Christian Faith and the Earth project
An open invitation
31 January 2007
Dear Colleague
An open invitation to participate in a collaborative project on “Christian Faith and the Earth: Describing and assessing the state of the debate”
1. One of the many tasks of responding to environmental concerns from within the Christian tradition is to reflect critically on the content of the Christian faith and its significance for the well-being of the whole earth community.
This is indeed a vital task for several reasons: a) Environmental concerns, most notably climate change, the rapid loss of biodiversity and the possible collapse of larger ecosystems, have become more and more daunting. Some have suggested that we now live, objectively speaking, in apocalyptic times, a time desperately in need of the good news of the gospel. b) It has often been argued that Christianity has been at least complicit – in what Christians have done, said and left undone – in supporting the current global economic order and the culture of consumerism that are amongst the root causes of environmental destruction. c) The Christian faith and the proclamation of the gospel have often been distorted in this context, also within Christian churches. The Christian confession of faith is challenged by the lifestyles of those Christians who are devoted to wealth instead of to God, to the power of the military and technology instead of the way of the cross, to consumer choice when selecting a church suitable for their needs instead of to the vocation of the Spirit. Some have suggested that we are now in a “state of confession” where we are called to confess the Christian as clearly as possible in the midst of such distortions. The World Alliance of Reformed Churches, for example, at its meeting in Debrecen, Hungary in 1997 has called for a “processus confessionis”, that is, “a process of recognition, education, confession and action regarding economic injustice and ecological destruction”. Similar processes are underway in other confessional traditions. In such a context there is indeed a clear need, for the sake of Christian witness, to reflect critically on the content of the Christian faith and its significance for the well-being of the whole earth community.
In response to this challenge, numerous contributions have been made over the last few decades on various aspects of Christian doctrine and from within several confessional traditions and different geographical contexts. The purpose of this envisaged project is to consolidate and assess the insights that have been gained thus far and to provide further impetus to and a sense of direction for this ongoing task.
Following some preliminary consultations with friends and colleagues working in this field, I hereby wish to extend an open invitation to any person who may be interested to collaborate on an ecumenical project with this focus. I also offer some provisional suggestions on the vision, format and appropriate procedures for such a project. My intention is merely to initiate a process that would lead towards a project of this nature. My hope is that many colleagues working in this field will accept ownership of this project, that the project will develop a dynamics of its own and that it will soon come under the auspices of a steering committee.
2. The core of the project will be to gather a fairly comprehensive set of scholarly documents on the state of debate in ecotheology on the content and ecological significance of the Christian faith. On this basis, the project will also seek to offer a sense of direction for further discourse in this regard. It is envisaged that these documents will be produced in an interactive and collaborative process, culminating in a conference which, I suggest, may be held in Cape Town in August 2012. The following five phases of the project are envisaged:
a) 2007 Discussion on the vision, nature and format of the project
Gathering a team of scholars collaborating on the project
Establishment of a steering committee and various working groups
b) 2008-2011 Ongoing research within each working group
Intermittent meetings of working groups on particular themes
c) August 2011 Submission of preliminary documents
d) August 2012 Culminating colloquium to be held in Cape Town
e) Beyond that Dissemination of the project
3. The Christian faith is expressed in terms of a cluster of inter-related symbols. It is not difficult to identify themes that could be discussed in a project of this nature, although the description, demarcation and structuring of such themes would of course be subject to further debate. A provisional proposal on the identification of such themes is offered in Addendum A. This proposal is based on a distinction between three core theological questions, namely, “Who is God?” What on earth is God doing?” and “How have we come to know God?” This structure is my own, but the themes are formulated in the language of the Christian tradition so that they can be easily recognisable and open to theological reflection from within different confessional traditions.
Each of these themes may serve as a lens through which all the other symbols can be viewed and brought into play. Despite this fruitful inter-relatedness, it will be necessary to demarcate the themes as clearly as possible, in order to encourage an in-depth analysis of each aspect.
Although it is impossible to separate the content of the Christian faith from its significance for Christian life and a Christian ethos, the focus of this project will not be on environmental ethics or on earthkeeping practices, but on the content of the Christian faith. Nevertheless, for each of the themes to be investigated it will be necessary to reflect on also the significance of the discussion for Christian witness in church and society.
Likewise, although it is impossible to separate contributions within discourse on biblical theology from those in systematic theology, the focus of this project will be on Christian doctrine. In other words, for the purposes of this project, the whole of Christian theology will be viewed from the perspective of Christian doctrine. In a similar vein, the interplay between the biblical texts, Christian faith and contemporary contexts may be viewed in biblical hermeneutics from the point of view of the interpretation of biblical texts (as this was done, for example, in the Earth Bible project).
