Title:
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Beyond stewardship : the search for a truly ecological Christian spirituality
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The object of this research is to discover how Christianity can be reformed so that
it could provide the foundation of a truly ecological spirituality. It is the
contention of the thesis that the planet currently faces an ecological crisis that has
largely been brought about by human activity, encouraged by a particular worldview,
which sees the non-human creation as of no value in itself and merely an
object to be used. The work argues that those who see traditional Christian
theology as a contributory factor in this destructive world-view are correct.
The first chapter of the thesis seeks to describe the crisis and define the terms
"ecology" and "Christian spirituality". Chapter Two examines the mainstream
Christian response to the ecological crisis thus far, namely the "stewardship
approach", and argues that this approach has serious weaknesses. Chapter Three
strives to move beyond stewardship and looks specifically at how the person of
Jesus of Nazareth can become a focus for ecological thinking. Chapter Four
continues this theme by exploring images of the Christ, with the aim of showing
how these images can encourage an ecological awareness and practice. Chapter
Five looks at other faiths and forms of thought which give insights that could be
resources in the journey towards an ecological Christian spirituality. Finally,
Chapter Six sets out to formulate such a spirituality, looking at its theology,
liturgy, and practice as well as at the spirituality itself.
Overall, the thesis is a contribution to the growing field of Ecotheology. It seeks
to show how Christianity can move from being a part of the ecological problem to
encouraging a transformative praxis that could offer hope of a solution to the
crisis by effecting a fundamental change of heart in its adherents through the
spirituality it engenders.
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