Christian Ecostewardship – An Essay by Jonathan Stauffer

In just under a month, we will celebrate another Earth Day. Many of us associate the formation of Earth Day on April 22, 1970, with Senator Gaylord Nelson from Wisconsin. But did you know that the original concept for Earth Day was developed by a man who grew up a Pentecostal Christian? 

John McConnell, Jr. first came up with the idea for Earth Day to promote global peace and justice in 1968. He supported earth care as a Christian responsibility, believing that the creation is a “precious gift” from God.¹ After a year of prayer and reflection, McConnell felt that the spring equinox (March 20-21) would be an appropriate day. He proposed the idea to the City of San Francisco in 1969 and it received interest from the United Nations later that year.

Senator Nelson came up with an idea for an Environmental Teach-In Day around the same time as McConnell’s concept of Earth Day. It is alleged that the Senator heard McConnell speak at a UN conference and settled on the name “Earth Day” afterward. Regardless of the outcome, the importance of this story is that Earth Day is a concept that grew out of one Christian’s concern for peace and earth-keeping. Eventually, other voices combined and some rather amazing actions emerged for the good of all. 

Since the first Earth Day was held 52 years ago, our country has established the Environmental Protection Agency and enacted landmark policies such as the Clean Water and Clean Air Acts. The main purpose behind each policy was the protection of human health through environmental stewardship.

Despite the progress made, there continue to be other issues facing our planet. We sense that things seem out of place. Many people of faith are connecting the dots about increasing extreme weather records, the rise of cancer rates in certain regions (like Cancer Alley in southern Louisiana), the decreasing quality of local water systems (as seen in Flint, Michigan), and increased cases of asthma attacks, especially among inter-urban youth. The Covid-19 pandemic has exposed vast inequalities in our public health system and fueled some political coalitions that seem hesitant to make decisions based on promoting the common good.

The problems seem so complex that proper responses are difficult to define. Because we are human, such a lack of clarity leads to doubts and denial. 

Won’t environmental regulations hurt the economy and job creation?
I’m not the only one creating the problem. What use is it for me to change when it seems no one else is?
Will my children and grandchildren be able to enjoy the same standard of living as I do today?

Perhaps you echo these worries…

Let us not forget that the first Christians also faced uncertainty. The Gospel accounts reflect on the lingering doubts among the first followers of Jesus after the crucifixion. Like them, we struggle when faced with overwhelming dilemmas today. However, we know from Easter Sunday that God’s story continues with the resurrection of Christ and the promise of eternal, abundant life.

One lesson we learn from the resurrection is that nothing is impossible with God. God is indeed the Creator and Sustainer of all life. When we are open to the Holy Spirit we can find new hope to carry on. 

The first chapter of Colossians provides a hopeful perspective in answering these lingering doubts confronting our world today. The Apostle Paul’s letter to the church at Colossae opens with his confession of who Jesus Christ is. Verses 15-20 are often understood as a hymn or poem of praise about Christ. Some biblical scholars believe this hymn may have been known to first-century Christians. 

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created (vv.15-16).”

We often think of an image as a reflection of something else, like looking at a mirror. However, The English word “image” is often a translation of the Greek word eikon. This word has more meaning than just a reflection of something. In this sense, the writer is saying that in Jesus Christ there is an embodied likeness of God. Verse 19 echoes this idea with the phrase “all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell.” So, there is an essence of the Creator that came in the physical form of Jesus. The phrase “Emmanuel, God with us” is what we hear around Christmastime. There are also words, such as “firstborn” and “first place in everything (NRSV),” presented in this text. This confesses Christ’s power as supreme over what God has created. 

In verse 16 the Greek phrase pas ktizo is translated as “all things created.” And in the last part of verse 17 we read the phrase, “In Him, all things hold together.”

What do we make of these words? Christ’s sovereignty is ruling over our physical existence in addition to our spiritual existence. Through the humanity of Jesus, God made this possible. As such, we are to first seek Christ’s example, not our cultural examples.

Looking at the life and ministry of Jesus in the Gospels, we see him not only praying and teaching but also healing and feeding people. This emphasis on physical needs alongside spiritual needs suggests an incarnational ministry under the authority of Jesus Christ.

As theologian Norman Wirzba writes, “God became incarnate in Jesus Christ to show us and welcome us into what creaturely life is ultimately about and for. […] Salvation is about reconciling this creation so that it can know, taste and intimately experience God’s heavenly life that is constantly making its way toward us.”²

Because of God’s incarnation in Jesus Christ, the spiritual and physical realms of existence have redeemed significance. The crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus are the moments of transformation that reconciled both.

