Plants: The Next Oppressed Group?

As the culture becomes more and more paganized, the realization of humans being created in the Imago Dei, the image of God, continues to dispute. Worship of the planet as our mother grows. The earth as our mother, is one of the centerpieces at The Parliament of the World's Religions as they repent for climate change and provide drop off receptacales for "Letters to Mom." In "Plants are People Too?" Steven Hayward comments on climate change activist, Elizabeth Kolbert's work toward bringing about plant's rights :

Her newest obsession might be called “the secret life of plants.” Because guess what? Plants are intelligent, and communicate! But since we eat them and trample on them, sounds like the next favored oppressed group for the Democratic Party.

Think I am being facetious? Let’s take in some samples: “A body of recent scientific research suggests that plants can adapt to new information, predict the future, communicate with animals, and confer privately with each other. Should we think of them as sentient? . . . Plants communicate with one another. . . Plants are also able to confer privately, with just their kin, by emitting chemicals only relatives can interpret.”

It seems this is not really a new idea and has been litigated in the past. Hayward's is interesting: “Dust off your copy of the famous 1970 law review article “Should Trees Have Standing?“, and await the first class-action lawsuit on behalf of oppressed plants everywhere.”

I am reminded here of a stanza of a poem by the contemplative monk Thomas Merton:

Keep away, son, these lakes are salt.
These flowers Eat insects. Here private lunatics
Yell and skip in a very dry country.

Even though Thomas Merton is a Contemplative Dark Thread he may be right on this one.

https://mailchi.mp/8ccecca2ed23/designer-jesus?e=169825fd77