Our text for today comes from the Gospel of Steve, where it says, "Verily I say unto thee: Tis better that thou shalt walketh wherever thou goest than crank up ye gas-guzzler and polluteth the air even more."

Naw, don't bother looking for that passage in the Old or New Testaments.

The gospel of Steve Waters can be found at Raleigh City Council meetings, on his Web site (www.livingstreets.com), or wherever Triangle environmentalists gather.

That's where Waters extols, with varying degrees of success, the virtues of urban living and the need for reducing both sprawl and our dependence on automobiles.

"At the municipal level, there's been a lot of interest," Waters told me Monday. "At the state level, we run into a whole new set of problems.

"A majority of citizens are now living in urban areas, but the political pendulum hasn't swung back and many of the powerful representatives are from rural areas" where urban density is not a major issue, he said.

Waters, who calls himself an urban economist, is a Web programmer who spends much of his time "building political support for downtown revitalization and mixed-use development as an alternative to urban sprawl."

The Special Transit Advisory Commission, composed of business leaders, will meet from 3 to 5 p.m. Friday at 12 Davis Drive in Research Triangle Park to discuss public transit.

I asked whether the high gas prices have been a boon to arguments for denser downtowns and alternative means of travel, such as biking and rails.

Waters said, "I don't try to emphasize that, because if we change the way we move around and interact, we can reduce the strain of global warming" and other environmental ills caused by sprawl.

He may not emphasize it, but chances are that when the national Bike to Work Week rolls around next month, not all of the riders will be pedaling to save the environment; some will be trying to save money.

Waters said his "30-year vision" seeks not just to reduce automobile traffic in Raleigh to cut the use of fuel. He wants to make streets safer for pedestrians and bicyclists. "It doesn't feel any better being hit by an electric car than a gas-powered car," he said.

Amen. Crossing some downtown Raleigh streets at lunchtime can make you feel like Richard Roundtree crossing 42nd Street at the beginning of "Shaft." The only difference is you don't hear the "Theme from Shaft" playing in your head as you bop across the street; most likely, you'll hear, "Hey, stupid. Get outta the street. And stop writing that $#%^&! in the newspaper."

Waters is a 32-year-old self-described political junkie and UNC grad-to-be -- he'll receive a bachelor's degree in economics in two weeks. He hopes to land a job as a lobbyist representing transportation or land-use issues -- in other words, a job paying him to do what he loves doing anyway. "I'm a Web programmer, and I'm good at it, but that's not my passion," he said.

His passion, he said, is not to just create a cleaner environment, but also to foster a sense of community.

"We're the most disconnected society in the history of the world," he said. "Our entire democracy is put at risk if we're not civicly engaged."

Whatever else you say about Waters and his passion, he is certainly engaged. And civic-minded.