Christian View Restoring or Preserving Environment

Christianity and the Environment

Despite the popular view that many Christians believe environmental issues to be unimportant and indeed incompatible with their core beliefs, there are many more who believe quite the opposite. Many Christians today take environmental issues to heart (McDermott 2011), believing that it is not only the right of the faithful to inhabit and "rule over" the earth, but also their duty to protect this environment. In fact, the majority of Christians have embraced the idea of environmental protection and action to curb climate change without feeling that such action is incompatible with their basic faith. Hence, despite the historic tendency to exploit the earth and its resources under license of their "special" place in creation, Christians today believe that the biblical idea of "mastery" also means protection. Even prominent institutions such as the Vatican believe in the importance of protecting the earth, while the faithful on both the liberal and conservative sides believe that ecologically sound practices are essential from both a practical and religious point-of-view.

In the past, many Christians have interpreted the Old Testament idea of "mastery" over creation as a license to exploit the resources of the earth (McDermott 2011). Indeed, God does provide human beings with a "special" place on earth, declaring them to be higher than the rest of creation. In the past, this has been viewed as a command to rule over the earth, which has further been interpreted as a license to exploit. While there are those who still hold this belief today, the majority of Christians now interpret the idea of mastery to be synonymous with care. God, according to this view, is the master of all, but remains separate from earth. It is therefore the duty of believers, as representatives of God on earth, to protect the environment as part of the "mastery" directive.

Taking this idea further, Silvius (2012) points that Adam was never required to "rule" the earth by exploiting it. His rulership directive was also one of "keeping" it, or caring for nature. Indeed, early in Genesis God commands Adam to study the animals and plants and give them names. In other words, his care of the environment was also a scientific endeavor, to study and understand the relationships within nature and to name the creatures under him accordingly. God never gives Adam the directive to use and exploit as he wishes. Hence, today's environmental crisis can be seen as resulting from human selfishness, greed, and an ultimate denial of the original commandment God gave Adam (McDermott 2011).

DeYoung (2012) confirms that, as God's children, Christians should indeed be concerned with the environment. Despite common objections such as that the earth is just temporary, and that environmentalism in its extreme form has taken a somewhat fanatical aspect that should be reserved for religious devotion, the conclusion remains that stewardship of the earth is a God-given, biblically confirmed duty. According to DeYoung, both the Old and New Testament holds this central duty for Christians, where the Bible illustrates the earth as belonging to God but being cared for by its stewards in the form of humanity.

Deem (2009) also confirms this view, with the main point of his assertion being that God took obvious enjoyment in creation when he finished his work in Genesis. Hence, this author also interprets the command to rule over the earth and "subdue" it as a command to care rather than to exploit and destroy. Like other authors, Deem cites many extracts from the Bible that confirm God as the creator, with earth and everything belonging to him and giving him pleasure. Hence, human beings have no license to destroy and exploit as they see fit. The earth has been provided as a resource for human beings to live with their families. To ensure the longevity of earth and the human race until the Day of Judgment, the earth should be preserved in order to continue being a pleasure to God and sustenance to his creatures.

Another interesting viewpoint regarding Christianity and the environment is the claim that environmentalism can be used as a vehicle for evangelism. DeWitt and Nash (2009), for example, provide an in-depth response to those who would interpret Scripture as a license to exploit, and also to those who consider Christianity as mainly responsible for today's environmental crisis. Interestingly, the article finishes with the view that environmentalism and the drive to protect the earth can be considered a spiritual rather than a material matter. The authors explain by considering the ways in which Christian involvement in environmental issues can also be a vehicle for bringing the Gospel to those who had not heard it. In this view, one of the primary reasons for Christian involvement in environmental protection is evangelizing others with the same concern for the environment.

The environment has become such a serious concern that even the highest level of Christian institutions, the Vatican, has made a serious commitment to its protection. Understanding that climate change has become a major threat to humanity and the rest of creation, the Vatican has made a commitment to becoming a carbon neutral institution (McDermott 2011). It has installed solar panels on a number of buildings and has become a strong voice in urging caution against genetically modified crops. Indeed, the institution has gone as far as calling pollution "one of the most deadly modern sins." As such, the church has joined its voice to many others in its concern for the environment. Clearly, this is occurring under the assumption that Christians should exercise stewardship over the earth and everything on it, including other human beings. Particularly, the church has always been concerned with providing help and services to the poor. Its concern for other human beings now also extends to the well-being of future human beings by preserving the natural resources they will need to live and enjoy their lives.

McDermott also makes the point that Christians on both sides of the political scale are highly concerned with conserving the environment. Both liberal and conservative Christians have shown themselves to be highly responsible and concerned with conservation efforts and curbing the environmental crisis. "Interfaith Power and Light" is an example of this concern. The campaign, run by the Regeneration Project, has been brought about to help people of all faiths and persuasions, including all denominations of Christianity, to help in the effort to revive the earth and help ensure the conservation of resources for future generations. Although there have been prominent Christians, such as Glenn Beck, who denounce environmentalism as fundamentally unchristian, the majority has a tendency towards stewardship of the earth. Most Christians believe that it is their duty to "tend the garden" during the time that they have on earth, which, according to most interpretations of the Bible, is also the will of God.