Letter from Father David

Congratulations Cat, Adrian & Dan!

The great sprawling suburbs of Australian cities, as elsewhere, are not usually thought of as epicentre of ecological good sense, so you've achieved an excellent breakthrough.

You may have woken up not only the slumbering real estate industry, but perhaps even governments, urban planners and energy analysts. And is it wishing too much to suggest that you might even interrupt the dozing property development and investment industry, which all-too-often gives the impression that it has no regard whatsoever for the diminishing resources of the planet. Who knows, you may have even woken up your parents' generation, to the ecologically disastrous acres of suburban lawns we have so carefully created and so profligately maintained. We thought you wanted acres of lawns to play on, but we may come to realise that what you really want is a viable planet for yourselves and your children.

As a father (of Cat) I am proud to be associated with your spirit of care for earth and for the integrity of community. As a middle-aged baby boomer I am delighted to witness the next generation taking seriously the pressing problem of urban ecology. As a Christian I am inspired by the way in which you are putting into practice what was really meant by that much-misunderstood expression from Genesis, 'dominion over creation' - which in fact means something much closer in spirit to what you are putting into practice at Thomas Street.

I hope that your landlord (a term which in its origins implies a mandate to care for the land) will come to see the immense value in what you are pioneering. Well done! Persevere. Keep smiling.

David Moore
parish priest
St Luke's in the City Anglican Church
Christchurch, NZ