Hymn to creation: The Father's world
I recall that we used to sing “This Is My Father’s World” at the beginning of Sunday school sessions, and we would sing it every evening at church camp as we sat on the hard wooden benches. I haven’t chosen that hymn for worship for many years because I know how important it has been to move beyond masculine images in theology and liturgy. But I’m going to go out on a limb and use it soon because it says something profoundly important: the world is God’s. The earth is the Lord’s, as the Psalmist put it—which is to say, not ours. We’re temporary guests, here on the earth for the time being.