4. The aim of this project will be to describe and assess the state of the debate in ecological theology on various themes related to Christian doctrine. On this basis, it will also seek to provide a sense of direction for future discourse on the significance of the Christian faith for the well-being of the whole earth community. This will require from the working group on each theme to attend to the following aspects:
· An assessment of the history of reflection on the particular theme within the larger Christian tradition and an identification of areas where new environmental sensitivities have stimulated and required further reflection;
· The gathering of contributions within discourse on ecological theology on the particular theme, noting that the available literature will be more extensive on some themes than on others (It may also be noted that I will be able to provide logistical support in this regard on the basis of an indexed bibliography that I have compiled.);
· A description of the different approaches, positions and interpretations which have been offered in such literature;
· A discussion of the impact of differences in terms of confessional tradition, geographical location, gender, race, class, generation, culture and language on such approaches;
· A description and an assessment of the state of the debate in ecological theology on the particular theme (This implies that synergy may be fostered where this is appropriate and possible, that an irreducible diversity of positions and approaches may be appreciated where this is mutually enriching, but that unresolved divergences has to be honestly acknowledged where this is the case.);
· A constructive contribution offering a sense of direction on how this debate can be taken forward in future and to serve as an invitation to others to continue with this task;
· Reflection on the significance of this discussion for Christian witness in church and society, for a Christian ethos and for earthkeeping practices.
Given the focus of the project on Christian doctrine and the emphasis on an assessment of the state of the debate, it will not be possible to formulate core principles from the outset (viz. the ecojustice principles introduced in the Earth Bible project). Instead, my hope would be that the project will yield as its final result an appropriate ecological vision for reinterpreting the Christian faith.
The format of the project which is provisionally proposed here will require clarification through discussion amongst the participants during the first phase of the project. It should be noted that the task of this project cannot be the (re)writing of a comprehensive ecumenical Christian dogmatics, covering all possible themes. Instead, the focus should be to identify and explore those areas of Christian faith where environmental concerns have compelled further reflection. One may compare this with the work of the Faith and Order Commission (WCC) which tend to focus only on those issues which have proved to be divisive for ecumenical fellowship.
5. There are many Christian scholars who have made contributions to theological reflection on the significance of the Christian faith for the well-being of the whole earth community. Some have sustained such contributions over many years, while the contributions of others have been less explicit in terms of a sensitivity for environmental concerns and a commitment to eco-justice. One of the tasks of the first phase of the project will be to gather together a team of people who may be interested in collaborating on such a project (see Addendum B for a rather incomplete list).
One would hope that such a project would attract the outstanding scholars in the field of ecotheology, including those who are no longer keen on travelling but who can make a valuable contribution through email correspondence. At the same time, it would be desirable to involve a number of younger, enthusiastic postgraduate students working in the field. Obviously, it would enrich the ecumenical nature of the project if participants from different confessional traditions and different geographical contexts would participate, even though it may not always be easy to find suitable persons. Of course, one would like to see a degree of balance in terms of the categories of gender, race, age, culture and language background.
6. How could a large collaborative project of this nature be structured? Although this will be subject to discussion during the first phase of the project, I provisionally suggest the following steps:
· As a first step I am sending this open invitation to the list of scholars identified in Addendum B below. This list will be far from complete, but I am hoping that people will forward this to many others, for example to interested scholars in Eastern Europe, Latin America, India and South East Asia where I have few contacts. The purpose of this first step will be to identify persons who would like to participate in this project and to establish the particular theme(s) related to the Christian faith that each person would like to focus on. The vision, format and procedures of the project will also be open for discussion during this phase of the project.
· A second step would be to establish a steering committee of around eight persons for the project. Following limited correspondence on this project thus far, the following persons have already made themselves available to serve on the steering committee: Sigurd Bergmann, Ernst Conradie, Celia Deane-Drummond, Denis Edwards and Mark Wallace. This committee should be expanded in order to ensure that there is diversity within such a steering committee, especially in terms of geographical locations, confessional traditions, gender and race. I therefore invite people to make themselves available for this task or to nominate other suitable persons. I undertake to act as convenor for this task and to ensure that this is addressed through a consultative and transparent process. The steering committee should preferably be established before the end of June 2007.
· A third step will be to establish working groups on each of the identified themes. The working group will comprise all of those who have made themselves available in this regard. Of course, those working in one group may also want to make occasional contributions to other groups.
· It will be task of the steering committee to identify two suitable persons to provide leadership in each group: 1) a moderator who can ensure the collaborative and ecumenical nature of the project, and 2) an editor who will take responsibility for the group’s preliminary and final contribution.
· These three steps of the project will hopefully be completed by December 2007.
