Environment

The environment, understood as ecosystems, does not consist only of physical attributes; it is subjected to and influenced by cultural and hence spiritual perceptions. Questions about the engagement of religious traditions with the environment have been triggered by what has been called the “spoliation of nature debate,” initiated by the American historian Lynn White. In a 1967 article, White argued that the Judeo-Christian tradition, in which God created nature for humanity's benefit, establishes the dualism of man and nature. Since then, in a context where the “environmental crisis” has gradually become a central theme in Western societies and a foremost issue in national and international public policies, all major religions have taken up the controversy by reexamining the relationship of humankind and nature in their ...