Man's Role in the Environment

[HopeandGlory]

naaaaaaaaaaah, god will stop it in time..........of course if there is no god we are all doomed

I rather like James Lovelock's 'Gaia' theory myself.

Lovelock is an independant scientist who's worked with NASA amongst others and is a member of the Royal Society.

Basically, he claims that the life ON earth and the life OF earth (the whole planet) functions as a single organism which actually defines and maintains conditions necessary for its survival. The world is a super-organism of which we are a part . . . not an owner, not a tennant, not even a passenger . . . but an actual componant of a whole.

The earth adapts and changes to accomodate the havoc we wreak on it - there will always be a plant or an animal which will evolve to meet any set of conditions, however toxic or apparantly unsustainable.

Of course, this animal may not be mankind - - and in our vanity why should we believe it? We've been around a comparatively short amount of time in the evolutionary scheme of things!

If we no longer adapt to/or fit economically into that whole, the earth will simply replace our species with something which will and keep moving on without us.

 

[no1tovote4]

If you go by Buddhism, all things living are connected and we are responsible for it all. Not to the point of self-destruction, but to the point of careful observance.

If you go by the Bible, God gave man Dominion over the environment. Dominion denotes more than just "ownership" it denotes responsibility. One must be a good landlord, to protect the investment that God made in man.... Respecting life is part of that, understanding that life is connected in the fact that without it we cannot survive would be another....

 

[MissileMan]

Why would a Christian concern themselves with environmentalism, particularly at the global level? I can understand caring about short-term, local issues like litter, but why long-term ones like global warming?

Revelation 21

1Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.

Hedging your bets?

 

[dmp]

Why would a Christian concern themselves with environmentalism, particularly at the global level? I can understand caring about short-term, local issues like litter, but why long-term ones like global warming?

Revelation 21

1Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.

Hedging your bets?

You are REALLLLLLLLLLLLY afraid of Christianity...is that why you attack at every opportunity? Hrm?? Bit of a Christophobe are ya?

 

[dilloduck]

Why would a Christian concern themselves with environmentalism, particularly at the global level? I can understand caring about short-term, local issues like litter, but why long-term ones like global warming?

Revelation 21

1Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.

Hedging your bets?

I guess a Christian would want to do "Gods' Will" no matter what form the demise of life on earth as we know it takes.

 

[5stringJeff]

Why would a Christian concern themselves with environmentalism, particularly at the global level? I can understand caring about short-term, local issues like litter, but why long-term ones like global warming?

Revelation 21

1Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.

Hedging your bets?

no1tovote4's post was right on. God gave man dominion over the earth, and charged us to take good care of it, because we don't know when Christ is coming back, so we are to take good care of our planet until he does.

 

[MissileMan]

You are REALLLLLLLLLLLLY afraid of Christianity...is that why you attack at every opportunity? Hrm?? Bit of a Christophobe are ya?

That doesn't REALLLLLLLLLLLLY answer the question, does it? Hrm? Why do you cry attack when someone asks a TOUGH question? Are you frustrated because you have no pat answer?

 

[Nienna]

If you go by Buddhism, all things living are connected and we are responsible for it all. Not to the point of self-destruction, but to the point of careful observance.

If you go by the Bible, God gave man Dominion over the environment. Dominion denotes more than just "ownership" it denotes responsibility. One must be a good landlord, to protect the investment that God made in man.... Respecting life is part of that, understanding that life is connected in the fact that without it we cannot survive would be another....

I was just going to make a note on that, No1. In Hebrew the word "dominion" meant authority, but more in the sense of "sudying and understanding" than "power and ownership."

 

[dmp]

That doesn't REALLLLLLLLLLLLY answer the question, does it? Hrm? Why do you cry attack when someone asks a TOUGH question? Are you frustrated because you have no pat answer?

Nobody can answer your questions. You create unrealistic scenarios - and pointed questions which only seek the answer you have already decided is 'correct'. You don't ask honest questions.

 

[Nienna]

Why would a Christian concern themselves with environmentalism, particularly at the global level? I can understand caring about short-term, local issues like litter, but why long-term ones like global warming?

Revelation 21

1Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.

Hedging your bets?

Firstly, a Christian should care about God's creation, as an act of worship, to show gratitude and respect for the One who created it.

