Ecological Crisis

Deviled Eggs

Posted by Vonn

I dedicate this painting and poem, “Deviled Eggs”, in memorial to all the brave souls who have died sacrificing their lives for a better world.

As part of my series “Cry of Creation” this work focuses and shines a light on the existential and spiritual threat we face as humanity confronts our own extraordinary power to tip the climate into an imbalance that threatens the future of the world as we know it. We are all important and all uniquely indispensable! Yes—You and Me!

The truth IS, God gathers, the devil scatters!

Deviled Eggs

Mammon (Devil of Greed) would deceive us saying—
“We’re entitled! All on Earth is ours for the taking!”
then turn and make our world an Omelet of Deviled Eggs!

From the spoils of our addiction,
to profits quarterly earned,
is spun the myth of Utopia!
While Greed clear-cuts timber,
and ancient forests burn

Priceless black blood lies in the womb of our Sacred Earth.
The Blood of Dinosaurs and giant Ferns.
As we—Sucking-up on it
like Mother’s Milk—
We as Combustion Burn!

The myth of endless growth
slurps up— “me thinks”
the broth of Sacred Life,
eons ago gone Extinct.

Yet we reward extravagantly reckless greed.
We make no shame, but tribute pay,
to those who would pay-out our future lives away.
To what extent and how far down
are we drilling and willing to ignore,
the council of our Wisdom
that makes up Freedom’s Core.

What has blinded our good sense?
That binds us to our folly.
knowing it will be at our future world’s expense.

What has hobbled our humility and morphed it into Pride?
Who has turned us off our path and broken up our stride?

We sing and shout the chant of Mammon
“If I can buy it, it’s mine! If I can do it, I will!

Oh Stupid! Oh, Self-Deceived Fallen One
We follow!
Down our hole we Go?

No! Let us ransom our Earthly Mother—
from out the skillet—set her free!
So she can spin and twirl in dance,
Blue Mother Dancing Free!

Lord God has let us ride through this our space and time,
a ride given to us FREE.
It’s where Earth has always been for us
and where She always wants to be.

A.Vonn Hartung © 2022

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Fishers of Men

Posted by Vonn

I dedicate this Painting and Poem to all First Responders.
All people who are Suffering
or Acting to live in Balance with our Climate,
who strive for the good of others
and Future Generations…

 

Fishers of Men

Fishers of Men go out further than any boat can know.
They sail over the shoals and rocks, where no others dare to go!

They fish with nets of Mercy in seas and oceans drag,
for those who’ve lost their footing and off the decks were dragged.

They troll in lakes of poison, in rivers clogged with slime
to pull aboard the wretched that Sin has rendered blind.
They scoop up the fragile and their kind, that hold fast to the line of flotsam and jetsam
that hope has left behind!

They surf the tides of turmoil and teach no fear of death.
They rise in swells of innocence until clear knowing builds and crests.

Fishers of men, fish for Souls, Souls that lose their way,
those who’ve sunk below the pale,
who in the deep of muck and dark, in the bottom lay.

Fishers of Men are Saviors!
Compassion, Love, and Mercy are how they reach so deep.
Following the Savior they’ve learned “Saving Grace” comes through Faith,
Humility and Penance in Redemption is forgiveness.
It is the Master’s Way, the Truth and the Life.

So as they Fish they teach us the Way to Pray, which is to say,
fish to save, for ALL on Earth are fragile and ALL on Earth need us to Pray,
to Serve, so in our own turn—We may save
and with our Savior stay …

A.Vonn Hartung ©2022

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Eve and Adam—a pandemic carving

Posted by Vonn

When the pandemic was announced in early March 2020 we were ordered to Lock-down in Quarantine.

As a professional woodcarver, and not knowing how long we would be quarantined, I realized I need to do a woodcarving—carving has always acted as a grounding effect for me.

And I knew it would need to be a carving that would speak to the Pandemic, but also that which I believe brought on the Pandemic—an imbalance in the mode in which we live with Nature, the destruction of the cosmos! Impending climate collapse!

The Question is, are we—the Human Species—continuing to cause this imbalance and if so, can we correct it?

 

This Question is the essence of the message of the carving. 

