AN EVANGELICAL RESPONSE TO THE ENVIRONMENTAL CRISIS & WORLD POVERTY

In this paper we will consider the current environmental crisis and our response to it as Evangelical / Charismatic Christians. The care of this material world and the issues of inequality and poverty are very much on the political and social agenda in these days but what is a Kingdom response to these things?

In America we have climate change deniers who are strongly linked to the fundamentalist wing of the Christian church. In our own nation, we have parts of the church, such as the Quakers who are at the forefront of campaigning regarding the issues and actively took part in the Extinction Rebellion protests in London in 2020.

Dave Bookless defined four types of Christians:

1. The first are those who think that environmental issues are a bit dodgy – Christians should steer clear of them for risk of being called tree huggers, hippies, mother earth lovers, etc

2. The second group are those who think environmental issues are irrelevant. They say that the gospel is about saving people, not animals. Some of these Christians would go so far as to say that climate change is a myth, and that, given Christ will return and make things better in the end, what’s the point of trying to save it. As mentioned above, this is a major theological stance among evangelicals in America.

3. The third group are those who say, well, I’m glad that someone is caring about it, but it doesn’t have to be me

4. And then there is the fourth group, which hopefully we all identify with, who are those who know that concern for the whole of God’s creation is fundamental to the God of the Bible and to his purposes for human beings.