Christianity and Ecology : Seeking the Well-Being of Earth and Humans

by Hessel, Dieter T.

• ISBN13: 9780945454205
• ISBN10: 0945454201
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2000-03-01
• Publisher: Harvard Univ Pr

Summary

What can Christianity as a tradition contribute to the struggle to secure the future well-being of the earth community? This collaborative volume, the third in the series on religions of the world and the environment, announces that an ecological reformation, an eco-justice reorientation of Christian theology and ethics, is prominent on the ecumenical agenda. The authors explore problematic themes that contribute to ecological neglect or abuse and offer constructive insight into and responsive imperatives for ecologically just and socially responsible living.

Table of Contents

Preface	xi
Lawrence E. Sullivan
Series Foreword	xv
Mary Evelyn Tucker
John Grim
Introduction: Current Thought on Christianity and Ecology	xxxiii
Dieter T. Hessel
Rosemary Radford Ruether
I. Creator, Christ, and Spirit in Ecological Perspective
Losing and Finding Creation in the Christian Tradition	3	(26)
Elizabeth A. Johnson
Response to Elizabeth A. Johnson	23	(6)
Gordon D. Kaufman
An Ecological Christology: Does Christianity Have It?	29	(22)
Sallie McFague
Response to Sallie McFague	47	(4)
Kwok Pui-lan
The Wounded Spirit as the Basis for Hope in an Age of Radical Ecology	51	(32)
Mark I. Wallace
Response to Mark I. Wallace: Another View of the Spirit's Work	73	(10)
Eleanor Rae
The World of the Icon and Creation: An Orthodox Perspective on Ecology and Pneumatology	83	(14)
John Chryssavgis
Ecofeminism: The Challenge to Theology	97	(30)
Rosemary Radford Ruether
Response to Rosemary Radford Ruether: Ecofeminism and Theology---Challenges, Confrontations, and Reconstructions	113	(14)
Heather Eaton
II. Vision, Vocation, and Virtues for the Earth Community
Christianity's Role in the Earth Project	127	(8)
Thomas Berry
The Human Vocation: Origins and Transformations in Christian Traditions	135	(20)
Theodore Hiebert
Christian Ecological Virtue Ethics: Transforming a Tradition	155	(28)
Louke van Wensveen
Response to Louke van Wensveen: A Constructive Proposal	173	(10)
Steven Bouma-Prediger
No More Sea: The Lost Chaos of the Eschaton	183	(22)
Catherine Keller
Response to Catherine Keller	199	(6)
Mary Ann Hinsdale
River of Life in God's New Jerusalem: An Eschatological Vision for Earth's Future	205	(22)
Barbara R. Rossing
III. The Universal and Particular in Ethics and Spirituality
Seeking Moral Norms in Nature: Natural Law and Ecological Responsibility	227	(34)
James A. Nash
Response to James A. Nash	251	(10)
Cristina L. H. Traina
The Moral Status of Otherkind in Christian Ethics	261	(30)
Daniel Cowdin
Behemoth and Batrachians in the Eye of God: Responsibility to Other Kinds in Biblical Perspective	291	(26)
Calvin B. DeWitt
Words beneath the Water: Logos, Cosmos, and the Spirit of Place	317	(20)
Douglas Burton-Christie
A Christian-Chinese Version of Ecotheology: Goodness, Beauty, and Holiness in Creation	337	(28)
Peter K. H. Lee
Response to Peter K. H. Lee	357	(8)
Heup Young Kim
Deep Ecumenicity versus Incommensurability: Finding Common Ground on a Common Earth	365	(20)
Paul F. Knitter
IV. Toward Global Security and Sustainability
Scientific and Religious Perspectives on Sustainability	385	(18)
Ian G. Barbour
Population, Consumption, Ecology: The Triple Problematic	403	(36)
Daniel C. Maguire
Response to Daniel C. Maguire: The Church Should Call not Just Prophets but Environmental Deacons	429	(10)
Susan Power Bratton
Incentives, Consumption Patterns, and Population Policies: A Christian Ethical Perspective	439	(14)
James B. Martin-Schramm
Climate Change: Ethics, Justice, and Sustainable Community	453	(20)
David G. Hallman
Ecological Security and Policies of Restraint	473	(24)
William C. French
Response to William C. French	493	(4)
Preston N. Williams
Christianity, Economics, and Ecology	497	(18)
John B. Cobb, Jr.
V. Christian Praxis for Ecology and Justice
Global Eco-Justice: The Church's Mission in Urban Society	515	(16)
Larry Rasmussen
Earthkeeping Churches at the African Grass Roots	531	(28)
Marthinus L. Daneel
Response to Marthinus L. Daneel	553	(6)
Martin Robra
Social Transformation through Environmental Justice	559	(14)
Vernice Miller-Travis
Partnership for the Environment among U.S. Christians: Reports from the National Religious Partnership for the Environment	573	(18)
William Somplatsky-Jarman
Walter E. Grazer
Stan L. LeQuire
The Integrity of Creation: Challenges and Opportunities for Praxis	591	(12)
Patricia M. Mische
Conclusion: Eco-Justice at the Center of the Church's Mission	603	(12)
Rosemary Radford Ruether
Select Bibliography	615	(24)
Peter W. Bakken
Notes on Contributors	639	(10)
Index	649