Recruiting in pews to save planet

A devout promoter of the free market, Mr. Beisner and others say that natural-resource development - including logging, mining, livestock grazing, and commercial fishing - help accomplish a universal religious imperative, which is aiding the poor by elevating their quality of life.

"The Bible does specify that we have to be good stewards," adds Michael Barkey, a policy analyst with the Acton Institute, a pro-business religious think tank. "While it seems like a very simple principle, it has broad economic ramifications."

Mr. Barkey says efforts by religious groups to bring an end to logging, for example, violate the separation of church and state. And he accuses certain religious groups of blasphemy by promoting Deep Ecology, which places humans not above nature to exercise dominion, but as merely a part of the ecosystem.

A lawsuit over logging in Minnesota, for instance, is exploring whether the US Forest Service views trees as "sacred."

But supporters of the new church activism in conservation say they're just responding to the wishes of congregations, which are both liberal and conservative. "Our adversaries try to diminish our standing by labeling us part of the fringe," says Ann Alexander, chairwoman of the Christian Environmental Council. "Even if that were true - and it's not - it still wouldn't matter because millions of people are responding to our message because it is relevant."

Thousands of scientists, religious academics, ministers, and worshipers see no contradiction between evolution and creationism, but rather a conduit between the two that closely parallels the objectives of environmentalism.

Movement's broad base

This movement manifests itself on a number of fronts:

*A five-year-old program called Rescue God's Creation annually brings 50 Christian college students to Washington to learn about environmental issues. When they return home, they use their new political insight to educate communities and fellow students about pending legislation.

*The Pennsylvania Council of Churches launched an unprecedented interfaith campaign to counter global climate change, saying it did "violence to God's creation" and violated moral and religious principles of justice.

*The Religious Campaign for Forest Conservation is rallying hundreds of churches to support President Clinton's proposal to protect more than 40-million acres of public forests.

*An effort led by the Redwood Rabbis, an extension of the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life in the Northwest, staged a mock trial of a powerful timber executive, accusing him of violating Jewish law by felling ancient redwoods.

"We don't see it as a greening of religion as much as a drawing out of the inherent care of creation that has always been a part of Christianity," says Fred Krueger from the Religious Campaign for Forest Conservation. "Every Christian, ipso facto, is an ecologist who, like Jesus, was concerned with the common good. The fact is you can't have a healthy economy and a severely degraded life-support system."

As the new millennium begins, when environmental concerns have never been greater, Mr. Illyan asks: If Jesus were to appear today, would he be more inclined to be a land developer or a conservationist? "Scripture doesn't warn about worshiping nature, but it does warn continually about worshiping material wealth," he says.

Murphy has ministered for 23 years in Wyoming, where anti-environmental rhetoric remains fierce. His sermons attract worshipers from miles away. Recently, he organized a church hike up the slopes of Heart Mountain. One of the parishioners was so inspired, she persuaded the Nature Conservancy to buy the land to permanently protect it.

"It's not our intent to criticize others so much as it is to declare what's right by the Bible," adds Mr. Krueger. "What's right is preserving our forests and fisheries and keeping our streams clean.... We think Jesus would agree."

(c) Copyright 1999. The Christian Science Publishing Society

Page: 1 | 2