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Barbara Mearns has been involved with A Rocha since its beginnings, and for many years ran the A Rocha International office from her home in SW Scotland. Now retired, she writes an irregular blog about local wildlife at mearnswildlife.wordpress.com and spends as much time as possible recording dragonflies, butterflies, moths and birds. With her husband, Richard, she has researched the lives of many early naturalists, most recently for their updated Biographies for Birdwatchers (2022) see mearnsbooks.com. 

15th May 2016 | Barbara Mearns | 0 comments

The real Jungle Book

The Jungle Book: What a fabulous world it would be if we could feel safe with a pack of Wolves, sing with Sloth Bears, ride on a Leopard and talk to Asian Elephants. But the sad reality is that most of us face a dilemma which is the opposite of Mowgli’s. In the UK, where I live, most of us feel safest in our villages, towns or cities and react with fear or even aggression when nature threatens our security, our income, or our convenience in some way.

Categories: Reflections
Tags: fear India movies
29th April 2014 | Dave Bookless | 11 comments

Noah – Beyond the blockbuster

Noah’s been in the news recently. Darren Aronofsky’s eponymous film has caused controversy and discussion by deliberately playing fast and loose with the biblical account. Critics have mostly loved it whilst the viewing public have been more ambivalent. Knowing that Noah was next in my blog series on biblical eco-characters, I reckoned I had to see the movie!

Categories: Biblical eco-characters
Tags: Darren Aronofsky ecology Genesis movies Noah
30th September 2012 | Dave Bookless | 15 comments

What’s the future for planet Earth?

I’ve grown up with the future according to Hollywood: visions of a scary, dystopian future with a world devastated and destroyed. It’s not surprising that popular Christian literature has followed suit. For years I assumed the central assumption was true: that this world would be destroyed completely when Christ returned in judgment. But as I started reading the Bible myself, my questions grew.

Categories: Questions
Tags: catastrophe future movies
31st March 2012 | Dave Bookless | 17 comments

Are humans the virus species?

In The Matrix, Agent Smith says, “Human beings are a disease, a cancer of this planet. You are a plague.” The idea of humans as a virus species is becoming increasingly widespread. No part of the planet is left untouched as we swarm over it, multiplying, polluting, consuming, destroying. Yet most Christians react in horror at the idea. Surely we are ‘made in the image of God’?

Categories: Questions
Tags: humans movies virus