Christianity and Ecological Theology
Resources for further research
Ernst M. Conradie
Study Guides in Religion and Theology 11
Publications of the University of the Western Cape
Study Guides in Religion and Theology 11
Christianity and Ecological Theology:Resouces for futher research
Published by SUN PReSS, a division of AFRICAN SUN MeDIA, Stellenbosch 7600
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All rights reserved. Copyright © 2006 Ernst Conradie
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First edition 2006
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Table of contents
Preface i
Christianity and ecological theology: A research guide 1
3. Introduction: The blossoming of ecological theology 3
1.1 What is ecological theology? 3
1.2 A proliferation of literature 4
Part A: Environmental degradation: A theological
assessment 9
2. Discourse on “the environment” 11
2.1 Perceptions and interpretations regarding “the environment” 11
2.2 Towards an integrated view of the environment 13
2.3 Conclusion: The need for a multi-disciplinary approach 18
3. Environmental degradation: An ethical assessment 19
3.1 The emergence of an environmental awareness 19
3.2 Conflicting environmental assessments 20
3.3 The victims of environmental degradation 22
3.4 Environmental justice or ecojustice 24
4. The economic roots and fruits of environmental degradation 27
4.1 The economic roots of environmental degradation 27
4.2 The limits to economic growth 29
4.3 The environmental fruits of the present global economy 30
4.4 The debate on sustainable development 32
4.5 In search of economic alternatives to global industrial capitalism 35
4.6 The global economy as a confessional issue? 37
5. The ideological roots and fruits of environmental degradation 41
5.1 Introduction 41
5.2 The role played by worldiews and cosmologies 41
5.3 Modernity and its discontents 44
5.4 Excursus: A theological critique of consumerism 46
5.5 A theological redescription of the roots of ecological destruction 51
Part B: Christian theology and the environment 57
6. The dispute over Christianity 59
6.1 The Christian roots of the environmental crisis? 59
6.2 A Christian defence 61
6.3 The ecological ambiguity of the Christian tradition 61
6.4 An ecological transformation of Christianity 63
6.5 Stimuli behind such an ecological reformation of Christianity 64
7. Biblical perspectives on the environment 67
7.1 An ecological Biblical hermeneutics 67
7.2 Exegetical studies on the Bible and the environment 73
7.3 Excursus on Genesis 1:28 and Genesis 2:15 75
7.4 Contributions to biblical theology 79
7.5 Conclusion 81
8. Ecological wisdom in the history of Christianity 83
8.1 The environmental legacy of the history of Christianity 83
8.2 A retrieval of pre-modern expressions of an ecological ethos 84
8.3 A retrieval of the ecological heritage of confessional traditions 86
8.4 Ecological motifs in contemporary theological movements 90
9. Ecology and Christian doctrine 95
9.1 Introduction 95
9.2 Six core doctrinal problems on the agenda of ecological theology 95
9.3 Challenges for an ecological reformulation of Christian doctrine 106
10. Models for an ecological Christian theology 119
10.1 Various typologies 119
10.2 John Haught’s typology 121
10.3 A theological rationale for earthkeeping 135
11. Ecumenical reflections on ecological theology 139
11.1 Towards a just, participatory and sustainable society 139
11.2 Justice, Peace and the Integrity of Creation 140
11.3 The “theology of life” programme 143
11.4 “Alternative Globalisation Addressing Peoples and Earth” (AGAPE) 145
11.5 Towards an ecological ethos based on eco-justice 148
Part C: A Christian environmental praxis, ethos and
spirituality 147
12. An ecological ethos: Christian perspectives 149
12.1 Introduction 149
12.2 A vision of sustainability 150
12.3 Ecological virtues 150
12.4 Values supported by a Christian ecological ethos 153
12.5 Ethical reflection and environmental policy making 154
12.5 Ecological duties and environmental rights 158
12.6 Excursus: The equal intrinsic value of all forms of life? 160
13. The environment and a Christian lifestyle and praxis 167
13.1 Introduction 167
13.2 Raising an environmental awareness 167
13.3 Individual lifestyle 170
13.4 Cooperating with other environmental networks and organisations 171
13.5 Becoming an ecologically conscious Christian community 172
13.6 Church-based environmental projects 174
13.7 Resolutions on the environment 176
14. An ecological dimension to Christian ministry and spirituality 179
14.1 The liturgy 179
14.2 Christian formation and education 180
14.3 Christian pastoral care 180
14.4 Christian witness and mission 181
14.5 Ecological spirituality as mystic experience 181
14.6 Various expressions of an ecological spirituality 183
15. The environment as a new focus for inter-religious dialogue 185
15.1 The ecological need for religious wisdom 185
15.2 Initiatives towards\inter-religious dialogue on the environment 187
15.3 Christian pespectives on inter-religious dialogue on the environment 190
Christianity and ecological theology: An indexed
bibliography 195
Introduction to the indexed bibliography 197
Bibliography 201
