(Recently I had to write a paper for my Senior Worldview Seminar class. Though I don’t consider it my greatest masterpiece, I decided to post it anyway. For one thing I’m woefully overdue in posting anything at all, and for another, it addresses a subject I think needs addressing. Enjoy.)
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Anyone who has even a mild awareness of the issues pervading modern society will know that environmentalism is an extremely popular topic. Global warming, animal rights, and environmental preservation, are, for the time being, deeply entrenched in our thinking and policy making. Nowadays, wherever one may look everyone is “going green.” Politicians, movie stars, and big corporations are touting the virtues of going green and compelling the masses to join them. Those who refuse to join are villanized and condemned as politically incorrect.
But environmentalism is not a new phenomenon; it has been around for a long time. But it has grown in intensity in the last few years – especially the push to “go green.” There reigns a general panic about the condition of the planet, and everyone seems to have a new tip on how to “save money while saving the environment.”
And yet, for all it’s popularity and undeniable impact on how we live and work, the subject of environmentalism is notably absent in most serious discussions among conservative evangelical Christians. And though I wish to address the principles and philosophies underlying environmentalism as a whole, I wish to aim my discussion at the party mentioned. To begin, how can Christians be “salt and light” in the world (Matthew 5:13-16) and be unwilling to talk about the most turbulent issues present within their society? Worse, how can Christians be salt and light and be completely ignorant of those issues? And yet I fear most conservative evangelicals are, at best, unwilling to discuss environmental issues, and, at worst, completely ignorant of them.
Now, some may argue that environmentalism is a trivial issue and has nothing really to do with Christians being “salt and light.” What does it matter that a few fanatics are sitting in front of bulldozers to protest the development of some swampland? There are far more important issues to deal with; carbon emissions are hardly worth our time.
But I disagree. For in fact, environmentalism is about far more than the responsible use of resources; it is about far more than governmental policy-making. Rather, there is an underlying worldview present within environmentalism that renders it an issue worth our time. There is a deep-seated and destructive philosophy that drives the environmental movement that cannot be ignored by the church. Environmentalism’s very prevalence within our society ought to clue us in to it’s importance.
When conservative evangelical Christians hear the subject of the environment brought up, I believe what comes to our minds is along the lines of recycling, alternative fuels, reduced waste, saving the whales, etc. And if this were all the environmental movement amounted to, then the issue might not hold so much importance. But there are far deeper issues at stake. And for the church to ignore this movement can only spell trouble for the future. Because the whole environmental movement is driven by an anti-Biblical worldview. There are some key underlying philosophies and principles that must not be ignored. Recycling and the push for alternative fuel sources are merely the outflow of a deep-seated worldview that cannot be pushed aside by the church as a trivial issue that holds no bearing on them. In fact environmentalism holds great influence, not only in American society, but in Western society as a whole.
I want to examine some of the philosophies underlying the environmental movement and look at where we as Christians ought to stand on environmentalism as a whole. But first let me first narrow my discussion topic. Though there are many facets of the topic of environmentalism, not all can be discussed now. Prevalent within any discussion of environmental issues is the subject of global warming, but I will not discuss this here. Whether or not global warming is real, is caused by humans, or is purely a political scheme is certainly a controversial topic that needs to be discussed, but the principles and philosophies that I will address will deal with global warming, if only in principle. What I really wish to address is a question that deals more with the practical than with the purely philosophical: should Christians “go green?” Is environmental activism something Christians should steer clear from? Or should Christians be the strongest activists? I hope that my discussion of this topic will shed some light on where Christians should be standing in relation to the green movement.
Modern Society and Environmentalism
Though one might think environmentalism a fairly new phenomenon, the environmental movement actually has it’s beginning around the middle of the 19th century.
“While many people associate the beginning of the green movement with Rachel Carson’s breakthrough book Silent Spring and the legislative fervor of the 1970s, environmentalism is in fact rooted in the intellectual thought of the 1830s and 1840s. In fact, the “environmental movement” is a significant thread in the fabric of American philosophical thought – first developed by the Transcendentalists (most famously Henry David Thoreau) but tangibly expanded upon during the era of American pragmatism in the latter half of the 19th century.” (webecoist.com)
Since it’s beginnings long ago, the environmental movement has grown from it‘s philosophical foundations into an all-encompassing way of life – philosophically and practically. Western society as a whole is permeated by environmental concerns and seemingly lives in search of some way to preserve itself and the planet forever. It must be granted that some within the environmental movement have raised valid concerns about the abuse of the earth and it’s resources as the following quote will show (in a rather exaggerated manner).
“And Man created the plastic bag and the tin and aluminum can and the cellophane wrapper and the paper plate, and this was good because Man could then take his automobile and buy all his food in one place and He could save that which was good to eat in the refrigerator and throw away that which had no further use. And soon the earth was covered with plastic bags and aluminum cans and paper plates and disposable bottles and there was nowhere to sit down or walk, and Man shook his head and cried: “Look at this [really big 
] mess.” (Art Buchwald, 1970)
But the environmental movement is concerned with far more than responsible care for the planet. There is, within the movement, the idea that humans are harming the planet as they seek to conquer it. E. B. White demonstrated this kind of thinking when he said, “I would feel more optimistic about a bright future for man if he spent less time proving that he can outwit Nature and more time tasting her sweetness and respecting her seniority.”