 We see our modern-day Adam pondering this question shown more as his temptation—recalling the original story of the Garden of Eden.

To answer this the parable of The Garden of Eden and the forbidden fruit speak to us here and now as we find ourselves in A Garden Moment of Time.

Eve and Adam

“Our Garden Moment”

Time was we thought right from wrong,
was caused by what Adam did
for lack of judgment less than strong.

But since we left the Garden
we’ve wandered and we’ve strayed,
off the straight and narrow,
off the path we’ve paved.

Seems some still hold the feeling
that it should not be them to shame—
But that “surely it was the Other.”
So they invented Blame.

So they reject the garden story
along with forbidden trees.
They see no problem in doing anything
they “Damn Well Please!”

Now our Modern Adam
has quite a powerful Thrust.
Cause with nods from his Investors
it is “In Him they Trust”

So it’s come and so it goes
so many times around.
It’s made us all quite dizzy
and scrambled Sacred ground.

So now We stand-in with Eve and Adam,
but this time we’re ALL around,
looking up once again.
But knowing the Forbidden Fruit
still is mostly underground.

But now the truth stands out for us,
for all of us to see,
where once were lies, it’s clear,
spoken in whispers, OH so low,
whispered in one man’s ear.

So with Eve we tremble,
as our new Adam eyes what may be reason,
for the last time that we Fall.
And again mistakes
in thinking of no consequence
if he listens to The Snake.

Our Eve cries out “Listen to us Mothers
and Will-be Mothers, for little time is left.
Hear our voice, it is our choice
to birth and bear our kin.
Who if worthy of Us,
will do for those who follow,
what WE now do for Them.”

For it was before, we little thought
beyond our children and theirs.
Now we must “In God we Trust”
be the bridge for all our children’s
future tomorrows…

A.VonnHartung 2022

 

View the video—

Ecologist Nick Brokaw introduces Vonn and his pandemic woodcarving Eve and Adam

The Fate of Jonah

Posted by Vonn

Fate of Jonah is a painting by A.VonnHartung, from his series "Cries of Creation" inspired by Pope Francis' encyclical on the environment "Laudato Si".

The Fate of Jonah

The Fate of Jonah is a painting and sonnet from my new series “Cries of Creation”, inspired by Pope Francis’ 2015 encyclical “Laudato Si“

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Jonah was a good man from the start

for he saw beauty in all things that lived,

and knew he was of it a part.

He was with God, he lived, he loved and prayed.

 

Then one day God tested him! This is what He said—

Go to Nineveh, for there they’ve strayed in sin.

And tell them how they’ve lost their way.

And teach them how to live, to love and pray.

 

Now Jonah’s knees began to shake,

like a mighty mountain began to quake.

 

And Jonah that night ran away

on a ship whose course was far apart

from where he knew he should depart

to do what he knew was right.

 

But doubt and fear had closed his heart.

And greed and self-interest had closed his ears.

 

The fate of Jonah we must heed

for his redemption is our great need.

To do God’s will and change our ways,

for now it’s us who’ve gone astray.

 

Only fools run from God and try to slink away!

 

Those of us who were good to start,

who have the sight, who have the heart,

help us Lord not to turn away, but let us turn

and face our fate and know our place.

And live and love and pray!

 

Ships of Fools

Posted by Vonn

"Ships of Fools" is a painting and sonnet by A.VonnHartung, from his series "Cries of Creation", inspired by Pope Francis' encyclical on the environmental crisis "Laudato Si"

Ships of Fools

Ships of Fools is a painting and sonnet from my new series “Cries of Creation”, inspired by Pope Francis’ 2015 encyclical “Laudato Si“

Buy a giclee print of this painting

 

We do not know where fools’ ships go,

for all they tell are lies.

Their Captains have no course nor maps.

They only sail where blows the wind,

and only at their backs.

 

The captains’ futures are all invested.

In the market they do rely.

No thoughts of destination nor direction,

for on the Big Board they have their eye.

 

Ni port nor starboard do they veer,

nor course corrections do they dare

while in the current of their winnings.

 

But, if Mammon-wish tickles their fancy,

quickly will their trading shift.

Or if by chance they be becalmed,

then happily will they daze and drift.

 

Their crews are drifters all,

 from the sea the captains plucked.