Secondly, we don't know when Christ will return. We should do it as an act of love for our progeny.

 

[HopeandGlory]

If you go by Buddhism, all things living are connected and we are responsible for it all. Not to the point of self-destruction, but to the point of careful observance.

If you go by the Bible, God gave man Dominion over the environment. Dominion denotes more than just "ownership" it denotes responsibility. One must be a good landlord, to protect the investment that God made in man.... Respecting life is part of that, understanding that life is connected in the fact that without it we cannot survive would be another....

So who had 'dominion' when the dinosaurs ruled the earth?

I believe in science and evolution but I also have a strong sense of faith. One doesn't preclude the other.

I think faith transcends our planet alone - it should encompass the whole of life, the whole of the universe . . . the whole of time. I suppose we then come to the question of God making man in his image - but is that just something man invented to comfort himself with?

I don't see God as a physical being with a physical-type image at all.

 

[dilloduck]

So who had 'dominion' when the dinosaurs ruled the earth?

I believe in science and evolution but I also have a strong sense of faith. One doesn't preclude the other.

I think faith transcends our planet alone - it should encompass the whole of life, the whole of the universe . . . the whole of time. I suppose we then come to the question of God making man in his image - but is that just something man invented to comfort himself with?

I don't see God as a physical being with a physical-type image at all.

So what is the realtionship between spiritual and physical ?

 

[HopeandGlory]

So what is the realtionship between spiritual and physical ?

I don't know - I wish I did. Spiritual is indefinable - it's something which appeals to us on a level which transcends the physical.

But I also think something non-religious can be spiritual - looking at a sunset for instance - reading a beautiful poem - hearing some fantastic music - for me, floating in the Dead Sea was one of the most spiritual things I've ever done, but it didn't involve my 'faith.'

Faith is different - I recently saw something on the tv prog. Stargate of all things - - which really sort of made sense to me. One of the characters was defining faith to someone - he described it as; still believing in something even though you had no real proof of it. 'We don't need physical proof of our Gods!'

 

[no1tovote4]

So who had 'dominion' when the dinosaurs ruled the earth?

I believe in science and evolution but I also have a strong sense of faith. One doesn't preclude the other.

I think faith transcends our planet alone - it should encompass the whole of life, the whole of the universe . . . the whole of time. I suppose we then come to the question of God making man in his image - but is that just something man invented to comfort himself with?

I don't see God as a physical being with a physical-type image at all.

If you go by the Bible, God descended and walked the waters of the voided Earth. It appears that the act of creation removed them from the picture....

Nor do I see God as a physical being, it is the reason why I gave the Buddhist example. Understanding the Bible would be the first step in answering your questions about Christianity though. Although I am not a Christian, I have spent many hours studying their beliefs in my early life.

Were I a Christian I would be of a Gnostic sect.

 

[no1tovote4]

I don't know - I wish I did. Spiritual is indefinable - it's something which appeals to us on a level which transcends the physical.

Spirit, according to my beliefs, is that part of you which allows communication between that of your mind and that part which is of the Deity, the soul. That spark that gives us life and is the communicant between the mind and the Deity. In the Bible it speaks of where the Word of God is written in your heart, I believe that it alludes to this.

But I also think something non-religious can be spiritual - looking at a sunset for instance - reading a beautiful poem - hearing some fantastic music - for me, floating in the Dead Sea was one of the most spiritual things I've ever done, but it didn't involve my 'faith.'

Inspiring as a sunset is, it is not spiritual other than as a focus to allow the spirit to allow communication between mind and soul. A state of understanding. It isn't the sunset, but the beauty and the inspiration that it invokes that might otherwise allude you in your everyday life. It allows one to reflect on the Connection of life that resides within us.

Faith is different - I recently saw something on the tv prog. Stargate of all things - - which really sort of made sense to me. One of the characters was defining faith to someone - he described it as; still believing in something even though you had no real proof of it. 'We don't need physical proof of our Gods!'

Faith can be many things. When you begin to sit you do it with absolute conviction the chair will be there, with faith, at least until the first time a "friend" pulls that chair out from under you....

We have faith in many things, faith can be either spiritual or as simple as a handshake.