- Series:Animals, Transcript English
Genesis 8:22
“While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.”
Think of the Arctic and you probably think about polar bears. Those magnificent, big, white carnivores are probably pictured in your mind standing on snow and ice, where they can be difficult to see. The Arctic is the realm of the bear, and this is reflected in its 
name. The word “Arctic” is derived from the Greek word arktos, meaning bear. There are layers of meaning here. Certainly, the Arctic is home to the polar bear, but also the constellation Ursa Minor, the Little Bear, contains the star Polaris, which is the Pole Star, being directly above the North Pole, so if you were traveling “towards the Bear”, or Bearwards, you would be traveling North.
Perhaps the most iconic pictures of polar bears published have been those showing one or two bears clinging precariously to tiny icebergs barely able to support them. The implication of such images is that the habitat of the bears is disappearing. What would be the culprit that is melting the ice? Presumably, it would be our old friend Climate Change.
So what would a bear do if the ice under its feet melted away? I guess it would have to swim! Fortunately, polar bears are strong swimmers. Some bears have been tracked swimming up to ten days.
Contrary to popular opinion, recent research has shown that many polar bear populations increased during times of receding ice. In the last couple of years, ice sheets have expanded again. Climate Change Alarmists notwithstanding, conditions continue to underline that “while the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease.”
Father God, we thank You that You have populated this planet with interesting animals, and You have given human beings the responsibility and privilege of stewarding this world. Help us to fulfill these obligations in places that we live. Amen.
Author: Paul F. Taylor
Ref: Crockford, S. (2015), The Arctic Fallacy, (London: Global Warming Policy Foundation). Image: Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike 3.0 Unported.
