As you enter the Textron Elephant & Giraffe Pavilion at the Roger Williams Park Zoo in Providence RI, you are immediately greeted by the 2 maitre'd as they lean in to know who you are. They are the living look out towers of the Savannah from which they came and take seriously their responsibility of watching for those who may wish them and their charges harm.
We share 98% of our DNA with these living skyscrapers.
They are endangered. Their population has declined by more than 50% in the past three decades due to habitat loss, illegal hunting, and human-wildlife conflict.
Last winter I discovered the Textron Elephant & Giraffe Pavilion at Roger Williams Park Zoo in Providence RI. I spent a bitterly cold afternoon with the elephants, giraffes and their caretakers. Fascinated by the care of their skin and feet, but even more so by the communication and the relationships between these mighty beings and their people. Alice and her sisters are 40 years old and have been at Roger Williams most of these years after having been slated to be culled from their herd.
We share 90% of our DNA with these beautiful creatures. They are critically endangered due to poaching for ivory and loss of habitat.
On a recent trip to Nepal, I was fortunate to meet an Asian elephant. She allowed me to touch her skin and feed her a bit of rice. She was magnificent.
Old Testament Bible pages from The Book of Genesis in addition to others are juxtaposed with scientific text and images from anthropology and sociology college course books, an exploration of belief and science.
We share the most genetic material with the bonobo, 98.8%, a small chimpanzee.
The bonobo is endangered due to poaching, habitat loss, and civil unrest in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which is once again enflamed.
Old Testament Bible pages from The Book of Proverbs and Psalms are juxtaposed with scientific text and images from anthropology and sociology college course books, an exploration of belief and science.
Proverbs instructs its readers on how to honor God with wisdom. Wisdom is personified as female and "praised for her role in creation; God created her before all else and gave order to chaos through her. As humans have life and prosperity by conforming to the order of creation, seeking wisdom is the essence and goal of life." Furthermore, it "raises questions about values, moral behavior, the meaning of human life, and right conduct", it's unfortunate that the fear of God is necessary to seek wisdom. Proverbs is the closest interpretation of Greek philosophy.
Psalms
10:1 Why standest thou afar off, O Lord? why hidest thou thyself in times of trouble?
10:2 The wicked in his pride doth persecute the poor: let them be taken i the devices that they have imagined?
10:9 He lieth i wait secretly as a lion in his den: he lieth in wait to catch the poor: he doth catch the poor, when he draweth him into his net.
10:10 He croucheth and humbleth himself, that the poor may fall by his strong ones.
The mountain gorillas are endangered due to hunting and poaching, habitat destruction and constant war and conflict in The Democratic Republic of the Congo. They are also one of our closest genetic relatives, sharing not only 98% of DNA but also some of the most distinctive.
Pages from The Book of Lamentations is a collection of poems from the Old Testament that express deep sorrow for the deportation of people and mourn the destruction of a great city. The pages are juxtaposed with those from anthropology science texts addressing culture and gender and sex expectations.
The mountain gorillas are endangered due to hunting and poaching, habitat destruction and constant war and conflict in The Democratic Republic of the Congo. They are also one of our closest genetic relatives, sharing not only 98% of DNA but also some of the most distinctive.
The last book of the New Testament pages from The Book of Revelation are juxtaposed with scientific text and images from anthropology and sociology college course books, an exploration of belief and science. Revelation describes an apocalypse, the end of times on earth, the revealing of divine mysteries.
22:13 I am the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.
The mountain gorillas are endangered due to hunting and poaching, habitat destruction and constant war and conflict in The Democratic Republic of the Congo. They are also one of our closest genetic relatives, sharing not only 98% of DNA but also some of the most distinctive.