Religion and Ecology - Essay Example

Religion and Ecology Religion and the natural world have often interacted, with religion shaping the way we view the natural world (and our place within it) and nature playing a part in many culture’s interactions with God and spirituality. Some may even argue that religion is what separates humans from the natural world. The purpose of this paper is to explore the questions that are raised by the connections between religion and ecology and how this plays fundamental part in how human view the nature. It will explore the interaction between human species and other species and the way religion portrays the relationship between the two. Finally, I will explore human nature and destiny as part of the natural world and how our actions and religions are important in development. Religion has almost certainly shaped our understanding of and our conduct towards nature and vice versa. For example, Judaism (one of the oldest religions), nature is presented as being something that “God created”1. Another ancient religion, Hinduism, has special Gods dedicated towards the worship of nature2, which suggest that nature is needing explain by the use of Gods and spirituality. Many of the tribal religions are based around nature-worship and a special symbiosis with environment3. Most religions state that there is a special relationship between man, nature and a spiritual being and that nature is something that need taking care of by man. This much is true. However, looking at state of world and impending environmental crisis, it not clear whether this encouragement to bond with nature by religion has had enough of an effect. Many people also feel that religion encourages people to think that they are better than other species or that humans are not part of the natural world. In Judaism, God has created man in his image4 suggesting that God has created a special place in the world for man. Man is more like God than the other creatures. However, in religious environmentalism we see that newer spiritual and religious movements are encouraging human race to see themselves as part of the environment and to take care of it like they would care for their own home5. Interestingly, the nature is a finite resource and seeing humans as part of that resource could help to encourage us to see ourselves within nature and to help us maintain it like religions so often encourage. Religions also help ask and answer the question “what is the place of humans in the non-human natural world?” There are two clear schools of thought. One, common in the Abrahamic religions like Judaism and Christianity tend to encourage the thought that humans are not part of the natural world, but should care for it as God commanded6. Other thoughts come from religions like Buddhism which see a natural energy or spirituality which binds humans to the non-human natural world and therefore makes us an integral part of it7. It is hard to reconcile these views because they are different and it depends on initial standpoint to really understand. However, it seems that in one way or another, humans are encouraged to play role in the environment whether it is as an outsider (like in Christianity) or as an integral part of it (like in Buddhism). Some say that the relationship between humans and the non-human natural world means that we have a special responsibility as species to protect other species and make sure that they are well-cared for and not extinct. However, if we see each other as part of the natural world, it could be argued that nature is there to exploit as any other species would do if in human position. This is rarely the viewpoint offered by religion. If looking at African religions, for example, it is obvious that a special relationship exists and that nature is there for the use by humans but only to a certain level which requires protecting8. In this sense, humans have a responsibility to protect nature but only as a way of preserving our own species. Our destiny is therefore entwined with the destiny of other species, because we use them and they rely on us. Another way of looking at it stems from Jewish and Christian religious thought. This is based on idea that we are created in Gods image and therefore have a special responsibility to use our power and knowledge to look after the environment and other creatures even if they are lesser than us9. In this way, humans are seen as being separate from nature but still having responsibility and being a part of ecology in this special way. This is a way of stating humans are above from nature, and that we are not primarily the same as the rest of natural world. However, human nature is still part of the destiny shaping the natural world, so ecology and religion are still intertwined in this way. A lot of people would also say that humans can benefit from shaping, perfecting and developing the non-human natural world. This again could be seen in one of two ways. Firstly, if our destiny is to further ourselves as a species and achieve as much possible, then we need to shape and perfect the natural world to benefit us most. In this way, creating skyscrapers and damaging the natural world is part of this and therefore not harmful. However, most religious viewpoints would disagree, even the environmentalists. This group of people believe that our destiny can be fulfilled by helping to shape and perfect the natural world to make it more hospitable for other species and to ensure that they continue to have a place in human-dominated world10. Human nature itself has always been to try to change and mould natural world to benefit us and to make it better to fit into our lifestyles. This is what humans do. We can see this from the fact that we have been exploiting natural resources in the world for hundreds of years, including oil and coal11. In this way, I would say that human nature and destiny is not primarily realized in trying to accept the world as it is. Human destiny is trying to change the world to benefit us as a race. However, religion seems to suggest that we should do this but in a way that causes the least damage to our external environment and species other. Additionally, movements like environmentalism and ecofeminism agree with this viewpoint, despite the fact that these may not necessarily be religion12. In conclusion, religion and ecology are obviously intertwined, from the fact that religion has a lot to say about ecology and natural world to the fact that even non-religious spiritual movements have this bond. Almost all religion have an important role for nature to play. This means that nature is as a part of human life as religion is and we should be careful to interpret this. In a way, we could be seen to be part of nature as we are biological beings and we interact with nature every day. In another way, our minds and our feelings and the way we work with natures means that we might be considered above nature. Either way, it seems religion suggest we have a duty to interact with nature carefully and to protect it, even if some religions encourage us to propagate our own species as much as possible. Works Cited Chryssavgis. 2006. The Earth as Sacrament: Insights from Orthodox Christian Theology and Spirituality. In Gottlieb (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Religion and Ecology (pp. 92-114). USA: Oxford University Press. Dwivedi. 2006. Hindu Religion and Environmental Well-being. In Gottlieb (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Religion and Ecology (pp. 160–183). USA: Oxford University Press. Gottlieb. 2006. Religious Environmentalism in Action. In Gottlieb (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Religion and Ecology (pp. 467-509). USA: Oxford University Press. Grim. 2006. Indigenous Traditions: Religion and Ecology. In Gottlieb (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Religion and Ecology (pp. 283-312). USA: Oxford University Press. Kaza. 2006. The Greening of Buddhism: Promise and Perils. In Gottlieb (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Religion and Ecology (pp. 184-206). USA: Oxford University Press. Olupona. 2006. Religion and Ecology in African Culture and Society. In Gottlieb (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Religion and Ecology (pp. 259-282). USA: Oxford University Press. Sideris. 2006. Religion, Environmentalism, and the Meaning of Ecology. In Gottlieb (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Religion and Ecology (pp. 446-466). USA: Oxford University Press. Taylor. 2006. Religion and Environmentalism in America and Beyond. In Gottlieb (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Religion and Ecology (pp. 558–613). USA: Oxford University Press. Tirosh-Samuelson. 2006. Judaism. In Gottlieb (Ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Religion and Ecology (pp. 25-64). USA: Oxford University Press. Read More