Earth Day

The following is from the Ora Et Labora blog. Click here to read the rest:

Then there is the inevitable connection between modern environmentalism and neo-paganism. The Earth becomes, not a gift of God's creation, but a sacred, self-subsisting, and life-giving entity in and of itself. Western civilization in general, and Christianity in particular, are more often than not assigned blame for environmental pollution. Environmentalism becomes a substitute religion (and a highly dogmatic one at that), with its own feast days.

None of which is to deny that we really have done horrible things to the environment or to imply that we are not called to stewardship of creation. It strikes me as tragic that the environmental movement is almost wholly a creature of the political Left. It's quite understandable – but, I think, deeply misguided – that many conservatives would adopt a largely reactionary stance to environmental issues, denying the reality of the environmental travesty that surrounds us while applauding all the sprawl that comes with the unrestrained free market.

There is no doubt that we need to assist in reversing the profound violence we have done to God's creation. But our premises should be above all theological or, more specifically, Eucharistic – and not neo-pagan, relativistic, or anti-Christian. The question of how exactly this would look in terms of policy is one that I leave to others. For more, see especially Dr Elizabeth Theokritoff, "The Orthodox Church and the Environmental Movement," and Metropolitan Kallistos' essay "Through Creation to the Creator" (h/t to Orrolgion), and a large collection of similar resources here.