As I’m on the editorial group for Grove Doctrine, I plan to promote (but not review) each of the books released in the series as and when they’re published.
Creation ex nihilo, or creation from nothing, is a touchstone of Christian doctrine. It is not merely a description of how the universe came into being, however; it has much to contribute, too, to how we view God’s ongoing relation to the world, as well as humanity’s relation to God and to other creatures. In Creation and Ecology, Joanna Leidenhag teases out some implications creation from nothing has for ecological ethics.
In the opening chapter, Leidenhag acknowledges Christianity’s ambivalent role in creation care but contends its doctrine of creation from nothing, properly understood, can do much to shape our attitudes to the world. Chapter two discusses Genesis 1:1–2:4a and shows why theology and modern science are not in competition with one another. In chapter three, Leidenhag largely explores how the doctrine of creation from nothing developed from Scripture in the second century ad in dispute with contemporary philosophies. The ideas which came to be encapsulated in the phrase ‘creation ex nihilo’ are:
the identity of the one God as both creator and saviour; the sovereignty of God as unlimited in power; the goodness of creation; the dependency of all creation on God; and the hope that all creation will be redeemed. (p. 16)
The fourth and final chapter explores how these ideas affect creation care:
The doctrine of creation ex nihilo underlines how humanity’s power is different from and relies upon God’s power. When we use our creativity and resources in line with God’s, then creation flourishes. (p. 19)
Discerning the presence of God in the city and the jungle, the abattoir and sanctuary, will change how we live, work and rest alongside other creatures. Viewing space as a network of relationships can make us more sensitive to how human activities can be either invasive or cooperative to other creatures. (p. 21)
According to the creation ex nihilo doctrine there is one ultimate distinction in reality—between God and creation. . . . Humanity is not closer to God than an earthworm or eel. As Creator of all, God is equally close to every creature and lovingly holds each one in existence. (p. 21)
Fossil fuels, cities, rising temperatures or plastic are not evil in and of themselves. Instead, these are symptoms of a world out of balance and signs that in a network of interdependence one creature is trying to be independent of all others. (p. 22)
The Christian doctrine of creation ex nihilo directly links the first creation to the hope for new creation, because there is one God who is both creator and saviour. (p. 23)
Christian environmental action is a way to participate in the gift of creation and respond to the grace of God. (p. 24)
The God who made this universe from nothing, sustains its being in every moment, and is intimately present in every millimetre of the cosmos, will redeem and heal the evil consequences of human activity. . . . God invites us, as created beings whose existence depends on God and God alone, to join in this great work of grace. (p. 24)
Creation and Ecology is available for £3.95 from the Grove Books website (in both print and electronic formats), as well as through Christian bookshops. Click here for Leidenhag’s interview on her book with the Logos Institute.
"Humanity is not closer to God than an earthworm or eel. As Creator of all, God is equally close to every creature and lovingly holds each one in existence." Hmmmm That is mistheolgy! people are made in the image of the Almighty and He breathed life into them! To try and claim people are of the same worth as a worm or eel frankly shows little knowledge of the Word - dissapointed
ReplyDeleteRegarding the subject (assuming it isn't really just about climate change) there is a theory that Earth existed in a destroyed state before Gen 1 check out the Genisis videos by Rock Harbour Church on YouTube if you are interested
Jasp, these are selected quotations to whet the appetite for Joanna's book. You'd need to read each quotation in context to see the full sense. Joanna does look at human vocation and to say she has 'little knowledge of the Word' makes a huge assumption. And just to be clear - though I did try to be clear in this post - Joanna's book isn't about climate change; it's about how the doctrine of creation from nothing can help us address the ecological challenges we're facing at the moment.
DeleteAssumption challenge accepted, please can I have her biblical references for people and animals are of the same value to the Creator
DeleteAssumption challenge accepted, please can I have her biblical references for people and animals are of the same value to the Creator
DeleteIf you're really that desperate to call Joanna out, I suggest buying the book to do that. You don't do theology simply by flinging prooftexts around.
DeleteNote, though, that in the quotation under examination, Joanna says nothing about value. The point is that the ultimate distinction is between God and creation - and in this sense God is no closer to humanity than God is to an earthworm.
The Queen is no closer to Charles than to a homeless person - haven't I just devalued Charles?
DeleteRespectfully, if there are no prooftexts there is no theology
The thing is, you haven't told me what you mean by 'closer' in this context. As a statement, this says very little because you haven't made it clear precisely who is meant by 'the Queen', by 'Charles', and by 'a homeless person'. Now let's assume you are meaning Queen Elizabeth II and her son, Prince Charles - but I have no real idea of who you have in mind by 'a homeless person' because all that phrase tells me is that this is a person without a home. I don't know if that homeless person is in some way related to the Queen or to Charles, why that person is homeless, and so on. And most importantly, which I don't think the analogy holds because it doesn't take into account the logic of creation from nothing on which the original quotation builds. I'm not sure why you're picking up on the 'closer' aspect of the quotation and not the text I quoted by way of introduction, about 'the ultimate distinction in reality'.
DeleteAnd this is why doing theology isn't about flinging prooftexts around - I didn't mean that Scripture plays no part in constructing theology (of course it does) - but anyone can take a Bible verse out of context and make it mean anything they want.
Why not check out these references
ReplyDeletehttp://www.fnmzoo.org/wisdom-teaching/i-embrace-all-beings
http://fearnomore.vision/non-human/observe-the-non-humans-and-learn-from-them
I did. Is that a camel in the bottom photo of the second link?
DeleteSeriously, the church needs to be doing so much more on climate change instead of exploitation of the earth and of poor people. This looks interesting, thank you!
ReplyDeleteSandy
If you're wanting a short book on the theological underpinnings of creation care, this is definitely one to read, Sandy.
Delete