In this way, the Apostle Paul claims the sacrifice of Jesus Christ encompasses salvation and redemption for the entire creation. That is one way to understand why Paul says in Colossians 1:21-22, “And you who were once estranged and hostile in mind, doing evils deeds, he has now reconciled in his fleshly body through death so as to present you holy…(22).” And concludes with the words, “without shifting from the hope promised by the Gospel you heard, which has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven… (23b).” Therefore, our faith in Christ encourages us to become better stewards of all things created on the Earth.

Unfortunately, creation has been ignored by much of Western Christian thought. The natural world has been regarded as the background rather than a participant of God’s plan for redemption. Influenced by colonialism, European cultures eventually separated human life from the rest of creation, viewing nature as property to be owned and consumed unrestrained. Yet, we need to remember that our body depends on other life forms to live. Think about the food you eat, the house you live in, the energy you use, and the waste you produce. Everything is connected in creation. That connection requires attentive care from all participating in the web of life. 

When reading the Bible, we need to look at the scriptures with an additional lens revealing a consistent, but often overlooked narrative throughout the history of Christianity. It’s a narrative that keeps creation as part of God’s unfolding plan for salvation in Christ. Both Testaments contain multiple pieces of the story. But for the sake of time and attention, I’ll highlight a few in the Hebrew Scriptures and one more in the New Testament.  

Starting with Genesis, we are reminded in various ways that God is the Creator of heaven and earth. Read the story of Noah’s Ark again with fresh eyes. In chapter 9, God makes a covenant with “every living creature.” It is one of many verses that declare God holds concern over all living things. The moral codes in Leviticus and Deuteronomy include environmental stewardship. And have you read Job 38, when God responds to Job with a profound question: “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?” 

In many places, the Psalms attest that creation in return praises God. I also think of them as hymns confessing God as our Creator and Sustainer. Psalm 104 is a great confession of the various, life-sustaining interactions from the Creator that are carried out to all creatures.

The Greatest Commandment that Jesus stated in Matthew 22:37-39 can also be viewed with a creation care lens: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’’ Both parts of the commandment deal with the relationship between God, to humanity, and how that is manifested in creation. We are honoring God when we are aware of the gifts of each human and non-human neighbor within creation. 

For me, spending time in nature creates a sense of gratitude. I am reminded of the blessings God has already provided through all facets of life. I am awed by patterns found on tree leaves and the rhythmic song of birds. I am humbled by beautiful landscapes and the mysterious intricacies of the ecosystem the Creator has placed all around us.

By spending more time in nature and understanding basic interactions, I am also experiencing deeper awareness of God’s steadfast love in my own life and what Christ meant by abundant living. After such profound moments in nature, I can only respond by saying “Thank you God” and acting to preserve creation. 

For many years, biblical scholars have debated the competing interpretations in scripture between human dominion over creation and stewardship of creation. The conclusion by many scholars is this: While we are free to use the Earth’s resources, we are also made in the image of God. If we are true to the Divine image, as Jesus manifested, we are compelled to model our rule over the planet following God’s priorities. 

This ethic of creation care is found in the Greek Orthodox church. Believing that God took on earthly flesh in Christ, the resurrection proclaims a redemption with physical implications. Such implications, they argue, required them to be concerned about the degradation of God’s earth. Since 1989, the Orthodox church has commemorated Sept 1 as a day of prayer for healing the creation. The day has since grown into an ecumenical Christian movement alongside the secular events of Earth Day. 

Our own denomination has a statement about creation care supported by biblical references. It was approved by Annual Conference in 1991.³ If you haven’t read it, I encourage you to do so. Indeed, we need values based on our Christian faith in working toward a more sustainable future. For whenever we care about what God cares about, faithful stewardship happens.

The second part of the commandment reminds us of the need to have concern for the well-being of others. How can we say that we love our neighbor in one moment, and then in another moment dump trash in their yard? 

While we personally may not think to behave so, many of the products and services we use today often place waste on our neighbors in other parts of the globe. Most often it is the poor and oppressed who bear this waste. These acts of pollution are intentionally hidden from the socially privileged and complicit with our modern system of industry. 

