ROMANS 8 AND THE ECOLOGY OF CREATION
The Creation of the World and the Expulsion from Paradise, Giovanni di Paolo. Image provided by author.
“Praise be to you, my Lord, through our Sister, Mother Earth, who sustains and governs us, and who produces various fruit with colored flowers and herbs”. (1) With these words of St. Francis of Assisi, Pope Francis begins his Papal Encyclical “Laudato Si”, a 246-point encyclical detailing his hopes for climate justice in a Christian context. Here is where we begin when discussing Romans through an eco-justice lens. He then states that “The violence present in our hearts, wounded by sin, is also reflected in the symptoms of sickness evident in the soil, in the water, in the air and in all forms of life. This is why the earth herself, burdened and laid waste, is among the most abandoned and maltreated of our poor; she “groans in travail” (Rom 8:22).” (2) There is no doubt that the earth’s groanings in travail are a topic of extreme importance in the 21st century. Anne K. Armstrong noted, “As of 2016, the global average CO2 level in atmosphere was 403 ppm and increasing by 2–3 ppm per year. The last time earth’s atmospheric CO2 concentration exceeded 400 ppm was three to five million years ago, a time when global temperatures were 2° to 3°C warmer and sea levels were ten to twenty meters higher than today.” (3) For this reason, we must work quickly and efficiently to produce a Christian environmental ethic; I believe that working with Paul, especially Romans 8, is a great place to start.
22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; 23 and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. (Rom 8:22, NRSV). In this, Paul writes of not just human beings, but all creation, groaning in labor pains. Though this passage is eschatological (that is, dealing with the return of the Messiah) we cannot discount the ecological usage of this passage in the context of climate change. In fact, the authors of Greening Paul: Rereading the Apostle in a Time of Ecological Crisis posit that the Greek word Paul uses for creation, ktisis, refers to the whole created order. This idea has historical roots; Irenaeus, Tertullian, Luther, and even Calvin have suggested it. For instance, Irenaeus notes that “For God is rich in all things, and all things are His. It is fitting, therefore, that the creation itself, being restored to its primeval condition, should without restraint be under the dominion of the righteous;” after which he quotes Romans 8:19. (4) The “created order” longs for the redemption of the resurrection, notes Calvin. (5) Even St. Paul himself notes this in Romans 1, where he states “Ever since the creation of the world his eternal power and divine nature, invisible though they are, have been understood and seen through the things he has made. So they are without excuse” (Rom 1:20). In Romans 8, Paul is noting that this creation is suffering alongside humanity. Though Paul may not have thought about climate issues like we do, he had his own environmental concerns. Think of the elaborate Roman villas of the Caesars that currently lie in ruins. Imagine how much was destroyed to build them. It is not unlike today where the wealthy and ruling persons destroy creation for their own benefit. Consider the work of modern deforestation. When deforestation occurs, it decreases the ability for the forests to soak up carbon emissions. This soaking up of carbon emissions accounts for 1/3 of the emissions put about by industrialization. However, destroying this land not only eliminates the percentage at which carbon can be soaked up but the act of doing so also releases carbon emissions from these carbon sponges. (6)
In her essay on Romans 8, Sutter Rehman notes that to bring about a ‘new earth’ and the relief of suffering is not done by waiting around. “The new earth does not simply fall from the sky; justice does not come about without our cooperation. The earth’s birthing signals a great transformation that needs the involvement of everyone’s energies in order to succeed.” (7) I would also argue that it is us that has subjected ktisis to futility, causing her to groan in labor. As Paul says, it seems as the one who has created her has subjected her to this futility, but that is not our job. She groans in labor pains above and beyond what her Creator intended. For as humans groan in labor and produce life, our creations groans often in springing forward new life in the birds of the air and creatures which swarm in the waters; however, humanity has been inducing labor pains beyond which she can sustain and, if we do not act, she will not survive. If we are to participate in the suffering of creation’s labor, then we must also be involved in the restoration of creation to bring about the “redemption of bodies”, both our bodies and the body of Creation, now and in the coming age. It is in our care of creation that we are to bring about a redemption of bodies, bodies that are adversely affected by climate change and the body that is our Earth. We must not just simply wait for our adoption and "redemption of our bodies" before we can stand against our destruction of creation.
