Candles In The Darkness

Survival is a universal topic of discussion these days, given clearly evident faltering economies, climate change and rapidly diminishing resources.

Three recent books offer guidance from seemingly disparate authors. Cy Gonick — editor of Canadian Dimension magazine — has assembled a well-ordered series of essays which provide a Canadian context on these crucial and relevant topics.


Sharon Astyk is a Shakespearian scholar turned farmer; Pat Murphy, is a computer scientist who became an activist and builder of homes engineered to consume low energy.

Astyk focuses on family, which she ultimately extends to all humanity. Murphy traces the historical roots of consumption from the time of the Roman Empire, making his point that the nature of imperial power is to pillage the resources of subjected peoples, and that modern America is no exception.

Both Astyk and Murphy write with prophetic zeal. The authors foresaw the crises in global warming and financial chaos. They offer — from different perspectives — practical guidance on ways to alleviate our predicament, coming to the same conclusion: We stand or fall together. Survival in hard times is — has always been — a matter of living together in community.

Countercurrents.org