Their losses and misfortunes

are the foolish captains’ luck.

 

The passengers all are gamblers.

These ships are what they sought.

Cheap one-way tickets

are what they scrambled for and bought.

 

All good one-time married men,

left their wives behind—

knowing, like some good husbands,

they thought it would be kind.

 

For on these one-way foolish ships,

ships with no return,

there is no need to bother, ponder, or discern.

Foolish ships are bound to flip,

for black holes they are bound!

It is their way

when gone astray

that fools do double down!

 

Let us learn again to sail

the oceans with her winds.

And tack, when need be,

so when the wind swings round

we yield, to her lead.

 

To keep on course, we cannot force

Nature to do our will.

Our destiny is to bend and mend our ways.

The signs are all around us

all the time, numerous as the waves.

 

It’s only fools who sail on ships

 captained without a course,

ships that sail to nowhere!

Of this I cry BEWARE!

 

 

Sólo Un Futuro

Posted by Vonn

Fue hace 50 años que recibíamos por primera vez una imagen de nosotros mismos desde la Luna. En el proceso de enviar un hombre a la luna por primera vez, Joseph Allen, uno de los astronautas que estuvo involucrado en el proceso de planificación, recuerda:

“Entre todos los argumentos que se hicieron a favor y en contra de viajar a la Luna, nadie mencionó la posibilidad de que la mejor razón sea simplemente observarnos a nosotros mismos”.

Y, esa resultó ser la razón, para vernos desde afuera como planeta. Cuando recibimos la foto de nuestro planeta, fue una revelación global que cambió la forma en que pensamos. Desde entonces, nuestra conciencia nunca ha sido la misma. Vimos a nosotros mismos tal como somos; solo en la inmensa oscuridad del espacio; pequeña, delicada, resplandeciente con la vida, la belleza divina.

No fue hasta los principios de los años 70 que comenzamos a pensar en la ética y el cuidado del medio ambiente. Esto sólo fue comentado por los místicos y los ambientalistas, pero desde entonces todo ha cambiado. El mundo ha respondido con una gran cantidad de reflexiones importantes. Ahora tenemos las herramientas científicas y el pensamiento filosófico y ético para comenzar a razonar acerca de nuestra responsabilidad con respecto al medio ambiente.

Pinté esta obra (pintura al óleo sobre panel de madera, 42 x 57 ″) cuando era miembro de la Comisión de Justicia y Paz de la C.O.R. aquí en San Juan, Puerto Rico en 1992, inspirado en parte debido a las condiciones de deterioro del medio ambiente en esta isla más delicado, los irreflexivos desarrollo excesivo, la contaminación que estaba pasando, y la destrucción de las comunidades locales. La encíclica del papa Francisco Laudato Si ‘En el Cuidado de Nuestro Hogar Común lo explicó todo por completo. Su mensaje fue claro y dijo de forma elocuente. Fue una aclaración teológica de lo que decía toda la ciencia, y para mí, ¡el huracán María aplastó la prueba de ello!

La pintura es retórica en concepto y nos presenta dos posibilidades: una en armonía con la Creación de Dios, un futuro de justicia, paz y sostenibilidad. El otro de saqueo, el caos, la guerra sin fin y un colapso último de la naturaleza y la vida en nuestro planeta tal como la conocemos. La Tierra está pintada en forma de huevo, simbolizando metafóricamente la fragilidad del ecosistema de la Tierra, así como su abundancia y fertilidad natural. La metáfora del huevo también se utiliza para mostrar un pacto roto y la ruptura resultante de la frágil ecología de la tierra y la caída de la humanidad en desgracia causada por un sistema económico lineal defectuoso basado en el abuso del poder y la riqueza, simbolizado por el uso profano de oro.

No hay duda acerca de esto. Nosotros, los humanos tenemos las herramientas para destruir o salvar a la civilización, porque Dios nos creó con esa capacidad. Pero también nos creó con libre albedrío.

Cuidar el medio ambiente es una cuestión moral. Papa San Juan Pablo II hizo hincapié en la prioridad de la ética sobre la técnica, y el espíritu sobre la materia. Si destruimos la tierra, destruimos la creación divina, nos destruimos a nosotros mismos.

