Environmentalism Religion - Essay Example

Environmentalism Religion Environmentalism can be defined as; theory that views environment rather than heredity as the important factor in the development and especially the cultural and intellectual development of an individual or group. Many researchers have indicated that environmentalism is almost close to religious belief system, since it includes creation and ideas of origin of sin. As we try to look into environmentalism religion we as well trying to answer the question; what are the relationships between humans, their divers’ religions, and the Earth’s living systems?

The answers to it, however, are difficult, complex, and complicated by a host of cultural, environmental, and religious variables.Lynn Whites argues that those Biblical precepts made Christianity, “especially in its Western form, “the most anthropocentric religion the world has seen, “ In contrast to paganisms, Christianity posited “a dualism of man and nature” and “insisted that it is God’s will that man exploit nature for his proper ends.” Whereas ancient pagans’ creeds gave a cyclical account of time, Christianity assumes a teleogical way to history and with it the possibility of progress.

The belief in progress was adopted in modern science, which, amounted to technology, and the results was the industrial revolution. Thus the power to control nature was achieved by a civilization that inherited the license to exploit it. According to White this was not a positive historical development, therefore, he believes that science technology could be the best ecological problems they had created.In my opinion science and religion may have a connection at some point, since civilization was inherited at some point from the belief of exploiting God’s creation.

However, this connection is not clear because science and religion are at loggerheads and none accepts the theories brought forth by the other.In summary religion and environment maybe related in one way or another, but there is need for an extensive research to justify that. Researchers have indicated that environmentalism is close to religion. However, people argue that the two are different and science and technology is not only an advantage but an artificial problem. Finally, the subject is prone to further and extensive research that would come to a common ground regarding the issue.