environmental justice is a fundamental part of faith
“i remember that it’s not me trying to protect the rainforest. rather i am part of the rainforest protecting myself.”
john seed, rainforest information center
on my fridge i have the creed of the social justice council from the catholic church i attend. it says: “we are required by our faith to protect the planet, and to act as stewards of god’s wonderful creation.” it’s creeds like this that have led me away from the traditional, conservative evangelicalism of my youth - where professions and requirements such as these tend to be sadly lacking - and toward a faith that encompasses more applicable answers and actions in regards to the earth’s biggest problems. but this post is not about my spiritual dissension - i’ve covered that enough for now! - it’s a followup to the idea that people of faith, for whatever reason, aren’t as responsive as they should be to the environmental tragedy we face. my second point in this investigation and commentary is this:
2. what we believe should dictate our actions. it seems pretty fundamental, right? if people of the christian faith believe that god gave them - in one way or another (ie, through creation, evolution, increasing knowledge, development of resources, etc.) - the earth and what inhabits it, shouldn’t we be the MOST careful about caring for it?
the general argument i’ve heard against this idea is that we WERE given the earth, and it’s under our dominion, therefore we can do whatever we want. i follow the first two points, but the third reflects an attitude that to me is entirely off-base with the outlook we should have. it belies a selfishness that seems out-of-touch with the very ideals of the basics of just about any faith.
3. if we believe the earth is a gift, and set aside our selfishness - christians should be LEADING the environmental movement, not fighting against it. i suspect i would not have a hard time - all other things being equal - convincing most people of the above points, at least on the surface. but there’s one reason i suspect that - from here on out - it gets dicey and far too many evangelicals refuse to act: politics. for whatever reason, evangelical christianity is splintered highly in favor of the republican party (it’s called the “religious right” for a reason :-). and the enviromental movement is viewed as the territory of liberals and democrats.
why? i don’t know. maybe it’s due to (my former boss) al gore. maybe it’s because democrats tend to be against things like drilling, mining, polluting, etc. because they have adverse affects on the environment. but i’d bet on one thing (based on my personal experience and research) - there’s a large section of that 66% in the evangelical movement that doesn’t want to identify, in any way, with any type of liberal ideology. so the baby has been thrown out with the bath water.
i should be clear that there are those who have chosen to stay within the evangelical movement and yet put a high priority on our role in regards to the earth’s care. my parents fall into this category, and i’ll talk more about that in my next post. i want to make a point of saying i am not making a sweeping generalization, but rather talking from a perspective of experience, observation, and research.
i’d also like to point out that these posts are in no way talking about global warming. i had my brother-in-law ask me if global warming could irrefutably be proved false, would i still be an environmental activist. (though i suspect the question was simply bait to give him a chance to rattle off his list of global warming shortcomings. hi luke. :-). the answer is an unqualified “yes.” i am not seeking - in these posts, anyway - to get into a debate on the science, evidence and factuality of global warming. for my purpose now, that has nothing to do with these topics.
environmental activism started in my family long before talk of global warming. so my investment in the issue has less to do with politicized buzz words, scientific argument, and hot button issues and much more to do with caring for a precious gift, being good stewards of our natural resources, and treating our home in a way that is equitable and respectful.
April 06 2009 08:43 am | parents and politics and religion and soapbox and the city
April 6th, 2009 at 11:52 am
So much do I wish that there was a way to be politically environmentally minded, antidiscrimination, small government (including the military), pro-high minimum wage, anti-gay marriage, pro-low cost education, anti-partial birth abortion, but against making all abortions illegal, pro-human rights, against high taxes, pro-strong borders, pro-responsible gun ownership… the list does in fact go on. As you can see, I am pretty equally balanced between the 2 parties, but there is no such party that will give me all of this. It sucks. That is why I do not vote. I am simly not willing to vote for someone who strongly goes against what I believe in, and both parties do that.
GREAT BLOG POST! I agree, caring for this world is a strange thing for Christians to ignore. Why don’t they realize that it is better for their lives and their children if they try to keep the world as whole as possible for as long as possible, even if it will go up in flames at the end?
April 6th, 2009 at 12:44 pm
did you read my post on post-partisanship? i wrestled with a lot of the problems and issues you mention here - namely, is it better to pick the “lesser of two evils” and align yourself with a person or party, or to try to change things from the outside. i’ve done - and continue to do - both, and neither solution is perfect or easy, and i come up against a lot of seemingly mutually exclusive contradictions within myself, but i’m learning to deal with that :-).
as for environmentalism, the blatant disregard on the part of many people of faith baffles me, too (obviously). given how i grew up, where i live and the causes i support, i didn’t realize it was so “controversial” within evangelicalism until i got into an argument with someone about re-using a plastic cup several years ago. i’ve been on a mission ever since :-).
obviously i know it’s not as simple as “do you want to destroy the earth, check yes or no.” but you think it would be an issue christians would take SOMEWHAT seriously instead of tending to tow the religious right’s party line. i wish the religious (and political) community could focus more on what i bet many of us agree on - the earth is a gift and should be respected - and less on the politicization that separates us. oh, the frustration.
April 10th, 2009 at 12:07 pm
[...] mentioned in the environmental activism series i’ve been writing that my intent in those posts was not to deal with climate change - and [...]