Index to keywords and themes 367
1. General 367
2. The Bible 368
3. Christian doctrine 370
4. Theological themes 376
5. Ecumenical theology 382
6. Christian ethics and ecology 384
7. Christian life, praxis & spirituality 394
8. The history of Christianity 397
9. Theological traditions 399
10. World regions 402
11. Religion and ideology 403
12. Christianity in dialogue with other religious traditions 405
Christianity and
ecological theology
An indexed bibliography
Bibliography
Introduction to the indexed bibliography
The aims of this bibliography
The aim of this indexed bibliography is to facilitate research in the field of Christian ecological theology. Such an indexed bibliography provides for different reasons little more than a point of departure for research. The sheer bulk of literature may perhaps even discourage prospective researchers to commence with a literature survey. Nevertheless, the following concerns have prompted the publication of this bibliography:
The availability of such a bibliography can stimulate further (postgraduate) research in the field of Christian ecological theology, also within the South African context,
There is a need to avoid the mere repetition of previous research and the continuous reiteration that “something needs to be done about the environmental crisis.” This bibliography therefore provides an index for directed research.
Is another bibliography necessary?
A number of other bibliographies have already been published in the field of Christian theology and ecology. References to these bibliographies may be found in the index. I have also previously compiled two indexed bibliographies that were published in editions of the journal Scriptura in 1993 (47, 52-104) and in 1995 (52, 26-64). Two previous editions of this bibliography have been published in 1998 and 2001 at the University of the Western Cape in the series Study Guides in Religion and Theology 3. The following features may explain the need for a new edition of this bibliography:
This bibliography is perhaps more comprehensive than others which have been published thus far. However, it cannot make any claims to being fully comprehensive. My own continuous discovery of previously unlisted publications from all over the world has precluded any such claims to comprehensiveness.
This bibliography only contains publications in Afrikaans, Dutch, English, and German. It therefore unfortunately excludes some publications in, for example French, Greek, Italian, Portugese, Russian, Spanish and Scandinavian langauges which may have proved helpful to some researchers (in South Africa).
The two bibliographies which were published in Scriptura are integrated in this third revised edition of the indexed bibliography, together with a large number of more recent publications as well as some earlier material.
The most important feature of this bibliography that may facilitate further research is its index. See the comments on the index below.
It has to be noted that this bibliography focuses on Christian theology only. There are a large number of publications on ecology in secular literature and from the perspective of other religious traditions. These are only included here if they are discussed in relation to Christianity or in the context of inter-faith dialogue (see the index for detail).
Since an ecological consciousness has emerged especially after 1970, most of the literature included in this bibliography derives from this period. No special attempt was made to compile references to works published before 1970.
Although several publications from the period 2005-2006 are included in the bibliography, the data on this period remains incomplete.
Book reviews and articles of only one or two pages in length are usually not included in the bibliography.
It was not always possible to include full bibliographic details due to the incompleteness of the bibliographic sources. Such entries are nevertheless included in the bibliography.
A “Research guide” as companion volume
The 2001 edition of the indexed bibliography was published together with a companion volume, namely Ecological theology: A guide for further research (Study Guides in Religion and Theology 5). These two publications are now integrated into a single volume. The aim the research guide remains to promote and direct postgraduate research in the area of ecological theology in the context of Christianity. It offers an orientation to the wealth of literature from all over the world without necessarily replacing an exposure to this literature.
Some comments on the index
The following considerations should be taken into account in using the index:
The index is based on key words and themes. Usually, these have been derived from the titles of the literature, even though the titles may possibly be misleading. A more systematic approach would, however, only be possible through a detailed reading of the literature. This is certainly beyond my capability!
The themes and key words are somewhat more specific than that of other major electronic indexes. This should enable researchers to concentrate on the literature within ecological theology with reference to a specific concept.
