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Theology & the Environment: Ethics

An overview of resources on ecotheology and related environmental issues.

Subject Headings

Christian Ethics

Christianity and justice

Climate changes--religious aspects--Christianity

Environmental Ethics

Human ecology--religious aspects--Christianity

Human ecology--religious aspects--Catholic Church

Environmental Ethics

The Cosmic Common Good: Religious Grounds for Ecological Ethics by Daniel P. Scheid Draws on Catholic social thought to construct what he calls the"cosmic common good," a new norm for interreligious ecological ethics. This ethical vision sees humans as an intimate part of the greater whole of the cosmos, emphasizes the simultaneous instrumental and intrinsic value of nature, and affirms the integral connection between religious practice and the pursuit of the common good.
Ecologies of Grace: Environmental Ethics and Christian Theology by Willis J. Jenkins Presents an introduction to Christian environmental ethics that offers resources for renewing theology. Observing how religious environmental practices often draw on concepts of grace, Jenkins maps the way Christian environmental strategies draw from traditions of salvation as they engage the problems of environmental ethics.
Environmental Ethics, Ecological Theology, and Natural Selection by Lisa Sideris Shows that many of these environmental ethicists continue to model their positions on romantic, pre-Darwinian concepts that disregard the predatory and cruelly competitive realities of the natural world. Examining the work of such influential thinkers as James Gustafson, Sallie McFague, Rosemary Radford Ruether, John Cobb, Peter Singer, and Holmes Rolston, Sideris proposes a more realistic ethic that combines evolutionary theory with theological insight, advocates a minimally interventionist stance toward nature, and values the processes over the products of the natural world.
Green Witness: Ecology, Ethics, and the Lingdom of God (Online) by Laura Ruth Yordy A call for the reappraisal of why Christians can and should work towards the wholeness of the biophysical environment. Green Witness explores the church's role as exemplar in striving towards the fulfillment of God's promise of peace, health and diversity to his Kingdom.

Theology and Ecology

Earth-Honoring Faith: Religious Ethics in a New Key by Larry L. Rasmussen Rejecting the modern assumption that morality applies to human society alone, Rasmussen insists that we must derive a spiritual and ecological ethic that accounts for the well-being of all creation, as well as the primal elements upon which it depends: earth, air, fire, water, and sunlight.
Earthkeeping and Character: Exploring a Christian Ecological Virtue Ethic by Steven Bouma-Prediger Brings ecotheology into conversation with the emerging field of environmental virtue ethics, exploring the character traits and virtues required for Christians to be responsible keepers of the earth and to flourish in the challenging decades to come.
A Moral Climate: The Ethics of Global Warming by Michael S. Northcott Drawing on economic, biblical, scientific, theological, and political resources, Northcott inveighs against the modern predominance of exploitative political and economic institutions. Such institutions not only lead to social injustice but also perpetuate modern-day climate issues. By discussing alternative options for human flourishing, Northcott provides theologically astute ethical options for confronting the problem of our changing climate.
Theological Ethics Through a Multispecies Lens (Online) by Celia E. Deane-Drummond By weaving in evolutionary theories and debates on the evolution of compassion, justice and wisdom, this book concerns our relationships with animals. Deane-Drummond argues for a complex community-based multispecies approach.

Other Case Studies

Just Water: Theology, Ethics, and Global Water Crises by Christiana Zenner Zenner presents an interdisciplinary analysis of a broad range of issues related to fresh water. Drawing from the Christian tradition, the book is grounded in theories around fresh water and expands to describe various examples of twenty-first century challenges that global communities are facing in relation to fresh water.
Theology on a Defiant Earth: Seeking Hope on the Anthropocene by Jonathan Cole (Editor) Engages the reality of the Anthropocene in relation to Christian theology.
They Will Inherit the Earth: Making Peace and Practicing Nonviolence in a Time of Climate Change by John Dear Longtime activist John Dear invites us to return to nonviolence as a way of life and a living solidarity with Mother Earth and her creatures, as well as the best way to respond to catastrophic climate change.
Troubled Waters: Religion, Ethics, and the Global Water Crisis by Gary Chamberlain Chamberlain surveys traditions and rituals from religions around the world and seeks out new ways of responding to the worldwide water crisis. The book is interdisciplinary and combines perspectives from the social sciences, history, hydrology, cosmology, ethics, and the study of world religions.