A Bee's Eye View

Last week there was news of a sect in Russia , some brand of Christian interpretation, people who have holed up in a cave waiting for the end of the world. In the news today word from some scientists warning that global warming will be the doom of us all. Other scientists declare that warming and cooling are cycles beyond direct human influence. The Bible clearly states human history is headed somewhere, on a collision course with judgment for us all, but it does not say when or how. In fact if I understand scripture the word is comforting to the children of God- the uplook is always Promising.

But isn't is strange that one threat to life as we now know it is connected with the health or illness of honey bees! Over the last several years whole colonies of honey bees have simply given up and died. Last year was a disastrous year for many bee keepers. And while you may or may not use much honey, and wouldn't think a bee shortage to be a major problem, you do eat fruits and vegetables, and enjoy flowering plants of all kinds. The lowly honey bee is directly involved in the pollination of all these essentail plants. And some scientists have predicted that at current rates of diseased hives the honey bee may be near extinction by 2035. Wouldn't that ber a strange harbinger of the end of the world?

It probably would not portend an end to civilization in and of itself. And I don't see evangelists waxing eloquent or urgent over the plight of the bees. But it does indicate just how inter-dependant life is. Maybe we should pray for the scientists who are looking for an antidote to the disease that has decimated these little friends of ours. If I were a bee I'd appreciate it!