Earth Day: Why Christians Care

Earth Day: Why We Care

It is cool to be green. Sadly, there is nothing more to it for those who have abandoned plans to replace a gas thirsty vehicle for a hybrid one. The Toyota Prius went from having people on a waiting list for months, to the unprecedented practice of offering rebates to bump sales. Apparently, it was cool to preserve natural resources and reduce carbon emissions, when the gas prices were hovering four dollars per gallon. Now, at less than two, who cares? I tell you who does care: God. He has always cared about it, and so should His people.

We care for our planet because God cared about it first. After creation, God took the time to appreciate and enjoy it. He saw everything he had made and said “it is very good” (Genesis 1:31). Words such as preservation, conservation, recycling, and sustainability, came straight from His vocabulary. God values his creation. Conversely, creation reveals God’s qualities and speaks of his perfect character (Romans 1:20 and Psalm 19).

As disciples of the living God, we should also be passionate about this planet because God has entrusted creation to us (Genesis 2:15). God has commanded us to serve and preserve. We are stewards of every natural resource. We have no other option but to take the lead and be examples.

I really appreciated the joined statement by Pope John Paul II and Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople on this matter. It is called the “Declaration on the Environment.” It was released on June 10, 2002 under the title “We Are Still Betraying the Mandate God has Given Us.” The mandate we are ignoring is “to collaborate with God in watching over creation in holiness and wisdom.” These two leaders of the church also wrote “A solution at the economic and technological level can be found only if we undergo, in the most radical way, an inner change of heart, which can lead to a change in lifestyle and of unsustainable patterns of consumption and production.” We know this change of heart is result of faith in Christ and holy living. The full article is found at http://conservation.catholic.org/declaration.htm.

I wonder how the Earth would look like if we would take God’s mandate seriously. I hope our children and grandchildren can find that out.

William Silva
On Earth’s Day 2009