B6 - The Terrace Standard, Wednesday, May 8, 1996 The earth was placed in our care By Martin Vold Terraceview Lodge AT A recent conference of evangeli- cal church Jeaders, four notable Chris- Wan thinkers met for lunch. One of them, Tony Campolo, asked the other three what they thought the most Im- portant issue facing Christians in the next ten years would be. Unanimously they replied, ‘‘the en- vironment’? My purpose in this column is three- fold: to inform both Christians and non-Christians of what the biblical mandate regarding care of our earth is, to encourage Christians to be environ- mentally responsible; and to offer cau- tions to Christians involved in en- vironmental movements. In recent times, critics of Chris- lianily, have proposed that post- Reformation Christianity is largely Tesponsible for the ecological crises we see all around us. They insist that man has found justification in the biblical account of creation, to exploit nature for bis own ends, with God’s endorsement: It must be admitted that the biblical passage in Genesis 1:26 - 28, giving man dominion over the earth, with the injunction to fill it and subdue it, bas been interpreted wrongly by some Christians. Consequently, many of these people View Point have been selfishly anthropocentric and quick to ravage nature, in all its forms, to meet man’s “‘supposed’”’ need. This is not what the biblical mandates, insofar as God’s creation is concermed. What critics do not stress is that ecological problems exist in parts of the world where the Judeo-Christian tradition has had no influence. They also overlook the fact that many Christians promote (and have in the past), what could be termed, “creation care,’? In the Old Testament God placed Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden to “till? it and ‘‘keep’’ it (Genesis 2:15). We see in biblical passages such as Psalm24:1 and Psalm 50:10-11 that the earth belongs to the Lord. Romans, chapter 8, verses 19 to 22 states that there will come a time when God will set all of His creation free from its “‘slavery to corruption’? and decay. In the meantime, man is called to care for what God has created, in con- Box 22, IMPROVING Terrace, B.C. YOUR ODDS v8G 4A2 wot | MatIeT, Materia Prk FOUNDATION | #7 KILLER 838-1167 kin, for an acknowledgement card. Your In Memoriam gift is a lasting tribute. Please send your donation to the address above, along with the name and address and the name and address of the next-of- junction with Him. As British theologian, John Stott has so aptly put it “It would be ludicrous to suppose that God first created the carth and then handed it over to us to be destroyed,’ Being environmentally concerned and responsible is the only option available for those Christians who desire to be truly faithful to the bibli- cal mandate conceming creation. Nevertheless, they must also remain truc to what the Bible says about man and about nature. It is wrong to wor- ship nature in any way, shape or form. The Creator alone is worthy of wor- ship, not what He (or man) has creat- ed (Exodus 20;3-5). A We are not just part of the’ ‘‘life force” that courses through nature. That there is a hierarchy in God's creation should be obvious from a reading of biblical passages like Genesis chapters 1-2 and Psalm 8:3-9, If we look at Bible passages like Matthew 10:29-31, we see that even Jesus Himself declared that all life is not of “equal”? value to God. This of course, docs not give Chris- tians license to destroy the plant and animal world for selfish human pur- poses, Rather, in the same way that God cares for the sparrows in Mat- thew chapter 10, so should we, Major Credit Cards Accepted CORRTIVARE | STOPPERS 635-TIPS Your donation is tax deductible Rick Wozney pe] Skeena Liberals For More Information Call: Terrace Campaign Office - 635-8485 or drop by 4660 Lakelse Avenue Authorized by Official Agant: M. Vanherd 635-8485 Aine AR at De ' - BOAT BOATING AND BOOZING DON'T MIX. MART. Canadian Safe Boating Council jobs from each project in your area. Forest Renewal BC Cariboo-Chilcotin Forest Renewal BC Thompson-Okanagan 238 St. Paui St.“ Kamloops, B.C, V2C 6G4 Forest Renewal BC Skeena-Bulkloy a 303-19 First Ave. North. Bag 5000, 1st Floor | 707¢299 Victoria St. Cranbrook, B.C. 7 V1C1B7 > RESPECTING THE LAND, SECURING OUR FUTURE Forest Renewal BC is unique in North America....possibly the world. 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