creating the apple. We may also thank Him for the extraordinary versatility He has given to this special fruit. And consider the glorious array of desserts it has generated, from turnovers to tarts, crumbles to cobblers, strudels to sauces, hot and cold ciders, jellies, butters, pancakes, and apple pan dowdies. Thanksgiving is the grateful remembrance that God created an orchard and was most eager to share it with us.
According to legend, the apple caught the arrow of William Tell and the noggin of Sir Isaac Newton. For Milton, it tempted Adam and Eve, for Steve Jobs, it inspired new horizons for the world of computers. It was the dramatic symbol in the tale of Snow White. It is the sobriquet of America’s largest city. It was the vocation of Johnny Appleseed. It is Halloween’s treasured emblem. It pleases the teacher and keeps the doctor away.
And so, Henry David Thoreau could rightly observe “how closely the history of the apple tree is connected with that of man.”
If the fig tree remains barren, it should be cut down (Luke 13:6-9). To give or to bear fruit is needed for the universe to unfold as it should. The Ebenezer Scrooges of the world are an anomaly. Christmas is for men of goodwill. Mother’s milk is for the baby. Pregnancy prepares the continued life of the child.
Abortion is anti-evolutionary, unnatural, and regressive. In the Song of Solomon (8:5), we find an interesting association between the apple and the fruit of a mother’s womb: “Under the apple tree I awakened you. There your mother was in labor with you; there she who bore you was in labor.” Human birth takes place in the context of fruit-bearing nature. The Earth is a home in which we find ourselves mirrored.
Returning to the Song of Solomon (2:3), we read: “Like an apple tree among the trees of the forest is my beloved among the young men. I delight to sit in his shade, and his fruit is sweet to my taste.”
The apple belongs to the tree only while it is being nourished. When it is ripe, it belongs to us. So too, with respect to the relationship between a mother and her child in the womb. Timing and generosity are the hallmarks of creation and life. Nature is a great teacher and is prodigious. We can count the number of seeds in an apple, but only God can count the number of apples that can be generated from a single seed.
The fact that the apple belongs to us, and not to the tree, reassures us of God’s generosity and His creative presence, and the essential importance for human beings to order their lives a through giving and receiving.
Thanksgiving, then, is an opportunity for us to offer thanks to God for making apple trees, and to grandma for making mouth-watering apple pies.
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