I often write on the intersection between technology and theology. Yet, sometimes, I veer off this framework when I believe there is some important that needs to be said. I do this sparingly because I want to honor the focus of this portal. It also saves me from being all over the place with my writing (which I have a tendency to do as my reading and interests are pretty broad).
Without further ado, let me jump right to it. In this piece, I argue the following:
Creation care is woefully inadequate for addressing the current global existential crisis we face with climate. What we need is a complete overhaul of our relationship with nature, one that can only come if we are willing to listen to other religious traditions.
There are a number of reasons why that is the case but the main one is that creation care fails to re-connect us with nature. It also fails to challenge the glaring millennial-old blind spot of anthropocentrism, embedded in Christian theology from the very beginning. In short, if we are serious about meeting this climate challenge, we must put humanity back in its place: right in the middle of nature.
The Climate Challenge
What else could be said about this topic? Yet, allow me to frame this one more time. Firstly, if you are not convinced humans are affecting climate, well, I have no time to prove that to you. Go look up the science and then draw your own conclusions. Secondly, for those of you anxious about this topic, take solace: every crisis is an opportunity. Yes, the crisis is real and yes, we caused it. This is, however, no reason to despair and give up. Instead, it is an opportunity to embrace as an invitation (albeit with serious consequences if we reject it) to change our relationship with this planet.
The problem is not in the Bible per se but in the Christian anthropology that developed afterward. The Genesis creation story may lend itself to ideas of appropriation and abuse, however, the central problem lies elsewhere. I am talking about Imago Dei, the Latin term for the idea that we are God’s mirror image. Why is that a problem? By trying to elevate humans to the pinnacle of Creation, just slightly below God and angels, theologians set us on that (sorry for the cliche) dreaded slippery slope of human worship. More specifically, we fell prey to the sin of anthropocentrism. Our current age, calls for a re-definition if not a full abandonment of this concept.
We have been so obsessed with putting God in God’s place that we became blind to our unacceptable disdain for other living beings. If there is such a thing as white and Christian supremacy, then well, there is also human supremacy that goes unnoticed. This climate change is a real opportunity for us to step down from our human-centric altar so we may worship God on the dusty ground, right along with all nature.
Creation Care
The concept of Creation care is not very old. Most likely started being circulated in the late 80s as some Christians finally started catching up to what environmentalists were already saying. It was a way to tie theology with environmental concern. While well-intentioned and much needed, the move towards creation care falls short in many accounts.
First, it leaves the ghost of Image Dei undisturbed and unchallenged. If at first, Creation care indicts us as the villain, it also elevates us as the heroes – the caretakers that will reverse the climate crisis. The onus stays on the human and creation is still nothing more than a piece of property that must be cared for.
Second, it does little to reconnect us with nature. This is probably the biggest problem of our current crisis. In a technological age, we have grown irreversibly disconnected from nature, and in turn from our humanness. People out of nature are, well, less human. This disconnection is also what makes behavioral change so difficult. We simply are not feeling directly the impact we are making in the biosphere. That is, in big part, because when you live your life in climatized indoor places nature becomes as alien as it can be.
Visiting Shamans
If Creation Care is not the path, where do we go from here? Well, a good starting point is Genesis 2:7, reminding us that we came from dust. That is, we are part of the Earth, not an alien being that descended on it. We are not caretakers, but earth itself and connected to all beings on this planet. We are an extension of it. Before appointing ourselves responsibilities, we must first recognize our earthiness.
That’s a start but not enough to repair the damage of centuries of misguided theology. Unfortunately, the path of repentance must lead us out and beyond Christian tradition. It starts by humbly recognizing that while our tradition bears witness to our connectedness to the earth, it has made it mostly an afterthought. We must look for those that have better emphasized this reality in their belief and practice. Traditions that preceded and survived the contamination of Modernity and its nature-severing effects. Traditions that Christendom has also violently tried to suppress.
Once we open up to learn from other traditions, the possibilities are multifold. One of them is to sit at the sweat lodge and learn from the First Nations of the Americas. The very people displaced by our arrival on this continent may very well offer the wisdom needed to guide us back to the God of nature. Not through romanticization or appropriation, we should humbly sit in their circles silently with an attentive ear. Only then may we have a chance to hear the whisper of God calling us back to nature over the deafening sounds of modern technology.
Conclusion
Learning from First Nations’ religion is only one of the many paths to move beyond creation care. The good news is that there are many options here. Yet all of them require a significant shift in theology where special revelation is no longer the exclusive property of the Judeo-Christian tradition. It requires a recognition that the Bible or the traditions emanating from it alone may not be enough to save us from ourselves. It calls for an openness to respectfully incorporate concepts from other religions.
Are we up to the challenge? I certainly hope so and our planet prays it so.