But some environmentalists go so far as to say that humans are actually a detriment to the planet. David Graber, a biologist, said,
“I know scientists who remind me that people are part of nature, but it isn’t true. Somewhere along the line … we quit the contract and became a cancer. We have become a plague upon ourselves and upon the Earth…. Until such time as Homo sapiens should decide to rejoin nature, some of us can only hope for the right virus to come along.”
Dave Forman, founder of Earth First! went so far as to say, “Phasing out the human race will solve every problem on earth, social and environmental.” Obviously, quotes such as these do not represent a Christian worldview. And this is why Christians cannot ignore environmentalism. Environmental causes are not stand-alone entities; they are the outflow of a warped and anti-Biblical worldview.
A core component of the worldview underlying environmentalism is a virtual worship of the earth as a god. Darryl Cherney demonstrated this when he said, “I’m not an environmentalist. I’m an Earth warrior.” Francis Bacon said, “We cannot command Nature except by obeying her” and E.F. Schumacher said, “The system of nature, of which man is a part, tends to be self-balancing, self-adjusting, self-cleansing. Not so with technology.”
A more absurd demonstration of the twisted thinking behind environmentalism was seen in The Washington Post: “Why do people give each other flowers? To celebrate various important occasions, they’re killing living creatures? Why restrict it to plants? ‘Sweetheart, let’s make up. Have this deceased squirrel.’”
Christians and Environmentalism
So where do Christians (broadly speaking) stand on environmental issues? They are not unified. But to understand why they are divided, let’s explore briefly what the Bible says about the environment. Genesis 1:1 says, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” After creating the earth and all that is in it, God created man – the crown jewel of creation – and verses 28-30 say,
“Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” 29 And God said, “See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. 30 Also, to every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food”; and it was so.”
From the beginning, the Christian worldview undermines one of the core aspects of the environmentalist worldview which, at best, views man and nature as equals, and, at worst, views nature as superior to man. It also undermines another one of the chief aspects of environmentalism – that the earth’s resources should be preserved and used as little as possible, if at all.
In reality, God gave us the earth’s resources to use. But where Christians should go from here has led to some division. Revelation 21:1 says, “Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea.” Several times the Bible says that the earth we are living on will pass away. This has led some Christians to argue that it doesn’t matter how we treat the environment – it will all get burned up some day anyway. But others, citing such verses as Deuteronomy 22:6-7 (which says,
If a bird’s nest happens to be before you along the way, in any tree or on the ground, with young ones or eggs, with the mother sitting on the young or on the eggs, you shall not take the mother with the young; 7 you shall surely let the mother go, and take the young for yourself, that it may be well with you and that you may prolong your days.)
have argued that the Bible calls for responsible usage of the environment.
Donald G. Kaufman and Cecilia M. Franz make a rather interesting observation when they say,
“Christianity, with its roots in Judaism, was a major factor in the development of the Western worldview…. A basic Christian belief was that God gave humans dominion over creation, with the freedom to use the environment as they saw fit. Another important Judeo-Christian belief predicted that God would bring a cataclysmic end to the Earth sometime in the future. One interpretation of this belief is that the Earth is only a temporary way station on the soul’s journey to the afterlife. Because these beliefs tended to devalue the natural world, they fostered attitudes and behaviors that had a negative effect on the environment.”
Though they may not have been right in their conclusion that all Christians hold a devalued view of the natural world, they do latch onto an important point – that some Christians have developed a disregard for the environment based on a rather narrow focus on the Bible.
But while some Christians have gone almost “anti-environment,” others have basically joined forces with the environmentalists. One of the most notable incidents of this came with the publishing of the Green Bible. The Green Bible (published by Harper One and endorsed by the Sierra Club and the Humane Society of the United States) has “[v]erses and passages that speak to God’s care for creation highlighted in green” (greenletterbible.com). Not only that, but, “The Green Bible is printed on recyclable paper, and has recyclable bindings. The ink is soy based” (stand-firm.blogspot.com).
But the publishing of the Green Bible is fraught with problems. Aside from highlighting verses that (in context) have absolutely nothing to do with environmental care, “The Green Bible appears to be turning the Bible into a political football. All kinds of environmentalists are treating this Bible as a giant proof text for environmental causes” (stand-firm.blogspot.com). The blogger from “stand-firm” summed it up well with the statement, “The best advice to The Green Bible reader is to stick your green-letter edition of the Bible on the shelf, or even recycle it.”
Should Christians Go Green?
So what do we make of all this? Should Christians go green? I certainly believe that God never intended Christians to abuse the earth, but, in fact, expects us to use it’s resources responsibly. But what about joining the environmental movement? If one will step back and examine the philosophies behind environmentalism (that nature is equal to or superior to man, that earths resources ought not be used – as God intended them to be, etc.) then I do not believe that a Christian can reasonable join with the environmentalists and “go green.”
But does this mean that Christians should look down on environmental causes. Certainly not! In fact, conservative evangelicals have avoided this issue for far too long. God Himself has given us this earth and we should take care of it and use it’s resources responsibly. If this means recycling and monitoring our use of electricity, water, etc., then we certainly should do our best in these areas. But to identify with a worldview that devalues human life, deifies nature, and completely ignores the Creator is, in my opinion, an un-Biblical move. We as Christian ought to promote responsibility, all-the-while keeping in mind the fact that using natural resources is not a crime (or a sin), and that we are to “have dominion” over the earth (Genesis 1:28). After all, this is what the Creator mandated.
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