· The fourth and perhaps most important step will be to produce a document within each working group on the particular aspect of the Christian faith that it is responsible for. Each group will have to establish procedures that would be suitable for that group, given its composition. Here the editor and moderator in each group will play an important role. Much of the work (in gathering contributions and in drafting and commenting on documents) could be done through email correspondence. It may also be possible for some working groups to make use of regular conferences (e.g. those hosted by the American Academy of Religion, the World Council of Churches, the European Forum for the Study of Religion and the Environment, the Theological Society of South Africa, etc) to meet one another, to host conference sessions where position papers can be presented and to discuss progress within the working group. Given the inter-continental nature of the project, this will not be possible for all participants and groups. A bit of creativity may be required in this regard. It will also be wise to exercise frugality in terms of transport costs.
· I suggest that each working group should produce a preliminary report by August 2011. This should then be made available through the steering committee (and a suitable website) to all other participants for comment and further reflection. The steering committee will have to develop guidelines for the format and structure of these documents.
· I propose that the project may culminate in a conference to be held in Cape Town in the week of 6-10 August 2012. The purpose of this conference will be to allow for a detailed discussion of each document, to assess the current state of the debate in ecotheology on the content and significance of the Christian faith, to offer a sense of direction for further discourse in this regard and to reflect on the significance of this for Christian witness in church and society.
· Following this conference, each working group will have to finalise its contribution and submit this to the steering committee, with a view to the publication and dissemination of the reports.
· There are various possible forms of dissemination for a project such as this. At the very least, the contributions from the various working groups should be published within a single volume. The steering committee will have to find a suitable publisher and negotiate with it regarding the format of each contribution. Such a format cannot be finalised at this early stage. In addition, given the long and diverse tradition of Christian reflection on each aspect of Christian doctrine (and within ecotheology itself), some working groups may want to develop such a report into a larger volume of essays on the particular theme. This may yield a series of edited volumes. Again, details (including decisions on the target readers) will have to be explored by the steering committee as the project develops a momentum of its own. Further possibilities, for example for a website, regular conferences and even a journal, can only mentioned at this stage.
I may add here that one would hope that the process of working on a project of this nature would be at least as significant as the end product.
7. The project will not require major funding during the first number of years, since communication can be done electronically and whenever opportunities for personal interaction emerge, for example at regular conferences. However, the culminating conference will require significant funding. Many of the participants may be able to cover their own travelling and accommodation costs and a conference fee. Some funding may be available from South African research institutions. However, the steering committee will also have to explore further avenues in this regard.
8. In order to facilitate the process, it would be helpful if people who are interested in participating in this project could respond to the following questions:
· Are you interested in participating in this collaborative project and would you be able to commit some time and energy to this project over the next five years?
· Do you have comments on the vision, format and planning of the project?
· Do you have comments on the themes as identified in Addendum A?
· Could you suggest names and provide contact details of other persons who may be interested in the project? Could you perhaps help with some of the email addresses missing from Addendum B? (If you do forward this invitation to others, please copy that to me as well.)
· In which of the working groups would you want to participate? Please note that it may be possible for one person to be involved in more than one of the working groups since the themes are often related to one another and a person may have worked on more than one theme before. However, it would be best if you could indicate a clear priority in this regard.
· Do you wish to make yourself available or to nominate someone else to serve on the steering committee and/or as a moderator or an editor within one of the working groups?
I would appreciate your response as soon as possible, even though a period of 12 months is allowed for the first phase of the project. Until the steering committee is established, I undertake to offer regular feedback on progress with this project to participants.
I am excited by this project and hope that many of you will find a way to collaborate on the project. Reflection on the ecological significance of the Christian faith is necessarily a common, ecumenical task – at least for those who not only have the Earth as the house which we all inhabit but also the Christian faith in common.
Sincerely
Ernst M Conradie
Professor of Systematic Theology and Ethics, Department of Religion and Theology, University of the Western Cape, South Africa
Addendum A
Christian faith and the Earth: Provisional list of themes
Who is God?
1. The triune God
2. The person of God the “Father”
3. The person of Jesus Christ (incarnation, ministry, cross, resurrection, session, parousia)
4. The person of the Holy Spirit
5. The God of Christianity and other religious traditions
What on earth is God doing?
6. Creation in the beginning
7. An ongoing history of evolution
8. The emergence, place and vocation of humanity in God’s creation
9. The destructive legacy of human sin
10. God’s providence
11. God’s electing grace
12. Atonement (the work of Christ)
13. Salvation (the work of the Spirit)
14. The formation and nature of the church
15. The mission and ministry of the church
16. The sacraments
17. Christian hope for the completion of God’s work
How have we come to know God?
18. God’s revelation through nature
19. God’s revelation through Holy Scripture
20. The theological interpretation of Scripture
Please note that this list of themes and the way in which they are organised here should not be regarded as final. It may be that few people would be interested in some of the themes while others may want to suggest additional themes. These themes are formulated in the language of the Christian tradition so that they can be easily recognisable.