Bible

INTRODUCING EVANGELICAL ECOTHEOLOGY

/ Daniel Haeusser / Leave a comment

20665283Introducing Evangelical Ecotheology:
Foundations in Scripture, Theology, History, and Praxis
By Daniel L. Brunner, Jennifer L. Butler, and A.J. Swodoba
Baker Academic – 14th October 2014
ISBN 9780801049651 – 262 Pages – Paperback
Source: NetGalley

Existing in worlds of both religion and science I come across people who are radically biased against one or the other, and there will be certainly people who see this book and think it is too great a stretch of Biblical theology into realms of science, or politics. And there will be those who see the science, the ecology as clearly important, but the theology not mattering, even perhaps being detrimental. I’ve met ecologists who want nothing to do with Christianity because they feel that the religion has been used to great environmental harm, and see no value in it. I’ve met Christians who think scientists make up data that overemphasizes the fragility of the environment, or view any environmentalism as equating idolatry.
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Thankfully this book exists as a focused middle of the road alternative to those who do not accept either of the extremes and feel there is a place for the two worlds to dialogue. And here, not surprisingly the emphasis is for arguing for Christian involvement in ecological concerns, and providing the resources to act, the intended audience is Christian, but it is geared towards either end of the cultural spectrum from progressive to more conservative.
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I haven’t come across anything like Introducing Evangelical Ecotheology before and was curious to see how it was approached while not outright alienating people who may be close to the borders of the Christian spectrum extremes. Written by a trio of people from a range of Christian backgrounds, the text largely succeeds. The premise at the book’s heart is the concept that Jesus’ message was for all people and that he held specific regard for those on the margins of society. As we now see that people on the margins are most vulnerable to ecological conditions – and that the health of the environment is of growing concern – then care for the environment should be a concern for discipleship.
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This premise is not simply asserted only to move ahead, but the authors spend time arguing for its accuracy. Throughout they try to base that argument on a combination of science, theological tradition, Biblical interpretation, and Jesus’ message in word or deed. Some may disagree with aspects of the premise even after the arguments – or find some arguments a stretch, but the authors do an admirable job of making an effort at convincing, again with experiences and interpretation born from varied sociopolitical backgrounds. Though they excel at discussing the theology and history, they do a good job of covering the science, though I’m not a climate or environmental scientist to be fully certain on all details. (I can’t recall if one author in particular tackled more of science talk than another though.)
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As an integrated text from multiple voices, there are certain issues where precise agreement wasn’t reached. The authors chose to put key discussion of these issues into separate boxes called ‘Tension Points’ and within the purpose of the book it works very well, as the book’s best audience would likely be a book club type group or class within a church, who may find these good discussion points, providing a format to keep the talk civil between disagreeing views. A large number of references are also provided for a serious student’s interest in the topic to go deeper, or back to the sources.
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Readable without dryness this would be a wonderful book for either an individual or group to read, and the latter portion of it provides challenges to take the ecotheological themes to heart and put them into practice in meaningful ways both large and small. While the intended audience is Christian the book as a whole or in key parts would also be effective for showing to non-Christians allies in addressing these ecological concerns, simply as evidence that not all Christians are uninterested or unconcerned over the health of the environment. Many see it the problems and see it as a failure on many levels (including within the faith) and feel called on levels both religious or humanist to address them.
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Disclaimer: I received a free advanced reading copy of this from Baker Academic via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

On Being Rich and Poor: Christianity in a Time of Economic Globalization, by Jacques Ellul

/ Daniel Haeusser / Leave a comment
On Being Rich and Poor: Christianity in a Time of Economic Globalization,
by Jaques Ellul
Translated by Willem H. Vanderburg
Publisher: U. of Toronto Press
ISBN: 1442626267
273 pages, paperback
Published April 2014
Source: NetGalley

This fascinating volume was not what I initially expected based on the provided summary and the title. It is not a well-developed treatise on the theme of Christianity in an age of economic globalization. At all. Rather than a cohesive whole, it is rather a transcription of separate studies on the books of Amos and James, commentaries with follow-up remarks to questions from Ellul’s audience. Though the theme of rich/poor comes up as one aspect in each study, that particular issue is not necessarily predominant. Additionally, in those sections that do address this theme, Ellul repeatedly points out that richness/poorness should not be understood merely in economic terms. Hence my disappointment with this volume solely consists of how it is being sold. If you are looking for a structured and complete exploration on the subtitle topic, I wouldn’t recommend this.

However, ignoring this subtitle and the emphasis of the blurb, this book is well worth reading, for Ellul’s writing is clear and well-reasoned, and his insights into both Amos and James are substantial, thought-provoking, and inspiring. Rather than an overall focus on economic disparities, what rather unites these texts more strongly and thoroughly is the simple message that God loves, and then consideration of what follows from this in God’s means of connecting with humanity and the rest of Creation.

In this way I found “On Being Rich and Poor” to be in some fashion an Apologetic, something that like Lewis’ “Mere Christianity” sets out to answer some of the common critiques of Christianity by defining what exactly the faith is. Here, Ellul delves into the texts of Amos and of James to clarify his interpretation of the texts and the unity of their messages across the span of the Old to New Testaments and its relation to both Christians and Jews. In contrast to defining Christianity, Ellul instead spends a lot of the text detailing what he thinks these books tell us about what/who God is, and how this is sometimes quite different from popular understandings. In another sense these two commentaries strive to point out the various ways Scripture has been abused through literal readings and ignorance of both historical context and nuances of the original languages.

Although not as ‘sold’, this is a tremendously good and approachable read, and would be ideal as the basis for group or individual Bible studies on Amos and/or on James. In addition, anyone with an interest in theology and interpretations of the Bible could gain valuable insight from Ellul’s thoughts, and it serves as a potentially useful tool for clarifying common misperceptions on the nature and ‘personality’ of God as portrayed by the Biblical authors.

Four Stars out of Five