Single-use plastics are the most troubling pollution. They take virtually forever to decompose. Recycling efforts have been made by governments, but the various types of plastics used (numbers 1 through 7) and lack of consistent policies among local recycling programs make them difficult to coordinate from consumers’ bins back to the manufacturer. On top of this, certain businesses refuse to take responsibility for reclaiming materials used in their products. As a result of a broken system, many plastics are shipped overseas with a relatively small share of plastic getting recycled.  Unless business and government work together with consumers to improve these systems, we are only kicking the can down the road until it is left in someone else’s backyard.   

However, as Christians, we can be examples of hope. Referring back to Colossians 1:21-22, reconciliation made through Jesus Christ transforms us to reconcile with all things in creation. 

Another hope-filled, Christian earth-keeper was Shantilal P. Bhagat, an agronomist and ordained minister in the Church of the Brethren. He worked for several years on the denominational staff in Elgin as the Eco-Justice and Rural Concerns director as well as served on the world ministry commission. I talked with him by phone in 2012 when I worked on environmental issues as an intern at the Church of the Brethren’s Office of Peacemaking and Policy located in Washington, DC. Shantilal authored several publications on environmental concerns, but the most relevant for this sermon is Creation in Crisis: Responding to God’s Covenant (1990).

As Shantilal wrote, “Giving up the environment to the powers of destruction denies that the Earth is the Lord’s and is in plain disobedience to the teaching of the biblical tradition that underlies the Christian faith. A recognition that God loves this Creation should impel us to treat it with respect.”⁴ We are witnesses for the coming kingdom of God to be revealed, “on earth as it is in heaven.” Our witness of the Gospel is made real through active stewardship of creation and within our communities.

There are ways we can invest in maintaining natural ecosystems and human well-being. We reframe the common three-part mantra of Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle with two new practices at the beginning and end. These are: Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Return.⁵

Refuse what is harmful and toxic as much as possible. 

• Employ more durable, reusable containers instead of disposable. 
• Seek innovative technologies available that reduce pollution and increase operational efficiency. 

Return items back to nature as much as possible.

• Choose products made from organic materials or make them yourself. 
• Compost organic materials.

In closing, the key to ending earth’s season of doubt is understanding what is possible for us to do each day when we follow the risen Christ. We must ask: Where are we willing to make better choices that show a love for God and neighbor? In a physical capacity, this can be accomplished by advocating and practicing activities that preserve clean water, air, and soil for all. The upcoming events listed below are some opportunities to consider in holding ourselves and our communities accountable. Such inspired environmental actions witness the hope of Christ’s resurrection that the world so urgently needs. AMEN.

Upcoming Events

I come with encouraging news. At the 2018 Annual Conference, the delegate body approved recommendations presented by the Creation Care study committee.⁶ The two-year study originated from a query within the Illinois-Wisconsin District and highlights important reasons Brethren are called to renew our commitment to the care of creation. One outcome of this study is the formation of the Brethren Creation Care Network (BCCN). The network currently consists of 30+ members within our denomination who have some expertise in stewarding energy resources and doing other creation justice work. It is coordinated under the denomination’s Office of Peacebuilding and Policy in Washington, DC. Nate Hosler is the director of this office.

I am a member of the BCCN executive board. We are envisioning options for developing the network. Our hope is that Brethren will be best served in their earth-keeping work with trusted consultants, vetted information, and effective financing. [updates on purpose from the board?] A webpage with links to this information is housed at http://www.brethren.org/creationcare/. BCCN will be hosting a webinar on Watershed Discipleship on Wednesday, April 13 by Zoom beginning at 7 pm. I am also presenting at an eco-discipleship retreat with Randall Westfall. It is scheduled as their summer spiritual retreat for Aug 19-21 at Camp Alexander Mack near Milford, Indiana. You may find registration details at https://www.campmack.org/retreats-and-events/#spiritual.

1. Swoboda, A.J. Blood Cries Out, 15-17).
2. Bahnson, Fred & Norman Wirzba, Making Peace with the Land, 71.
3. Church of the Brethren AC 1991 Statement “Creation: Called to Care.” https://www.brethren.org/ac/statements/1991-creation-called-to-care/
4. Bhagat, Shantilal P. Creation in Crisis, 121.
5. Author Bea Johnson has written a book on this waste reduction strategy called Zero Waste Home. Katie Heisman wrote an excellent article exploring this framework as a Lenten practice, “Dust to Dust,” Brethren Life & Thought. Fall/Winter 2017-2018, p. 24-31.
6. AC 2018 Statement “Creation Care,” https://www.brethren.org/ac/statements/2018-creation-care/.