Should Christians Worry About Climate Change?
Photo by Andrew Tang on Unsplash
““The same love for God and neighbor that compels us to preach salvation through Jesus Christ, protect the unborn, preserve the family and the sanctity of marriage, and take the whole Gospel to a hurting world, also compels us to recognize that human-induced climate change is a serious Christian issue requiring action now.””
Whatever your opinion of Al Gore (the former Vice President/current PowerPoint Jedi, who flies around on private jets telling everyone to consume less), the climate of the Earth is apparently changing faster than it has in past ages. And evidence suggests that many of these changes are likely due to the fact that the planet's atmosphere has changed because of mankind's release of carbon dioxide through fossil fuel burning (the Greenhouse Effect).
A Warming World and Religions
While there are still skeptics, in the scientific community, the majority of people find the evidence of man-made climate change convincing. Christians, even those who care about stewardship of nature, don't talk very much about climate change, and the ones that do often argue against it. Why is that?
One reason is that the Global Climate Change movement, like the Environmentalism movement in general, has become for many people a kind of religious belief; it gives them purpose and unites them with a community of other like-minded people. Christians, understandably, are wary of anything that threatens to dull us to our real need for God or replace our purpose to glorify God.
Politics and Climate
In the case of climate change, there is another complication. Some have used doomsday climate predictions to advance political agendas that make governments larger in size and power. Western Christians have generally been suspicious of large government, because of the Fall and the sinfulness of man under the influence of power. And many Christians cherish the ideas of freedom of conscience and personal liberty, things large governments struggle to respect.
Others argue that a large, worldwide problem like global climate change requires large, worldwide solutions in the form of powerful governments working together to keep people from spoiling the planet.
Different Perspectives
Is there another way? Can we take action against climate change without the accumulation of political power in the hands of a few? Perhaps it's pointless to try, because people in the developed world will not sacrifice their comforts to avoid climate changes that they can afford to mitigate (the harshest impacts will likely fall on the countries with the fewest resources to cope).
Another argument is that after the Industrial Revolution and the burning of coal and gas of the 20th century, it is too late to make a real difference when it comes to climate change, so the most we can do now is to deal with the consequences and develop technology to reduce our impact in the future. And others, of course, either deny that the climate is really changing, deny that humans are responsible for whatever change occurs, or trust that Jesus will return before we can screw things up too badly.
Personal Responsibility
What about Christians who believe that the call to stewardship includes taking action against potential climate change, but don't want to support the massive government growth that is supposedly necessary to deal with it? That is a little trickier. Christians can champion grassroots solutions to climate change, such as fuel-efficient cars, public transportation, and buying locally-produced goods. We can install solar panels on our homes and ride bicycles. We can plant trees to reduce the carbon dioxide in the air. These things are commendable, and it's good to do our part. But since the vast majority of greenhouse gases are produced by factories and agriculture, it's unlikely that any one person or small group of people is going to make a measurable difference; it must be a huge cultural shift.
People generally want to make as much positive impact as possible, focusing effort on changes that will pay off. But none of us can personally turn back all degradation of the environment. Another, perhaps more important, consideration is to decide what kind of people we are and to act on it. It’s the principle of the thing: if I know that I am contributing to the ruination of beautiful things that God has made, even in small ways, and I choose to do nothing about it, that says something about who I am and who I want to become.
Taking prudent actions to conserve energy and reduce emissions is a choice that shapes our characters and, in a small way, does affect the world we inhabit. If we aren’t at least trying to live up to our ideals, we are missing out on the blessing of life well-lived.
The question is, what constitutes prudent measures? Should we all trade in our trucks and SUVs and get hybrids and bicycles? Should we go around unplugging all of our devices whenever we leave the house to avoid wasting electricity? Should we turn off our heaters and wear parkas indoors, or turn off our air conditioners and become nudists? These are questions that require wisdom and creative thinking.
I don’t know how much difference an individual can make when it comes to climate change. But if we all keep in mind the principles of moderation, self-denial, and prudent caution, we are more likely to strike a wise balance and know that we are living out our beliefs in tangible ways.
Stewardship
Climate change is a controversial issue, and it’s natural to be confused by all the arguments and statistics. But it’s not okay to be lazy about good stewardship. We must seek the truth and act upon it to the best of our ability, or we are not being good caretakers of the world that God has so graciously provided for us.
G. K. Chesterton was once asked to write an essay on the topic "What's Wrong with the World?" His reply? "I am." Those of us who are honest with ourselves could answer the same way. But perhaps we can be a little bit less of a problem and a little more of a blessing. As God transforms us, we react to Him with gratitude regarding stewardship and many other issues.
I don’t know what you should do about climate change—you’ll have to ask someone smarter than me. But whatever you think of our responsibility on this issue, I encourage you to do three things:
1. Do some research about why many scientists believe climate change is due to humans;
2. Pray about how you can be a good steward of the Earth;
3. Act on your conscience.
God loves it when we seek wisdom from Him, and He answers our faith with guidance.