In South Texas and parts around the world, heat and fire determine our daily activities as well as the impact on our Earth. In this issue we reflect on a dream, a prayer, and what we do with heat and fire.

This recent memory came to me in a dream, much like the lyrics of a song honoring a beloved magic horse, named Wildfire, came to Michael Martin Murphy in 1975. At the time, our family was deeply involved in 4-H and QuarterHourse activities, where our son, Wade, became friends with Murphy’s son, Bryan. In my recent dream, I could see and hear the beautiful song, again. Please go to the video below for Murphy’s performance of Wildfire, a beloved horse.

These days, I see “wildfire”, not as a horse, but everywhere as destruction – on TV, in Maui, in our countryside, and warnings posted on freeway overhead electronic signs. Earth’s enemy: destructive heat and fire. What are we doing to our beloved earth!

The reality of our scorched earth is here and undeniable. There is much that we can do to protect our earth, mainly conserve, get involved, vote, and pray.

Jesus said, “I have come to set the earth on fire.” (Lk 12:49) Jesus’ statement of fire is the fire of his love; it is all- powerful, all- consuming in Christ’s love for his Father and his creation. Jesus wants the whole world to burn with the intensity of love he has for his Father and all of humanity.

We remember the familiar conversation of the disciples on the road to Emmaus: ““Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?” (Luke 24:32).” John of the Cross, priest, mystic, writes of a living flame of love from God that burns within the soul.

This prayer is invoking that beloved fire of God’s love:

*Photo MMMurphy and Wade, 1986

Fire. Even the trailer for the movie “Oppenheimer” features swirling images of fire: devastating fiery explosions that haunted the dreams and imagination of the scientists who created the first atomic bomb. Those same images haunt our world to this day.

Fire. Cozy campfires and attractive candles draw us to them, lighting the darkness and warming the cold. Fire brings light and warmth not just to our surroundings but also to our souls.

Fire. Images of horrible wildfires – Maui, Canada, Greece, a seemingly endless list – fill our TV screens during the evening news.

Fire. Since the dawn of the industrial revolution, humans have burned fossil fuels to power industry, housing and transportation. Over the course of my lifetime, global fossil fuel consumption has grown nearly eight-fold. Just since 1980, the amount of fossil fuel burned annually has roughly doubled.

Fire. While making “Oppenheimer,” director Christopher Nolan insisted that his crew work with actual, fiery explosions, not computer-generated graphics, because the computer images felt too safe – falsely safe. He wanted to be sure, not only for the viewers, but also for the actors, that the fiery images had “the requisite threat” along with “hypnotic beauty.”

Fire. Fire attracts us and threatens us. Fire warms us and harms us. Fire is both lethal threat and hypnotic beauty. Global warming. Nuclear weapons. Heat domes. We are, in so many ways, playing with fire. God protect us from folly.

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