¿Es ese el plan de Dios? ¿Es ese nuestro plan?

LEER MÁS ACERCA DE ESTA PINTURA

Compre una impresión giclée de esta pintura.

 

Earth Day 2019

Posted by Vonn

BREATH OF LIFE
“and then the Lord God formed man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and Man became a living being.” (Genesis 2:7)

 

                                       Breath of Life

On this Earth Day 2019, I share this 27 x 40-inch oil painting. I conceived it with Teilhard de Chardin’s “Cosmogenesis” in mind. It makes visible how we are physically part of the Cosmos and of our Mother Earth. Hence it is a visualization of how all things are connected in God’s creation.
Significantly it is a reminder of the crisis we find ourselves in.

We here in Puerto Rico who have lived through Hurricane Maria have seen both the most beautiful and the most destructive forces of nature. When I think of the devastation, the waste and the suffering, I lament that we humans have contributed in a significant way to this most devastating, climate crisis.

Let us meditate on this Earth Day 2019 on our connectedness to all things.
We are the conscience of planet Earth!
Lord we pray, help us to be the Stewards of your Creation as you created us to be. Amen

“Earth lies polluted under its inhabitants; for they have transgressed laws, violated the statutes, broken the everlasting covenant.” (Isaiah 24:5)

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The World’s Greatest Challenge!

Posted by Vonn

Saving God’s Creation

The earth lies polluted under its inhabitants; for they have transgressed laws,
violated the statutes, broken the everlasting covenant.    Isa 24:5

                         On Earth as it is in Heaven

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Visualizing Pope Francis’ Encyclical Laudato Si’

 

A.Vonn Hartung designed this poster for an ecumenical conference on the environment organized by the Catholic Commission on Justice and Peace in Puerto Rico on Earth Day 1993.
The poster is interactive. Hence the participants who purchased the posters received crayons. Proceeds went to the Faith-based environmental movement.
It depicts St. Francis giving thanks for Creation but he stands in a semi-polluted world. The scripture reading is from Isaiah 24:5 (“The earth is also polluted by its inhabitants, for they transgressed laws, violated statutes, broke the everlasting covenant”).

 

                                     Breath of Life    

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                                                  Latter-Day Jonah

“Latter-Day Jonah” is a concept, that is, a drawing with a paste on image of planet Earth. It speaks of the crisis that we face with climate change due to the overuse of carbons in our energy consumption. Furthermore it highlights the unsustainable development that is taking place because of our predatory economic system. In fact, the technology that we have developed is so powerful that it is threatening to destroy the natural balance of God’s creation.

The threat that we witness in the drawing is both the terrestrial devastation shown by the power of the bulldozer and the crisis we face in over-fishing and pollution of our oceans. Here we see a young fisherman being swallowed like Jonah by a giant fish. This is symbolic of the Awakening of consciousness that we as a species are Awakening to as scientific data is revealed to us.

This drawing in some ways is a self-portrait. Indeed I recall becoming aware of the crisis that we face as Humanity peers into and contemplates our future.

 

                                       Thorns of Christ

ABOUT THIS SCULPTURE

 

"El Jíbaro" oil portrait by AVonnHartung
                                                        El Jíbaro

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On Earth as in Heaven

Posted by Vonn

On Earth as it is in Heaven

In response to our Holy Father Pope Francis’ call to dialog and action on Climate Change in his Encyclical Laudato Si’ On Care for Our Common Home, published in 2015, I offer this metaphorical painting, On Earth as it is in Heaven,  as a visual prayer to raise consciousness and to encourage dialog.

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[Leer en Español]

The title of the painting “On Earth as it is in Heaven”  is taken from the prayer Jesus taught us. That is, the Lord’s Prayer, Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Will Be Done, On Earth as it is in Heaven.

The painting is rhetorical in concept and presents us with only two possibilities.

One in harmony with God’s Creation. In other words, a future of justice, peace and sustainability in the natural world. Conversely, the other of plunder, chaos, and endless war. Subsequently, an ultimate collapse of nature and life on our planet home as we know it.

Moreover, the painting asks a question of the viewer, each one of us, whatever our religion or beliefs. Which future do we want to live in, leave to our children and future generations?

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