So what does this mean? I argue that we are not simply given absolute dominion over the created order, for we are a mere part of it. If we want to understand the idea and doctrine of creation, we must understand that this creation comes from God and we were given stewardship over Creation, not absolute power. The Episcopal Church has created a covenant for care of creation, which is integral to the discussion of an eco-theology. In this, the language of “safeguarding creation and stewarding resources” (8) catches my eye. We are images of God, but we are also stewards of creation, not medieval kings or lords. We are not to crush underneath our feet all in creation that does not suit us. We must remember that we are dust, and to dust we shall return. We are of creation as well as her stewards. To be the imago dei, the image of God, means that we are to be in right relationship with God and God’s creation, therefore defiling creation means to defile also the images of God in one another. It is not hard to see that the effects of climate change most harshly effect the poor and the downtrodden among us. Those who seek to destroy the Earth for a few extra dollars spit in the face of the divine image and divine nature that is within every human being - especially those human beings who have the least agency in this conversation. This is a sin that not only destroys God’s creation but also draws us further from God and the images of God in one another.
The time for waiting is over, yet the time for hope is not. It is Advent, after all; we are waiting in expectant hope for Christ’s redemptive acts and for the eschaton to be revealed. Yet, it can be hard to be hopeful about climate change initiatives. In section 61 of Laudato Si, Pope Francis notes, “Hope would have us recognize that there is always a way out, that we can always redirect our steps, that we can always do something to solve our problems.” Again, in section 71, he cites Noah in Genesis 6 and says that “all it takes is one good person to restore hope”. I am of the mindset that individuals cannot do nearly as much for climate change as policy makers and corporate organizations; however, I do believe that individuals are able to provide hope. When we hope for a future that is full of life and change around our attitudes on climate, we ARE hoping for the resurrection and redemption of bodies. Just because we look forward to the resurrection and the life of the world to come does not mean this world is for naught. It is precisely BECAUSE we hope for these things that we must take care of our home that is all that God has made. creation and humankind hope with anxious patience and in faith for full restoration. Through participation and suffering with Christ and with creation, we do not wait as disengaged bystanders, but active participants in God’s creative work of redemption.
Canticle of the Creatures, in Francis of Assisi: Early Documents, vol. 1, New York-London-Manila, 1999, 113-114.
Francis, Laudato si’ (Vatican City: Vatican Press, 2015), sec. 2.
Anne K. Armstrong, Marianne E. Krasny, and Jonathon P. Schuldt, “CLIMATE CHANGE SCIENCE:,” in Communicating Climate Change, A Guide for Educators (Cornell University Press, 2018), 7–20, http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7591/j.ctv941wjn.5.
Irenaeus of Lyons, “Irenæus against Heresies,” in The Apostolic Fathers with Justin Martyr and Irenaeus, ed. Alexander Roberts, James Donaldson, and A. Cleveland Coxe, vol. 1, The Ante-Nicene Fathers (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Company, 1885), 561.
John T. McNeil, ed., Calvin: Institutes of the Christian Religion, vol 1, BooksI.1 to II.xix, LCC 20, 2 vols. (London: SCM Press, 1960), 717.
Mikkel Funder. “Introduction.” REDUCING EMISSIONS FROM DEFORESTATION AND DEGRADATION (REDD): AN OVERVIEW OF RISKS AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE POOR. Danish Institute for International Studies, 2009. http://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep15626.6. 1.
Sutter Rehman, To Turn the Groaning into Labor. in Amy-Jill Levine and Marianne Blickenstaff, A Feminist Companion to Paul, 2004. 81.
The Episcopal Church. Episcopal Covenant to Care of Creation. n.d., 3.
