I posted this late in an open thread day before yesterday because the new diary editor doesn't cooperate with me. Now I've remembered the old one's still available, so here goes again. Via
Appalachian Voice:
MIXING RELIGION AND MINING
Under most circumstances, we are of the opinion religion should not play a role in political debate. Recently, however, we’ve learned some religious leaders are railing against mountaintop mining and, as we hear it, invoking the Almighty to bring an end to the mining method.
While these folks are certainly within their right to do so, it made us wonder, should we call for the same help to continue this mining practice, which is, after all, a temporary use of the land? Mountaintop mining employs thousands of people and makes it possible for them to provide for their households, (see 1 Timothy 5:8, below). It also can spur economic development, creating even more jobs in areas where people desperately need work. The reclaimed flat land is and can be used for building factories, schools, recreational and tourist-based businesses, and housing in areas where flat land is a premium and land development costs very high.
We, therefore, even though reluctant to inject them into the debate, enter this scriptural citations [sic] for reflection:
“Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill shall be made low; The rugged land shall be made a plain, the rough country, a broad valley. Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all mankind shall see it together; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.” Isaiah 40:4-5, (New American Bible)
And
the rest of their apologetics is just as rich.