It’s the end of the week and time to consider this first few days of 2025. Many of us have already forgotten the resolutions we made in earnest just few days ago but some hopes were accomplished. Under the authority of the Antiquities Act of 1906, two major pieces of lands sacred to Native Americans were declared as protected.
Southeast of Joshua Tree National Park are ancestral lands of the Chukwalla Indians, now declared a National Monument. Named for the stocky lizard that frequents this area, the Chukwalla have lived there for thousands of years.
About 750 miles to the north are lands of the Pit River Tribe who consider the Medicine Lake Highlands as part of their creation story. Now those lands will be the Satttitla National Monument. These designations will protect these sacred lands from the destructive acts of drilling and mining. God’s creation must be smiling today.
Prayer for the Day
Even in winter, we marvel in your creation, O God,
Stars and planets ever more bright in the night sky;
Marveling in wonder at your creation, O Lord,
Let us not shut our eyes to the world in our very midst.
Enlarge our vision of your world moving us beyond our reluctance
To embrace what we do not know or understand.
In the name of the One who embraces all,
Even Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen.
Thoughts for the Day
It gives you new faith that the process is working and that people are listening to Indigenous voices. We’ve spent a lifetime fighting to protect this area, and it’s hard to put into words how important this is to us.
Brandy McDaniels, Pit River Tribe
The Chuckwalla National Monument is good for the environment, the economy, and the public’s health. It aims to protect pristine wildlife habitats, endangered plants and animals, and sacred sites of significant spiritual importance to local tribes, crucial for their cultural preservation.
Raul Ruiz, U.S. Representative for the area
The heavens are telling the glory of God,
And the firmament proclaims God’s handiwork.
Day to day pours forth speech, and night to night declares knowledge.
There is no speech nor are there words; their voice is not heard,
Yet their voice goes out through all the earth,
And their words to the end of the world.
Psalm 19: 1-4