There are often good discussions of specific themes in major books in the field of ecological theology. Unfortunately these are difficult to derive from the titles and could therefore not be indexed. The literature included in the index therefore provides little more than a starting point. Many of the major books contain a detailed index which should prove valuable in this regard.
The bibliography and the index only include literature with a specific focus on Christian theology and ecology. There are many other secular publications that could also prove helpful for research on any specific theme.
There is often more than one contribution by a specific author on a particular topic in the same calendar year. Only one such reference is included in the index.
The index contains references to virtually all the publications cited in the bibliography.
An unfinished project
A bibliography of this nature can never be completed. This manuscript is therefore published with the hope that an updated version of the full bibliography can be published on a regular basis (more or less every four or five years). Any person who may wish to submit additional entries or corrections for such an envisaged updated version of the bibliography is warmly invited to forward that to me at <>.
Electronic publication
The vast number of publications included in this bibliography provides a sobering indication of the volume of paper which must have been required to publish a total of more than 5000 books, articles and essays in edited volumes. The publication of the bibliography through SUN Press has made it possible to produce an electronic version of the publication. This will also allow researchers to do their own electronic searches of key words.
A word of thanks
The publication was made possible through several research grants from the University of the Western Cape in 2001, 2005, and 2006. I would also like my deep gratitude to a number of postgraduate students who contributed to the painstaking task of gathering and editing bibliographic information. The contributions of Patrick Andries, Wyomia Lawrence, Charl Fredericks and Xolani Sakuba deserve special mentioning in this regard.
EM Conradie
University of the Western Cape
July 2006
Bibliography
Bibliography
A
A Christian approach to the environment 1999. Consultation meeting organized by the Jon Ray Initiative, February 1999. Transformation 16, 72-113.
Aagaard, A-M 1990. I have heard the cry of my people for a liberated creation. Proceedings of the eighth assembly of the Lutheran World Federation, Critiba, 67-71.
Abbott, SM 1986. The origin of God in the blood of the lamb: The implications of shamanism for a new age ethic. Anima 12:2, 139-143.
Abraham, E 1985. Subtheme “In Christ – hope for creation”: Presentation on caring for creation. LWF Report 19-20, 34-41.
Abraham, KC 1993. A theological response to the ecological crisis. Bangalore Theological Forum 25:1, 3-14.
Abraham, KC 1993. A theological response to the ecological crisis. Voices from the Third World 16:1, 70-92.
Abraham, KC 1994. A theological response to the ecological crisis. In: Hallman, DG (ed) 1994. Ecotheology. Voices from South and North, 65-78. Geneva: World Council of Churches.
Abramides, EC 1992. Ethical aspects of climate changes. Ecumenical Review 44:3, 333-338.
Abrecht, P (ed) 1978. Faith, science and the future. Geneva: World Council of Churches.
Abrecht, P (ed) 1980. Faith, science and the future in an unjust world. Volume 2: Reports and recommendations. Geneva: World Council of Churches.
Abrecht, P (ed) 1980. Reports and recommendations. In the series “Faith and science in an unjust world”: Report of the World Council of Churches’ conference on faith, science and the future. Philadelphia: Fortress Press.
Abrecht, P 1977. Impact of science and technology on society: new directions in Ecumenical Social Ethics. Zygon 12, 185-98.
Achtemaier, E 1992. Nature, God, and pulpit. Grand Rapids: WB Eerdmans.
Ackermann, DM & Joyner, T 1996. Earth-healing in South Africa. Challenges to church and mosque. In: Ruether, RR (ed) 1996. Women healing earth. Third world women on ecology, feminism and religion, 121-134. Maryknoll: Orbis Books.
Ackermann, DM 1997. Earth-healing in South Africa: Challenges to the church. Ecotheology 2, 48-58.
Ackermann, DM 2004. “Deep in the flesh”: The body of Christ, HIV/AIDS and sustainable development. In: Golliher, JM (ed) 2004. Healing God’s creation: The Global Anglican Congress on the stewardship of creation. Harrisburg: Morehouse Publishing.
Acklin, B 1991. Sage und schreibe, was du siehst. Auf der Suche nach einer Theologie der Natur bei Hildegarde von Bingen. Schritte ins Offene 5, 13-17.
Adams, A 1996. The creation was open to me: An anthology of Friends’ writings on that of God in all creation. Wilmslow: Quaker Green Concern.