Christians and the Care of Creation

I have to admit that I wasn't always sold on the existence of global warming. At times it seemed like just another political issue that exists for the convenience of choosing a side. If you were a liberal Democrat you thought that global warming was a big problem; if you were a conservative Republican you thought that global warming was silly and imaginary. But sometimes real life issues don't fit conveniently on one side of the aisle or the other.

That's why I was glad to hear about the Evangelical Climate Initiative. The statement they produced (to read it, click on the title of this post) a few weeks ago basically says that global climate change is a problem that will eventually have a big effect on the world - especially on those from the world's poorest regions. I'm inclined to agree.

But I was even more excited when I saw the list signatories. Some made their expected appearance (Brian McLaren, Ron Sider, and others). Others were pretty surprising: Timothy George, Clive Calver, and Leith Anderson. Not exactly you're typical "liberal" evangelicals. But one signatory takes the cake. Allow me to reproduce the line as I read it:

Duane Litfin, Ph.D., President, Wheaton College, Wheaton IL.

Wow. I have to say that Dr. Litfin lends this statement a lot of credibility. I know how careful he is about making his views public. He would have to be convinced beyond the shadow of a doubt that climate change is a man-made problem before he would agree to sign the statement. I respect Dr. Litfin for his willingness to lend support to ECI.

Another observation: not everyone is supportive of this declaration. Other influential evangelicals like Charles Colson and James Dobson disagree with the stance taken by ECI. Why? Well, it seems to me there are two reasons:

1. They argue that the scientific data is not conclusive enough to say that human beings are the major cause of climate change. Thus it is wrong to make pronouncements and recommendations for action.

2. ECI was supported by the Hewlett Foundation, an organization that also provides significant support to Planned Parenthood.

Okay, number 2 is a problem. ECI is life-affirming and Planned Parenthood is clearly not. But should the source of funding cause us to disregard the entire statement as a tool of pro-abortion advocates? No.

Number 1 might also be accurate. We truly do not have as much scientific data as we might want. But if there is going to be a miscalculation involved, shouldn't we err on the side of caution? Maybe some groundbreaking new finding will show us that global warming is not as big a problem as some think. If that happens will we bemoan the fact that we "wasted" time cutting down on pollution, researching alternatives to fossil fuels, taking care of our global neighbors, and thinking biblically about our role in Creation? I highly doubt it. And those are the types of things that ECI calls on believers and churches to start thinking about.

So read the statement, think about the world that God made, and take some action!