Christianity & Issues in the Natural World (Edexcel GCSE Religious Studies B)

Christian Responses to Threats to the World

Threats to the World

• The world today is being damaged by pollution, global warming and the use of natural resources by humans

• Many animal species are being threatened with extinction and the increase in human population is becoming unsustainable

• There are multiple threats to the natural world, including the use of fossil fuels, destruction of habitats, and pollution 

Use of Fossil Fuels

• Some natural resources are non-renewable, including vegetation, minerals, and fossil fuels

  • Humans are overusing non-renewable resources and the resources are finite so will eventually run out

• Some natural resources have taken millions of years to form beneath the earth’s surface

• These are fossil fuels like oil, gas and coal, which are used as energy sources

• The burning of fossil fuels is one of the main causes of Global Warming

  • Since around 1950 there has been a dramatic increase in global temperatures

  • This is due to an increase in greenhouse gases trapping more heat in the earth’s atmosphere

  • The burning of fossil fuels produces the gases that enable this to happen

• The increase in global temperatures causes extreme weather patterns

  • The consequences include floods, droughts, damage to animals’ habitats, ice caps melting, more deserts and a reduction in rainforest

  • Scientists believe that human activities over the last 100 years have increased the rate of temperature change

  • The change alters ecosystems so plants and animals have to adapt or die out

• Many religious and non-religious people will work to repair and reduce the harm to the environment

• Some ways of achieving this include using alternative sources of transport like electric cars, renewable energy sources, and using fewer fossil fuels are 

Destruction of Habitats

• A habitat is somewhere where living organisms exist

• Destruction of habitats may occur either due to pollution damage, or to clear space for development

  • Pollution is often caused by humans through oil spills or nuclear fallout

  • The destruction of forest habitats known as deforestation often occurs to provide grazing for cattle

  • The destruction of trees harms the environment as there are fewer trees to remove carbon from the atmosphere

  • Many species only live in rainforest areas and are becoming endangered

    • For example, the habitat of orangutans is being cleared to grow Palm Oil

• Many religious and non-religious people change their lifestyles to maintain and preserve the habitats of living creatures

• They might reduce the need for grazing space by reducing meat consumption or use wood from sustainable forests or alternative ingredients in food

Pollution

• Pollution is an excess of toxic substances in the air, land, or water and can destroy the environment

  • Fumes from cars and factories cause air pollution

  • Dumping waste into the sea and the use of pesticides causes water pollution

  • Getting rid of human rubbish causes land pollution

• Factories and transport cause the most air pollution

  • Increased CO₂ and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere trap more heat leading to global warming

  • Polluted air can lead to health conditions like asthma, lung cancer, and other diseases

  • Chemicals mix with water droplets in the atmosphere and then falls in the form of acid rain, damaging the land, water, crops, and buildings

• Factories and farming can also be a cause of water pollution

  • Factories empty their waste into rivers

  • Chemicals used in farming drain from the land into the water sources, killing fish and devastating marine life

• Farming can also be a cause of land pollution

  • Some farmers use harmful pesticides on crops which can contaminate soil, turf, and other vegetation

  • In addition to killing insects or weeds, pesticides and herbicides can be toxic to many other organisms including birds, fish, non-harmful insects, and plants

• Many religious and non-religious people try to limit the amount of pollution that exists within the environment

  • They may reduce the amount of transport which adds to air pollution

  • They might work to develop or use cleaner energy which helps the environment

  • Farmers might insist on using natural methods of pest control

  • People might recycle more or avoid unnecessary littering

Stewardship & Humanity's Role as Stewards

Stewardship

• Stewardship is the belief that God appointed humans to be his stewards (caretakers) of his creation

  • Stewardship is a belief that impacts the behaviour of many religious people including Christians and Muslims

  • Christians may believe this due to a number of reasons

    • The Bible says, ‘The Earth belongs to the Lord and everything on it’ (Psalms 24:1) meaning that the natural world does not belong to humans to treat as they wish

    • In the story in Genesis 2, Adam was given the task of looking after the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2:15) and this responsibility was passed on to other humans

  • Christians believe that they will be judged when they die based on how they have treated the world

Humans as Stewards of the World

• As stewards, Christians believe that people have been appointed by God to respect the world, working with nature to preserve what God has given

  • As a result of this we are able to use what is provided in a sustainable way for our survival

  • The world is complex and fascinating and it inspires a sense of awe in humans and is evidence of God’s creative power

  • The world has value to Christians and therefore should be preserved

Differing Christian Responses to Animal Rights

Animal Rights

• Humans use animals for many different purposes

• There are different opinions about the use of animals

  • Animals are sometimes used for medical experiments to test products before human use. The process is called vivisection

  • Sometimes the safety of cosmetics, food or colour additives is tested on animals

  • Animals are commonly used for food 

    • Often this is factory farming which involves intense agriculture with limited freedom for the animals

• Religious and non-religious people have different opinions regarding the rights of animals

• Some people believe that animals should have equal rights with human beings

• Others believe that the mistreatment of animals is wrong but humans have control over animals and they should be used to benefit humans in some circumstances

Christian Responses to Animal Rights

• Christians believe that God made the world and everything in it and that humans are the stewards of His creation

• They believe that God gave Christians dominion over the world meaning that they have control over the resources of the world including animals:

• Some Christians believe that man is more important as they believe humans were made in the image of God

  • Therefore they believe only human life is sacred

• Yet, Christians are also taught that they should be kind to and look after animals

• Some Christian denominations, for example, the Society of Friends (Quakers) believe that any ill-treatment of animals is completely wrong

Christianity and animal testing

• Most Christians believe that it is wrong to test animals for things like cosmetics but would support testing on animals for medical advancement

• Christians might believe this because:

  • Animals are part of God’s creation and so they should not be abused for something that is not essential

  • Human life is sacred and animal testing has led to the development of medicines and technologies that improve human life e.g. vaccinations

  • Testing to enhance medical developments prevents more suffering than it causes, and is the lesser of two evils

  • Medical research has improved the life expectancy of humans by approximately 23.5 years. Christians believe God would approve of this

• Some Christians may be against animal testing of any kind because of the harm it does to animals

  • Humans are not the same as animals, and medical testing can be unreliable

  • Animals are part of God’s creation and should be treated with care

  • Animal testing leads to suffering and death

  • We would not allow this treatment against humans, and animals can still feel pain like humans can

Christianity and animal consumption

• Most Christians believe that it is up to the individual to decide if they want to eat meat or not

• There are no specific food laws that govern Christianity and so it is a matter of personal choice

• Saint Paul taught that vegetarians and meat eaters should not judge one another, but respect each other’s choices

• Those Christians who do eat meat might point to Christian teachings suggesting that eating meat is permitted

• Christian teaching about humans having dominion over the world implies that we should use animals as a resource to live

  • After the flood, God permitted Noah to eat meat

• God permitted St. Peter to break the Kosher food laws

• Those Christians who do not eat meat might point to Christian values and relate that to the treatment of animals

  • Francis taught that animals also had souls and because they have souls, killing them would be wrong

  • Christian teachings of stewardship suggest that we should care for the world and everything in it. 

    • Farming and consuming animals can cause harm

    • The conditions of factory farming do not fit with the Christian values of agape love

  • Jesus taught his followers to be loving to those who are weaker

    • Animals are weaker than humans, so following Jesus’ teaching means not causing them harm

  • Killing animals for food encourages violence, which many Christians disagree with

  • In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve were vegetarian. Many Christians believe they should try and emulate this lifestyle before creation was corrupted by sin