Can One be a Christian Environmentalist?

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Can a Conservative be an Environmentalist?

At the recent Republican debate, in New Hampshire, a member of the audience asked "can a Republican be an environmentalist?" to which all of the candidates generically replied with answers like "of course, I am a proponent of bio-fuels" and "America must act to reduce global warming,"and etc. However, it is my suspicion that most people don't believe conservatives can be environmentalists and when Republicans announce that they are it is often met with skepticism.

People generally identify environmentalism as a liberal issue, not a conservative one. Allow me to define these terms and make some very broad generalizations. From here on, "liberal" will refer to those who advocated a secular and progressive agenda, while "conservative" will refer to those who advocate a libertarian and traditional-values agenda.

I do not think that any prominent conservative has given much thought to conservative environmentalism in contrast to the theological and philosophical consequences of popular environmentalist theory. For liberals, global warming is a logical extension of their world view. To many secular liberals, there is no God, no human soul. All that exist is the material. To them, the material has been given sacred and moral prominence. Thus the greatest thing of value in the universe is the Earth, which supports all material life. This is why pollution is so wrong, it damages the sacred material (i.e. the planet). Further, global warming is a perfect cause, because it confirms the human condition and explains why humanity is disconnected from the rest of nature.

Global warming then, is original sin, the thing that explains why humanity is corrupt. In this world view, environmentalism takes on a radical form. As the sacred material is assigned greater value than humanity, bizarre policies and ideas seem to sprout up like wild flowers. For example, making the statement "Global Warming is the single most greatest and urgent problem to ever face mankind." Note that war, hunger, poverty, and human oppression are now less significant than global warming. This makes sense to liberals as the problems of war and hunger only involve mere human suffering where Global Warming involve the suffering of this sacred planet. I wonder how many charitable resources have been diverted from fighting Aids, and poverty to reducing carbon emissions?

This is the type of secular Enviro-Relgion that many conservatives vehemently and loudly oppose. For many conservatives, the nature of the universe and existence involve a type of dualism. That is, the recognition of the material and of the spiritual. Many conservatives believe in a non-material God and that humans have a non-material existence known as the soul.

In this Theistic world view, God and the souls made in his image are given sacred prominence in relation to the rest of the universe. This is why conservatives often freak when they hear it said that Global Warming is the greatest problem facing mankind. Statements like these give preference to the material planet over humanity.

In each oppressed, starving, diseased or victimized human being there lies a soul. A soul that is sacred to the extent that it was made to reflect the image of it's creator. All that lies within a warmer planet is dirt,rocks, and water. So what has greater value, the souls of men or dirt?

Further, conservatives recognize the material world as God's gift to mankind for mankind to cultivate, protect, and subdue. The Earth has value, because it is of value to mankind. Its resources should be shared to bring abut peace and prosperity for all mankind, and to that extent we must be stewards of this gift in order that we preserve it for the future of humanity. So a distinction can be drawn between Environmentalism as Religion and Environmentalism as Stewardship.

Conservatives must oppose the radical elements of Environmentalism as Religion, but in doing so present, and champion, environmentalism as Stewardship. Republican candidates for President are getting beat up on climate change only because they are accepting the liberal understanding of environmentalism - that a true test of an environmentalist is religious - like commitment to environmentalism. What conservatives need to do is begin to communicate that there is an alternative to environmentalism than to that espoused by the extreme.